Tampa and Tampa Bay area homeowners, we have some advice for you when it comes to designing your dream smart home and selecting smart home fixtures. Just like doorknobs, faucets, and cabinet hardware, smart home fixtures are built-in structural home elements that are considered to be part of the home and left behind after you sell it. No where is the age of your home more evident than the fashion of the fixtures. That’s why they need to be timeless.
Smart home manufacturers like Lutron, Control4, Savant, Séura, and Leon are elevating home interiors by creating classic and sophisticated home control keypads, doorbells, and built-in tech masked as home décor brining the best in design to Tampa and Tampa Bay area smart homes.
“Fixtures are what makes the design shine and are usually the first thing I think about when I enter a space for redesign,” says Tampa Interior Designer Samantha VanSteenburg, NCIDQ, ASID. “We’re seeing warmer tones replace the greys that have dominated interior design the last decade. With that, nickel, champagne, and gold finishes are having their moment, and mixing metals (done right) is perfectly acceptable.”
When considering smart home fixtures and smart home automation in general, VanSteenburg recommends working with a technology designer as early as possible. “Bringing in the tech designer early in the process is essential. A tech designer is an expert in a centrally focused field. They are apprised on the latest technology in this rapidly changing industry. Trusting them in the design process teaches me the latest and allows them the freedom to do what they do best. Collaborating and including them on the design elements and desired mood of the space is beneficial for both of us” she says.
Here are some of our favorite smart home fixtures from htacertified.org and the experts here at Integral that give Tampa homeowners and designers options for taking the style of their smart home to a new level.
Control4 Chime Doorbell
Control4 Chime is a video doorbell designed and built for the Control4 Smart Home. It delivers everything you’d expect from a video doorbell plus leverages the power of Control4 to provide greater security and keep you connected and in control like never before. It also looks incredible. Here’s an example of an installation we did in the Tampa area where we had to install the Chime in a pre-existing tile wall. The result is stunning! Integral Home Technology is a Control4 partner, so we can help set up your Control4 automation system.
Upscale On-Wall Customization from Lutron
A blend of timeless design and human-centered technology, Lutron Alisse keypads enable customization and finish options that tie your design together across the entire home.
Custom-engraved text or icons allow you to personalize your or your client’s keypads, ensuring that Alisse feels intuitive for homeowners and guests alike.
“I love Lutron. They’ve perfected automated human-centric technology, from lighting to security to shades. And it’s no longer this complicated exclusive luxury technology. There’s so much that goes into creating an atmosphere that is, in large part, completely unnoticed. One that naturally (and automatically) enhances the daily rhythms of the people! Lutron’s partnership with Ketra lighting and how it enhances mood and highlights art is impressive,” says VanSteenburg.
Milled from solid brass and finished by hand, these keypads have a sublime presence. Understated halos of light highlight keypad buttons to improve visibility. Alisse is available in 11 polished, brushed, and painted finishes so you can choose the option that best fits the environment.
TRUFIG Cleverly Disguises Your Wall Fixtures
Technology devices can be bulky and visually obtrusive, distracting from the designer’s or homeowner’s overall design vision. The TRUFIG flush-mounting process puts an end to all that by delivering a trimless, minimalist aesthetic across a wide range of finishes and devices. Seamlessly integrate wiring, lighting control, HVAC, speakers, and voice control into your space without visual intrusion. An interior designer’s smart home dream product!
Media Décor Eclipse Artfully Hides Your TV
TVs aren’t often considered home fixtures, though TV mounts and lifts are. Another less common smart home fixture is the art screen or lift. These devices mask the TV with art. Media Décor’s Eclipse Art Lift is a perfect example of this concept executed to perfection. It lets you turn your TV into an artistic focal point with artwork from your personal collection. Media Décor makes other innovative products that conceal TVs, as well. 
Séura Vanishing TV Wall for the Home Gym and Beyond
Is living a more active lifestyle one of your goals this year? Séura’s Vanishing TV Mirror Wall is a perfect fit for fitness. Turn on your favorite show during your workout or stream your favorite yoga videos. This is a great addition to any home gym or wellness space. Don’t want a complete floor-to-ceiling option, no problem. Séura makes other mirrors designed for various rooms in the home (plus a really nice line of outdoor TVs).
Stylish Comfort from Haiku Indoor & Outdoor Fans
Enhance the look and feel of your covered outdoor space with Haiku fans. These fans are hand-built with aircraft-grade aluminum airfoils and stainless steel components. With industry-leading IP ratings, they offer maximum protection from harsh Tampa and Tampa Bay climates and elements, while high-tech security features safeguard against overspinning or misalignment in heavy winds.
Haiku also custom-builds indoor fans that are precision-balanced for years of effortless operation. You can pair indoor fans with the perfect downlight and uplight LED to illuminate your home. Best of all, Haiku fans integrate with your smart home automation systems for simple operation. Say goodbye to chintzy looking fans forever and invest in a fan that suits your design and environment
Where are all the in-wall and in-ceiling indoor and outdoor speakers on our list of favorite fixtures, you ask? We concur that architectural speakers are indeed considered home fixtures, but they are in an audio category all their own. Stay tuned for more on that.
“Technology can be intimidating. I’ve heard other designers talk about the fears of the ease of use for specifying home automation for their clients. Education, a good partnership with a tech expert, and familiarity with making it an integral part of every design can help ease those fears and make designers more comfortable with specifying” says VanSteenburg.
