How to Make your RV a Smart Home

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By Cassandra Redding

CNET, a technology news and review website, defines a smart home as a "home that is equipped with network-connected products (i.e., "smart products," connected via Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or similar protocols) for controlling, automating and optimizing functions such as temperature, lighting, security, safety or entertainment, either remotely by a phone, tablet, computer or a separate system within the home itself."

Although CNET is talking about a house, the same definition can be applied to your RV. Although many resist the thought of technology invading their camping life and just want to use the time away to unwind and unplug, the recent trends suggest much more are embracing the rise of technology that is being incorporated into RVs today. RV automation is popping up on showroom floors with new central control systems and apps that essentially automate different elements of your RV such as lighting, heating, air conditioning, awnings and the entertainment system. Getting started on setting up a smart RV can be mind-boggling: there are so many different accessories that work only with specific products, and some work better than others. Here's a guide to help you get started:

The first step and most crucial step is to get online. To make your RV a truly smart home, you will have to begin with reliable internet access. If you're staying in one place for an extended period - the choice is more straightforward. You find what works best in that location and optimize for it. Mobility, however, presents some unique considerations and may be the toughest part of RV automation. If you want or need to be moving locations often, you need to prepare for the reality that what works best will change each time you relocate. The best choices are: using a public network, a satellite connection, or Mobile Internet (MiFi), which is not inexpensive for Canadians. Using a WiFi booster is another option for staying connected while on the road. A WiFi booster takes WiFi signals within a certain range and boosts the strength of those signals for your devices. Having your own WiFi router in the RV is also vital - then you won't have to re-connect with a different SSID every time you change your locations. Being online nearly everywhere and most of the time at an affordable price is within reach, you just have to research what works best for you.

Second – choose an assistant. The next thing to do to make your RV automated is to select a virtual assistant - Google's Assistant, Amazon's Alexa or Apple's Siri, use voice-activated speakers that come with their own virtual assistants, allowing you to take advantage of their learning techniques in controlling your RV smart home. VA's make it easy to control smart home products by speaking simple commands like "Alexa, turn on the lights." Each of these products has its strengths and weaknesses, so choose the one that will be more likely to work for your RV needs.

Third - choose your hardware - after you pick your assistant, you can then choose a piece of hardware that will become your primary smart home controller. Here are the most popular choices of hardware:

  • Amazon's Alexa: Echo Dot, Echo, and Echo Show
  • Google's Assistant: Google Home, Newer Android Smartphones
  • Apple's Siri: iPhones, iPads and Apple Watch

Put your assistant to work. You will have to do a bit of research to download the correct app for your phone or table for the product you chose, to begin using the technology. Then it is time to decide what appliances you want to bring to life in your RV. Any appliance that plugs in can be controlled with your assistant if you purchase smart plugs (like the Wemo or iHome's SmartPlug). Smart plugs allow your assistant to do things like set a specific time for the coffee to start in the morning or switch the power on or off remotely. (Handy if you have been out all day away from your RV.)

Perhaps you want a smart thermostat (consider the Nest or the Emerson Sensi Touch Wi-Fi thermostat.) The main benefit of a smart thermostat is that it can detect when you aren't in the RV and determine when to shut off the heat or air-conditioning to preserve energy.

Do you want to turn on or off the lights in your RV? Do some research on smart switches and smart lightbulbs that can be used with the assistant you chose.

Lastly, consider connecting work and entertainment devices such as your desktop, laptop, speakers, and television. Your virtual assistant can be your clock, alarm, timer, weather forecaster and music player, but building yourself a smart RV is no easy task. It will require hours of studying and a whole lot of new technical jargon. But if you are patient enough, the effort feels worth it as you watch your RV come to life with the sound of your voice or the touch of a button.