Locks

If you are looking to establish an effective smart home network, then you might consider getting a smart lock. Being able to lock and unlock your door from a remote location is a surprisingly useful feature. There are many cases where you might need to unlock your door while you are away. Some common examples include having a guest show up while you are out, letting a maintenance worker or a house maid inside, or even opening the door for a postal worker so they can place your package inside away from the rain.

Smart door locks are also perfect for users who may be forgetful and might not always remember to lock the door before they leave. Sometimes, you may be in a really big hurry, and it might just slip your mind. Other times, you might have been worrying about so many other things that you aren't even sure if you locked your door or not. Having to wonder whether or not you locked your door can cause great anxiety and stress. But with a smart door lock, you can easily check the lock's status. And if you did forget to lock the door, you can secure it with the press of a button.

When choosing a smart door lock, it is recommended that you build around your existing smart home network. This way, you can more easily use the lock alongside your existing smart home devices. For example, if you have established a strong Z-Wave Plus network, then you might consider getting a Z-Wave Plus door lock. This will let you use the lock with smart scenes for controlling multiple Z-Wave devices at once. Many Alarm Grid customers control their Z-Wave devices through Total Connect 2.0 or Alarm.com. An appropriate alarm monitoring plan will allow you to access one of these services to control your Z-Wave devices remotely.

But you don't have to use a Z-Wave smart lock. You might choose to build around the Apple HomeKit platform instead. This is great for iOS users, as they will be able to control their lock remotely using voice commands sent through Siri. The lock can also be included with HomeKit smart scenes for automatic activation based on a schedule or with certain system events. To control HomeKit devices remotely, you must have a HomeKit Hub on the same WIFI network. This includes devices like an iPad, an AppleTV Gen 4 or higher, or an Apple HomePod.

Many smart locks also eliminate the need for physical keys. Instead, the smart lock will have a push-button keypad or a touchpad. This will allow you to enter in a secret code to unlock the lock. If you use a Z-Wave lock with Total Connect 2.0 or Alarm.com, you may be able to program the lock to also Disarm your system with a valid code. This can be very convenient for entering your home and only having to enter one code. Many locks will allow you to push down codes from a security panel so that you can unlock the lock with the Master Code on your alarm system.