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Inside the HGTV Smart Home

April 24, 2017

Set in Scottsdale, Ariz., this year’s HGTV Smart Home includes three bedrooms and three-and-a-half bathrooms across 3,300 square feet. The home features a spacious three-car garage, a wet bar, home office and a generous pantry and laundry area, as well as a sleek, modern pool. All of this is enhanced with tech gadgets and smart solutions.

KBB spoke with Carley Knobloch, a digital lifestyle expert who led the technology team at the 2017 Smart Home, to find out what makes the house so smart.

Goals for the Kitchen

Knobloch: For me, technology in the kitchen is all about making repetitive tasks easy, making tools accessible and speeding up cooking and cleaning up. Plus, the kitchen is the hub of the home, so it’s a great place to charge devices and for family members to communicate with one another.

                                                                
       The kitchen features a Kohler touchless faucet and adorne pop-out outlets for the modern family.

Kitchen Technology

Knobloch: A Kohler touchless faucet makes for easy hands-free cleaning up in the kitchen, which comes in so handy when your hands are dirty during food prep.

The adorne Collection Pop-Out Outlets on the kitchen island make plugging in small appliances accessible, but they disappear when you don’t need them. They come in both magnesium and white, and their striking form makes them like jewelry for the space. Samsung’s Family Hub Refrigerator lets family members leave notes for each other, create shopping lists and see inside the refrigerator from a compatible smartphone.

The lighting in the space is automated by Legrand’s Wi-Fi Lighting system, which allows you to control the lights from the home’s iPad or wall switches and program the lights in difference scenes (for example, to light a path from the garage door to the kitchen when you enter).

Goals in the Master Bath

Knobloch: Master bathrooms are all about luxury and comfort and being able to unwind at the end of the day. I wanted the master bath technology to be a spa-like experience for the homeowner.

                                                                
         In the master bath, lighting is controlled by Legrand’s Wi-Fi lighting system, which allows                 the user to regulate the brightness in the room.

Technology in the Bath

Knobloch: The Kohler DTS+ digital shower system allows each homeowner to create a custom profile so their shower is their exact preferred temperature every time they step in. The Kohler digital bath system allows for custom settings as well, as well as chromotherapy for relaxation.

Then the Kohler toilet is the fanciest toilet we’ve ever installed in the HGTV Smart Home. It has a seat warmer, a nightlight and various washing and drying tools that would keep any backside happy. Plus, it sees you coming and automatically opens and closes the lid after you’ve left.

                    The master bath includes a Kohler toilet with a seat warmer and nightlight.

The lighting in the space is automated by the Legrand Wi-Fi Lighting System, and each dimmable switch allows the lighting to be dim when you’re trying to relax or bright when you’re getting ready in the morning. Just like the outlets in the kitchen, the switches come in a range of colors, and the beautifully different square design is eye catching.

Other features include the Velux skylights that vent the space (and are operated by remote controls), as well as Hunter Douglas automated shades, which allow for privacy or sunlight at the tap of an app.

The fully furnished HGTV Smart Home 2017 is Energy Star 3 certified and Bronze-Level Green certified and features products provided by national advertising partners, including Bassett Furniture, Mercedes-Benz USA, Quicken Loans, Bush Brothers & Co., Daikin North America LLC, Farmers Insurance, Gorilla Glue, HGTV HOME by Sherwin-Williams, SimpliSafe Home Security, Sleep Number, Kohler, OxiClean, Rinnai America Corp., VELUX Skylights, Hunter Douglas, Kohler Generators, Legrand North America, and Ply Gem Building Products.