Summer is around the corner, meaning it’s time to embrace warmer weather and enjoy your Austin home’s outdoor entertainment. The possibilities are endless when it comes to what you can do outside — you could watch your favorite TV show or sports team on a flat screen TV while barbecuing. Or if you want to take a swim break, why not listen to a playlist through speakers in your pool?

You can extend the top-notch entertainment features from your home’s indoor space to your patio or backyard and still control everything from your smart home automation system. Here’s how you can get your outdoor space equipped for those Texas summer days and nights.

SEE ALSO: Rock or Relax Outside with an Outdoor Sound System

Outdoor Entertainment

Thanks to today’s technology solutions, you can have fun with outdoor entertainment that’s built to withstand the elements and still provide excellent performance. You can enjoy music from high-quality outdoor speakers that seamlessly blend in with your landscaping. If you want to watch a summer flick, you can view it on a flat screen TV that can weather storms and the heat of the sun.

Don’t worry about glare — there are solutions to minimize it and give you prime viewing, always. Séura’s ultra-bright TVs offer best-in-class picture quality, advanced HDR, and 4K UHD capability, even in sunlight. If you’re wondering how to place a TV in your outdoor space, Future Automation manufactures exceptional TV lifts and mounts to fit your functional and aesthetic needs.

Wondering if your home could benefit from lighting control? If you use your lights on a daily basis, then the answer is yes. It doesn’t matter the size of your home or your budget. With Lutron’s variety of products and control solutions, Relative Home Systems can design a solution that gets the most out of your space. Whether it’s a wireless one-room setup or control fully integrated into your smart home automation, we find a solution designed just for you.   

Integrate with a Smart Automation System  

While there’s a lighting control system to fit any space, the best way to get the most out of your technology is to integrate it with smart home automation. This will allow you to create extensive scenes within your space. Hosting friends for a party? Press a “Party” scene to turn on your favorite playlist and colored LED lights while shades open for a brighter atmosphere to create the desired mood.

For a fully integrated solution, Lutron recommends the high-end HomeWorks QS system which gives you full control of your interior and exterior lights while integrating seamlessly with your audio/video and HVAC equipment for a full smart home experience. This hardwire solution ensures the most extensive, consistent and adaptable lighting control.

Explore Wireless Solutions

Working with a professional for your landscape lighting installation can result in a system that is not only easy to use, but built to last. Clients that opt for a DIY approach usually face the same design and installation problems that hurt the efficiency of the system. Learning what these mistakes are and the solution for each will help you be knowledgeable when talking to a contractor about your new home or latest upgrade. With the right landscape lighting solution in place, you can ensure you have a design that enhances your outdoor spaces and keeps your Austin, TX home safe. 

SEE MORE: 5 Steps to a Successful Landscape Lighting System

Poor Wire Connections

We begin with one of the biggest problems found in landscape lighting systems: poor wire connections. We partner with Coastal Source for all our projects for this reason. Coastal Source connectors are specifically designed for outdoor use, eliminating the need to cut and splice wire to make it waterproof. The other great thing is that the connectors are what they call "Plug-n-Play”; they link together with a simple twist to create a tight connection between the wires and keep corrosive elements out. 

No Control Solution