5 renter-friendly smarthome solutions that don’t require holes or drilling

Smart home tech can make your life easier, your residence more secure, and your household bills lower. You can use smart devices to control your electronics by voice, check who’s at the front door when you’re away, or save energy on your appliances when you aren’t using them. There are many benefits to building your smart home.

Still, there’s one problem. Many smart devices require expert installation or holes drilled into your walls and front door, which isn’t possible if you don’t own the property. However, a few renter-friendly solutions allow you to add smarts to your home without damaging your walls or door frames.

5

Place smart speakers around the house

Voice-controlled smarts in every room

The quickest and easiest way to make your home smarter is to add voice-controlled smart speakers in as many rooms as possible. A simple voice command allows you to play music, find out the latest news headlines, get the weather forecast for the day, control other devices, and more.

For a communal space, you’ll want a speaker that delivers solid audio performance for playing music, like the Sonos Era 100. It has Amazon Alexa built in, is stylish, and sounds fantastic.

For your bedroom, something small and affordable like the Amazon Echo Dot, Echo Pop, or Echo Spot is a good choice. They fit neatly onto a bedside table or shelf and give you all the benefits of a smart speaker with slightly smaller sound.

Another option is a smart display, which combines a voice-controlled smart speaker with an interactive screen. Use it to see and hear answers to your questions, watch videos, show off your favorite photos, and organize your family’s calendars.

For Alexa users, the Echo Show is available in several sizes for different rooms in the house and has great features you should use. For a bedroom, the 5-inch display on the Echo Show 5 makes a great alarm clock, while the Echo Show 10 has a bigger 10-inch display and a better speaker system, perfect for the living room. The Echo Show 15 and the Echo Show 21 are the biggest smart Echo displays, doubling as a kitchen TV. Usually, those are hung on the wall, but Amazon sells stands as an alternative.

If you use Google Assistant, use a Google Pixel Tablet as a smart home hub to organize your household. You can also take it on the go and use it like any Android slate.

4

Automate your existing tech with smart plugs

Make any device smart

Transform any electrical device into a smart device by plugging it into power with a smart plug. Then, you can turn your manually powered equipment on or off by voice, set schedules, and control everything from an app on your smartphone. For example, you could use a smart plug to turn off your TV when you go to bed in the evening, reset your Wi-Fi router remotely when you have connection problems, transform any lamp into a smart light, or turn on a heater before you get home in the winter.

Smart plugs aren’t only convenient, they also stop your devices and appliances from wasting energy when you aren’t using them. Some smart plugs can monitor how much energy your electric devices use.

It’s worth having a few smart plugs around the house. If you plan to buy several at once, we recommend the Feit Electric WiFi because it’s affordable and works with most smart home systems, including Alexa and Google Home.

Alternatively, if you have Philips Hue devices, the Philips Hue Smart Plug is an excellent choice and can integrate with Google Home, Alexa, Apple HomeKit, Samsung SmartThings, and more. You can control it from the same Philips Hue app as your lights, and it has Bluetooth connectivity.

3

Invest in smart bulbs and lamps

Control the lights by voice

Adding smart lights to a room makes your home feel smarter without putting holes in the walls. When your smart lights are up and running, you can control them by voice, set brightness levels, automate when they turn on or off, and adjust the warmth and color to suit the mood and time of day.

Smart bulbs like the Sengled Wi-Fi Color Changing Light Bulb are a good starting point. You don’t need a hub to set them up, they last around 25,000 hours, you get a choice of 16 million colors, and they typically cost less than $30, so you can buy several at once.

There are plenty of smart lamps on the market, like the Govee Floor Lamp Pro. It’s app-controlled, plugs into the main power system, and sits neatly on the floor without looking out of place.

2

Protect your home with a smart security camera

Some come with stands

Some smart security devices will be off-limits because they require installation, like video doorbells and outside security cameras. However, others don’t need to be attached to the wall. Most security cameras meant for inside the house are easy to move around and don’t require installation. Some come with stands, and others have a built-in battery, so you can place them anywhere around the house. If you need a camera to keep an eye on your driveway or garden, place one of these cameras by a window facing out.

SimpliSafe’s SimpliCam is a tiny and discreet security camera with high-quality footage and simple installation. You’ll see a live view of the room it’s placed in from an app on your phone or through a smart display. If you have privacy concerns, SimpliSafe has rigorous measures in place, including 256-bit encryption and SSL security certification.

A more affordable security camera worth considering is the Eufy Security Indoor Cam E220. From your smartphone, you can rotate and tilt the lens remotely to get a full 360-degree view of the space it’s in. Plus, two-way audio means you can speak through it like an intercom, which is handy when your dog barks or your kids get into mischief. It also makes an excellent baby monitor because it can detect when a baby cries.

1

Consider smart appliances and motion sensors

Voice-controlled electricals

In recent years, more brands have created smart appliances that work with Alexa, Google Home, Apple HomeKit, and more. You can buy smart coffee machines, air purifiers, smart fans, dishwashers, and more. You can control them by voice or from your phone. They can also be triggered using other devices.

Smart sensors are easy to install and are a great way to automate gadgets around your home. For example, you can set up the ecobee SmartSensor to turn on your air purifier, lights, and heater as you walk through the front door, ensuring you don’t waste power on those devices when you aren’t there.

You don’t have to miss out if you live in a rental property

If you can’t drill holes into the walls because you live in a rental, some smart devices aren’t suitable for your home. However, you have an extensive selection of smart home tech that doesn’t require tricky installation. Smart speakers give you voice control, smart plugs turn any mains-powered electrical device into a smart device, smart lights are a must-have for every room, and smart security cameras keep an eye on your property when you’re not there. Most devices work with Alexa, and many work with Google Home.