Transform your garage into an entertainment zone

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This article was published 19/09/2021 (1146 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It’s now easier than ever to equip your garage with the latest gadgets to create the ideal home entertainment hub.

If you’re building a new house or garage, try to wire as much as possible for entertainment and technology, suggests Bruno Deleau of Advanced Residential Technology, a division of Advance Electronics. For garages that are already built, it’s simple to mount a TV to the wall.

“Almost all televisions today come with the popular streaming service apps built in like Netflix, Crave, Amazon, Disney+. The cable companies offer wireless cable boxes that can be connected to the television, and their video feed is streamed wirelessly,” Deleau says.

“The only limitation is Wi-Fi, so it’s very important in today’s world to have a good system in homes to distribute Wi-Fi to all areas of the house, garage and outdoor living spaces. Rule of thumb: the more that can be hard-wired, the faster your Wi-Fi will be.”

Some manufacturers even offer environmentally resistant TVs geared for garages and outdoor spaces.

“These outdoor TVs are resistant to water, dust, debris and temperature,” Deleau says.

“They have a much brighter image than a conventional TV, which allows them to be viewed in high outdoor daylight conditions.”

To boost your sound quality, Deleau suggests adding wiring for in-ceiling or on-wall speakers during the building process. For existing garages, wireless speakers are the way to go.

“These wireless speakers need to be plugged into an electrical outlet, but the audio is streamed from popular music services like Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal, Amazon or Prime. This is not unlike the wireless streaming of video to a television,” says Deleau, noting that Sonos wireless speakers and streaming amplifiers are particularly popular.

“Most clients like to incorporate the garage audio zone into other zones in their house or outdoor living spaces. This allows the same music source to be played in all zones — or every zone can be autonomous and have its own music source playing.”

If you’re building a new house or garage, try to wire as much as possible for entertainment and technology.

– Bruno Deleau,
Advanced Residential Technology, a division
of Advance Electronics.

Speakers can also be incorporated into your landscape, including in-ground subwoofers. As well, water-resistant on-wall speakers and in-ceiling speakers are perfect for garages that double as workspaces or car wash areas.

“We’ve also been installing motorized bug screens across the opening of the overhead garage doors,” Deleau added.

“This allows clients to work or entertain in the garage with the overhead door open to get light and a breeze, but it keeps bugs and leaves out.”