After working all your life, being retired is a funny feeling at first. Suddenly you have lots of time for all those things you used to put off. I started off by investing this new-found time in our home. That's how I came across Home Connect. Home Connect and its partner network is not only very practical, it also helps me with my new hobby – cooking.
Unlike me, my wife Linda is still working as a teacher. That's why I try to help out with the chores where I can". So if she comes home from school at lunchtime, I try to have a delicious meal waiting for her. I get my ideas from the Home Connect app. It has seasonal dishes, recipe ideas for every occasion and much more. The method is explained step by step and I use the app to send the correct settings directly to my Home Connect oven or hob.
"I have a virtual chef instructing me"
Since I have more time on my hands, I have started doing a cookery course. The best thing is I don't even need to leave my home to do it. My virtual cookery instructor is called Simply Yummy and allows me to gradually improve my culinary skills. Simply Yummy is also linked to Home Connect, so I can make a success of even the most complicated dishes.
"Ingredients automatically become shopping lists"
We live in the country and the nearest supermarket is nearly 20 km away. However, since I found out about Whisk, I don't really mind any more. If, for example, I find a great new recipe in the Home Connect app, Whisk automatically compiles a shopping list of all the ingredients I need for the recipe. I simply need to place the order and the ingredients are delivered to my door on the same day. I don't even have to leave the house to go shopping.
"You have to break eggs to make an omelette"
My wife appreciates my new-found cooking skills and can't wait to come home to try out my next culinary surprise. There's just one downside: As the saying goes, you have to break eggs to make an omelette, and that definitely applies to me. In other words, the kitchen floor is often a mess after I've accomplished my new recipe. My bad back used to be the perfect excuse for not being able to do the vacuuming. Now there is no need for excuses: I simply ask my Home Connect vacuum cleaner to clean the kitchen floor via the app. Thanks to the "Room Mapping" function, the vacuum cleaner is familiar with our home and knows exactly where to go. It's good for my back – and for my wife's nerves.
Another big project I’ve completed since retiring is the solar panels on our roof. At last, we are generating our own electricity and have become a bit more independent. Unfortunately, the sun doesn’t shine every day and the energy generated constantly varies. We use SMA Smart Home to achieve the highest level of efficiency. Its Sunny Home Manager is linked to our Home Connect dishwasher and switches it on when enough solar power has been generated. Thanks to this smart solution, we make the most of every ray of sun and save money in the process.
"All you need is a good idea: Festive lighting with Home Connect"
As for many of us, Christmas is the highlight of the year: The whole family comes to us and I finally get the chance to show my grandchildren that grandpa is anything other than behind the times. For my latest "trick", I use the cooker hood light to bathe the room in a festive light. I can select the colour and intensity of the light and thus create just the right atmosphere via the Home Connect app. To top it all off, when I open the dishwasher, exactly the same light illuminates the interior. My grandchildren love it and I’d never dreamed that I’d still be able to surprise the family with new technology at my age.
"Safety, saving money and learning new things: Getting Home Connect is the best idea I’ve had for a long time."
