$1M ‘NASA Control’ Room Part of Massive Retrofit

For installer Michael Wackernah of Limitless Systems Inc. (LSI) in Huntington, N.Y., this 24,000-square-foot retrofit project was an Olympic test of endurance, attention to detail and control (both emotional and technical).

“He’s the CEO of a profitable technology company, so he’s always on his game,” Wackernah says, adding the client double-checked LSI’s work, and required them to vacuum behind drilled drywall. Needless to say, this retrofit involved a lot of extreme vacuuming, because LSI retrofitted nearly everything, including a 65-inch Samsung 3D TV wired through an 8-foot-wide stone fireplace.

LSI programmed the clients’ Control4 automation system to anticipate their needs and perform on-demand with ease from touchpanels, cell phones or the home’s existing Panasonic telephone system. For example, pre-programmed lighting in the garage, driveway and applicable passageways accompanies the husband or wife when arriving or departing from “his” and “her” garages.

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Smart lighting also greets the CEO at 5 a.m. with an eye-pleasing, 30 percent glow. When the system anticipates guests in the driveway, it sounds a doorbell chime through the home’s speakers; it also alerts the police if the lady of the house presses the distress button on a house phone or any touchpanel.

Need more? From anywhere on the five-acre property, the client can access 19 flat-screen Samsung TVs, 30 audio zones, more than 300 indoor and outdoor lights, or the independent “his” and “her” audio/video systems in the gym. Control4 even oversees the 13-year-old’s Internet and TV habits, prohibiting her from surfing or tuning in after 11:30 p.m.

“We created a full-blown manual with 290 pages of custom programming [and behind-the-scenes details], and we have a paper trail of everything, down to the remotes,” Wackernah says. “So any tech can upgrade and program the system.” Wackernah even provided the client with his own printed manual and a backup copy on a USB memory stick. “Control4 lets us do everything remotely. Just today we remotely reprogrammed the system so the wife can access her cable box from the guest bedroom.”

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Equipment Room Extraordinaire
Per the client, all subsystems and devices are tucked into the basement’s equipment room, which, according to Wackernah, is the coolest part of this project. “I’d say the room is worth $1 million on its own,” he says.

Upon entering the equipment room, which Wackernah nicknamed “NASA Control,” overhead lights kick on, the racks’ LED lights flicker, the rack-mounted LCD monitor activates, and “Welcome to NASA Control” sounds over the audio system.

Wrapped in QuietRock, a fireproof and soundproof Sheetrock, the control room stays a cool 60 to 70 degrees with the help of four energy-efficient ventilation systems. “For 6,000 square feet of basement, they probably spent over $100,000 for the QuietRock,” Wackernah says. QuietRock costs $125 per board, compared to $12 for regular sheetrock.

Two additional monitors allow techs to perform testing and maintenance. Bookshelves and a four-drawer filing cabinet store equipment literature, paperwork and that massive manual. “Everything is there,” Wackernah says. “I can send over a tech without any tools or a laptop.”

Editor's Note: Are you going retro? Send photos of your intriguing retrofit projects to managing editor Arlen Schweiger at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).