Smart Home Automation with Livy & IFTTT

So perhaps you have heard of IFTTT, a friend of yours uses it, and you want to give it a try, but not sure where to start? Or what it can possibly do? 

Then you are in the right place! Let’s dive in.

What is IFTTT?

IFTTT is a web-based service that allows users to create a chain of commands by linking actions of over hundreds of web services to others, for example Gmail, Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest.

IFTTT stands for “If this, then that”, and the title of the service describes a sequence of actions that users can build that are called “applets”. It is extremely user-friendly, and essentially allows users to create automation processes between the various services that they use.

So what can you do with it? What does an applet look like?

The possibilities with IFTTT are nearly endless, and has resulted in millions of applets being created. IFTTT, as they have said themselves, allows competing entities to “play nice” with each other.

An applet may for example send a user an email if they were tagged in a Facebook picture, tweet your Facebook updates, get yourself out of an awkward situation, get a text when your Alexa timer is up, save receipts to Evernote, and even remind you of your wedding anniversary.

Like mentioned above, the possibilities are nearly in-exhaustible.

How can I use IFTTT with Livy?

Here comes the fun part: link up Livy with whatever application or service you want that is also supported within IFTTT, and go ahead and dream up some great automations!

Here are some of our favorites:

1. Set a time to turn on and off Livy. 

We all forget to turn on the alarm from time to time. When you are trying to get out the door quickly to get to work, take the kids to school, or whatever it may be, often turning on the alarm is the last thing on our minds.

Take your mind off of it and set a timer via IFTTT. You can set the time and the days of the week to incorporate it around your schedule.

2. Get a phone call in case of an alarm.

This one is for extra security. The Livy App will send you a push notification in case of an alarm, and also notify your Community as well.

But if you have made the switch from WhatsApp to Telegram like many of our Livy users, this one is especially useful for you. You can use the CallMeBot app to get a phone call and get your message read to you with a real voice.

This is then the perfect free applet with loads of value, so you can be sure to never miss an alarm again.

3. Livy off and lights on!

Smart lights are perhaps the most popular smart appliance one can get by offering an excellent stepping stone into the smart home world. When you deactivate your Livy (which you can also set a timer for), you can have your Philips Hue smart lights automatically turn on. 

That means you walk in the door and your lights automatically switch on, ready for you. How cool is that? 

4. Livy with smart heater

Because of Livy Protect’s built-in temperature and humidity sensors, you can link up your Livy and your smart thermostat. So for example, when the temperature drops too low, your tado Smart Thermostat can turn on. 

This keeps your house at a comfortable temperature all the time, but also helps against the growth of mold, which can thrive in damp, dark and colder environments. 

5. Our personal favorite -- Livy with smart fan

This is perhaps my favorite IFTTT Applet: when the temperature reaches a certain degree during the summer, my smart fan turns on. A very simple automation, and one that comes without any fuss, but what a relief - especially at night!

Finding the perfect temperature for the fan to turn on, right before it is about to get a little bit too hot, "sparks joy" in me, as Marie Kondo would say. Perhaps it sounds a bit odd, but the little "whirl" sound of my fan turning on, at the exact moment I subconsciously want it to, is hands down my favorite automation between Livy and my smart fan through IFTTT.

These are our favorite IFTTT applets with Livy. Let us know in the comments if you have any favorites as well!