It’s still summer in Arizona, and we’re already talking about Halloween? Yes! It’s never too early to start planning the best haunted house experience in the neighborhood. 

If you already have smart automation in your Scottsdale home, great! We have some ideas in this blog to help make your home a super-scary experience. But, if you don't, a smart home automation company (like us) can get you started. The best part? Home automation isn’t just for holiday fun; it pays serious dividends year-round. 

Keep reading below for three ways you can create a smart and scary Halloween haunted house with home automation. 

SEE ALSO: What to Look for in a Home Automation Company

Scary Lights

Smart lighting for landscape lighting is a great idea all year long for convenience and efficiency. But for Halloween, it can be downright scary. Imagine dimming your landscape and entry lights on and off every few seconds for effect. Your visitors will be drawn to what lurks within. And with the latest landscape lighting options, you can put color into the mix. Go with Halloween orange, or maybe a bone-chilling bloody red? Once you have your Halloween routine down, save it to a scene called “Halloween.” Then one touch of a button sets it into action for Halloween night or any spooky occasion.. 

Spooky Tunes

Music sets an ambiance and mood, and the mood is hauntingly scary for Halloween. Install a couple of landscape speakers in the front of your house neatly hidden in the garden, and link them to your whole-home audio system. Then all you have to do is find the scary playlist on Spotify or your favorite music service and play it on that speaker set. Use ridiculous laughing, terrifying sounds of doors creaking and slamming, or frightening organ music. We bet you can even frighten some adults if you do it right!

Video Doorbell Intercom

A smart video doorbell, such as the Control4 Chime, is a great way to have some fun with your visitors. The Chime's video camera and intercom capabilities let you see and hear your visitors. If you get the camera alert that someone is at the door, you can use the intercom feature to say, "go ahead, ring the doorbell if you dare!" It helps if you channel your inner Freddy Krueger for this one. When they ring the doorbell, your Chime doorbell can trigger a routine to turn off all the outside lights for several seconds. Then you can scarily offer the trick-or-treaters extra candy if they say the magic word through the intercom. Of course, it won't matter what they say; you'll need to give all that candy away anyway!

We hope these ideas inspire you to devise your own scary scenarios for Halloween. But you should get started quickly; it’s not far away – and you can enjoy all the benefits of smart home automation for the rest of the year. Contact us today by filling out this online form or dropping a message in the chat box below! We look forward to hearing from you!