You can — for one or two gadgets that’s often the right call. A whole house is a different job: network design, devices that have to speak to each other, and automations that get programmed and tested against how you actually live. We do it once, properly, and we’re the ones who show up if something misbehaves.

An optional add-on: a personal home manager in Telegram / WhatsApp. Chat with your house in plain language — switch off outlets, arm security, schedule heating, ask for status reports — from anywhere in the world.

Yes — BC Hydro is rolling out free smart thermostats this fall for homes with electric baseboard heating, plus ongoing FortisBC rebates on efficient equipment. We’ll tell you what you qualify for and fold it into your install, so you’re not leaving money on the table.

Your controller is built and configured before we arrive, so the visit is about your home, not the setup. Fitting the sensors and everyday devices is usually a single day. Anything that touches the panel or the plumbing is booked with a licensed subcontractor, which can add a separate visit — and we leave the place cleaner than we found it.

Every install includes a 3–6 month workmanship warranty, depending on package size. Hardware carries its own manufacturer warranty on top of that, and firmware updates are handled automatically wherever possible.

Those charge $25–55/month forever just to keep using features you already paid for, and the hardware stays tied to their contract even after years of payments. My Birdhouse is one-time: you own the system outright, no monitoring contract, no multi-year financing agreement.

Similar idea — full integration, one system for the whole home — without the $15,000+ price tag or being locked to one dealer forever. You can add your own devices later; you’re not stuck calling (or paying) us for every small change.

Not everything runs on battery. The system is built to lose power and come back cleanly — nothing corrupts, nothing needs re-pairing, automations resume on their own. The critical points can be battery-backed as an option: the controller, the network and the life-safety sensors, so leak and gas detection stay live and shutoff valves still close while the grid is down.

No. Comfort devices talk Zigbee / Matter on their own mesh, and the controller is hard-wired. If your internet drops, automations keep working inside the house — you just lose remote access until it’s back.

Usually yes. The Apartment package (~16 devices) is built around no-drill, wireless devices that move with you. For strata buildings we help with the paperwork your council typically asks for.

Most of it comes with you — the controller included, since it unplugs like any small appliance. What stays behind is whatever is built into the house: in-wall relays, structured cabling, shutoff valves. We’ll help you plan the move and work out what the new place needs.

Yes — keep using Apple Home, Google Home or Alexa for voice, and we’ll wire them in. Just know the trade: whatever you route through them is shared with that company. The automations themselves run in your house either way, so the house keeps working — and keeps its data — regardless of which speaker you talk to.