Home Automation

Hey WWers,

I am getting fed up with the tweakers on the home automation forums but I need some help. I am on my second system, I started with a Vera system 2 years ago. The Vera was very stable but the programming was very challenging, limited, and the interface very poor.

About a year ago I moved to a SmartThings main controller. Easy programming, many more canned options, easier scheduling, good software. Unfortunately SmartThings is only working about 90% of the time. Every now and then things just don't turn on or off as they should. I am also having issues getting what I want out of the heating and air conditioning systems schedules. Seems they are running way too much when we are not home and not heating or cooling enough when we are home. Utility bills in the $700-800 range are also getting very old. SmartThings recently introduced the V2 controller, I am still running the V1 controller. I shutter at the idea of completely re configuring the complete system on a new controller (again).

My system is primarily based on Z wave devices, nearly 50 devices currently on the network. Probably 30 lights, 5 occupancy sensors, 5 door switches, 4 relays, and 3 door locks, maybe a few other devices too.

In addition to the SmartThings home automation system I have a Pentair web based pool controller and a Sonos audio system. I can pretty much control all of my home systems from my phone. The remote control aspect of these systems is great, the automation features offers lots of room for improvement. I also have quite a few dumb occupancy sensors to control lights in the closets, bathrooms, and garages.

Anybody else out there have an extensive HA system? I would like to share and learn more about the different systems as well as more programming options. Hopefully this thread will take off.

Very interested to hear what folks have going on. I just moved back to the states and am starting to build out a very basic group of devices. So far I've installed a couple of Ecobee3 thermostats and a Schlage sense deadbolt.

Everything works very well via the iPhone apps as well as voice commands. With the Apple TV the devices are all controllable from anywhere in the world (it relays commands via the Internet to the devices).

Far from perfect but not bad and easy for the wife to get the hang of.

Need to find a garage door sensor/opener trigger next.

I am not very familiar with home automation systems, but I looked up the Z Wave system and see that it uses the 900 MHz band. The not turning on and off issue could be caused by interference from other devices. I would find out what frequency bands all of your wireless devices are on. I would also obtain a 900 MHz spectrum analyzer (www.rfexplorer.com), you would need one that works for the ISM band - 902-928MHz and 2300-2500MHz. Some utility smart meters operate in the 902 -928 MHz band and form a mesh network throughout the neighborhood. How you would do the test is check for activity with the spectrum analyzer with all your devices on and then with all your devices disconnected (meaning all the Z wave controllers powered off). If there is lots of activity on the 900MHz band with all your devices off, there may not be a lot that can be done. This is a complex subject, but the 902-928 MHz, 2.4GHz, 5GHz, and other frequency bands used for wireless devices are a limited resource and have only so much space for devices to operate. If there are smart meters nearby using the same RF space as your devices, the neighbors have similar systems, etc. there will be problems. This is only going to get worse as more people use such systems.

I am NOT against smart meters, but it was a poor choice for manufacturers to put them on the unlicensed ISM bands along with consumer devices.

Another issue with these systems is that if they are using apps on your phone and an account that you had to set up with the manufacturer, there is always a risk of hacking by unauthorized persons, security of these systems are partially in control of third party servers and the manufacturer.

Here is a link to an article about the security issues:
http://www.infoworld.com/article/289...rity-risk.html

I am a commercial HVAC contractors that does lots of energy management systems and controls. As far as the thermostats I would recommend Honeywell Wifi 9000 stats over Ecobee/Venstar/Nest. We use them a bunch with their zone systems and have not issues. I have them in all my offices and houses. I have had no issues with any of them. That is not to say not get Nest or Ecobeem, but in my 30+ years of experience I have found that the honeywell systems for residential are the best. Let me know if you need further info.

What type of heating, air or water based? Do you use outdoor compensation?

It's early days but I have yet to come across anything that approaches the convenience and cost effectiveness of HomeKit. Having a $69 hub (that doubles as a digital content delivery device) that's easy to use and voice Integrated with any iOS device from anywhere in the world is going to be a big hit I think. That and the fact that Google bought nest is why I went with the ecobee. Don't need google tracking my every move. I'm sure Honeywell will add HomeKit compatibility soon.

I have 3 of the Trane Z Wave thermostats made for the Nexia system. They work fine with both Vera and SmartThings. I have always liked Trane commercial chillers but I am not sure if the quality translates into the residential systems. For commercial controls I tend to prefer Johnson Controls over Honeywell or Siemens but again, not sure if that translates to residential.

I am considering breaking off the thermostats to an independent network. In the past 4-5 years I have been playing around with home automation I have found it tends to work best to keep systems functioning independently. The idea of having occupancy based protocols on the HVAC controls is great but only if it works. Mine are presently functioning in 5/2 day 24 hour timer mode with the convenience of being able to override a setting from anywhere via my phone. It would be great if I could get the presence sensors triggering setbacks to save heating and cooling when nobody is home. Having 3 completely independent HVAC systems is also not well controlled through the Z wave network.

I was very close to going with Ecobee, I actually have an older Ecobee stat sitting on a shelf.

My SmartThings hub is also compatible with Zigbee. From an interference point of view would we be better off using zigbee versus Z wave?

Zigbee also uses the 902 - 928 MHz band. There is no way to know if interference is causing any problems without actually checking for it. Zigbee and Z wave are just communication protocols, they use the same RF band, there is also wireless computer networking equipment that uses the 902 - 928 band. A few years ago 2.4 GHz cordless phones were discontinued because they caused interference to WiFi networks, the new DECT 6.0 phones use 1.9 GHz, there used to be 900 MHz cordless phones.

RF interference is difficult to diagnose, it can vary at different times of the day. If a device will not turn on or off at random times, it may have experienced temporary interference. If all your devices use the same RF band and technology, they should work well together, but if a different technology nearby is being used on the same band, it can cause issues. We had an old cordless phone at work that would interrupt the WiFi network when in use or ringing, got a different phone and problem went away.