Luxul Networking Solutions Keep the High-Tech Magic Alive at Massive Salt Lake Residence

You could say that Jarom Iacano is a perfectionist. After all, as the owner of a custom home building and remodeling company —Alair Homes —his business’ reputation is only as good as its most recent project. So, every detail is important—from the building materials to the electronic systems. But what happens when Jarom is his own client? Does he give himself a break? This question was quickly answered when Alair Homes broke ground on his 7,000-square-foot residence in Salt Lake City. From the beginning, it was clear that Jarom’s expectations would remain sky-high. That his new domicile should include the latest in smart home and AV technology was a given, and no expense was spared. Integrator Tym joined the project to install networking, lighting, shading, and video distribution systems; whole-house audio; a home theater; outdoor speakers, lighting, and security systems; and Savant control and automation.

When the Stakes Are High . . .

However, packing a house full of electronic systems is a waste of time and money if they can’t be counted on to perform reliably day in and day out. Having a gathering where the streaming music or video cuts out is bad enough, but in this particular case the stakes were much higher—Jarom planned to use his home as an exhibit to potential clients to show off Alair Homes’ capabilities. Furthermore, the house would be a highlight in Salt Lake City’s Parade of Homes, where it would be compared to other marvels in the metropolitan area. The pressure was on.

When it comes to the magic of today’s high-tech homes, it’s the networking solutions working behind the scenes that can make or break the experience for owners and their guests. Obviously, the hardware itself needs to be reliable, but that’s often just the surface. In Jarom’s case, it was imperative that the house always be online and ready to show clients. To make that necessity a reality, Tym required the ability to service its systems remotely at a moment’s notice. Then there was the herculean feat of providing seamless WiFi connectivity throughout the massive home, its detached garage, the backyard, and a golf simulator enclosed in concrete walls. Concrete walls! For many network products, all these challenges might simply be too much to overcome. To rise to the occasion, Tym utilized solutions from Luxul.

. . . Tym Goes All in With Luxul

The home’s network is centered around Luxul’s dual-WAN Epic 5 wired router with onboard Domotz technology, which allows Tym to remotely manage and support Jarom’s network —including all connected devices. With Domotz, the company receives alerts when network issues arise, allowing them to take immediate action —such as power-cycling unresponsive devices —without the need for service calls. To extend remote management to components in the rack and remote displays, Tym utilized Luxul’s PDU-02, PDU-08, and PDU-16 intelligent network power distribution units (PDU), which also offer a self-healing function to perform reboots automatically. 

For the home’s AV-over-IP video distribution, Tym chose Luxul’s AMS-4424P 26-port/24 PoE+ stackable Layer 2/Layer 3 managed switch. An additional two switches deliver PoE power and network connectivity to in-wall keypads, devices in the rack, and three different types of wireless access points (APs). These include four XAP-1510s, delivering data rates up to 1900 Mbps; an XAP-810; and an XAP-1440, the latter two with data rates up to 1200 Mbps. The APs were configured using Luxul’s XWC-1000 wireless controller, which features the company’s Roam Assist technology to ensure seamless, active roaming of mobile devices.

This House Wins

“Jarom is thrilled with his system, its performance, and its reliability, which is due in large part to its Luxul backbone,” says Matt Montgomery, co-owner of Tym.“WiFi coverage is outstanding throughout the massive property, the Savant control system is working perfectly, and devices aren’t dropping off the network. All of this points to solid networking solutions working behind the scenes. And if there is an issue, Domotz remote management technology allows us to address it immediately without the time, expense, and inconvenience of a truck roll.”