jec6613

I don't think a second ISY would be a wise choice. Now, a first one, that's a great idea. A great way for basic monitoring and triggering events, and it's bulletproof reliable compared to the other reasonably priced options. I'd put the well pump on a 240V load controller, and just kick it off when you leave - that will help with the freezing issues. The leak sensors are also good, as are remote temperature sensors. Go with a good thermostat, not Insteon: Honeywell or similar. Insteon RF will work pretty well on a generator, but once you're on generator you need a minimum load for the sine wave to be stable so powerline will not be reliable when you're away. I use a couple of 100W incandescent bulbs to soak the load on our home generator during the day, you may need more with such a low draw on generator power. So leak sensors and door sensors are good, the PLM is fine receiving RF, but the wired in devices you can't count on them working. Z-Wave for the load controller and leak sensors (and even thermostat) are also great options here. Now, your backup? Look up Sensaphone. It's a full second set of sensors that can auto-dial or otherwise alert when something goes wrong, even if it's your ISY going down. They're the industry standard in remote monitoring - usually the IMS4000 since we're monitoring server equipment, but any of it is really good for a property like this. I've never even heard of one going down, and since it's 100% different code and hardware the chances of both going down are almost nonexistent. Also, if you have a Generac or similar generator, look into running Genmon, which can tie into the ISY via Nodelink.

I'll echo others and say that it should work, but I would highly suggest putting the PLM within range of both systems individually if you can. This keeps the hop count to a minimum, at least.

I use IFTTT with a Schneider Electric Wiser Air thermostat for basic control, and the ISY only fires off a few things to it: 1) It will disable the HVAC and send an alert if the smoke alarms go off. This is the only condition which triggers an HVAC shut-down and it's very carefully programmed. 2) It moves between Home, Away, and Sleep programs based on both time of day and home/away status. It's controlled from keypads and the garage door sensor, and none of the programs are so out of whack as to cause problems. 3) If the outside temperature goes too high so that the cooling system is maxed out, it will raise the setpoint to allow the A/C some breathing room. 4) If the temperature sensors (built into USB powered motion sensors) in any part of the house exceed thresholds (55 degrees at the low end, 88 at the high end), it will send a notification to me so that I can take corrective action as required. So it's pretty simple: a basic setback program that responds to ISY state, and a manual shutoff tied to the smoke alarms. I'd actually like to also install a relay to the manual switched oil burner shutoffs in the event of a smoke alarm as well, but I'm still working on how to make that work and be code compliant and secure.

The In-Line module is a much beefier micro module. And all of the outdoor rated boxes of this type are PVC nowadays, but you can make an older metal one safe by grounding the box to both the grounding on the strip and to the upstream earth ground, easy peasy.

With grounded power, you'd need a wired in device to dim it... or, just grab a grounded to non-grounded converter plug for a few dollars, and wire the ground tab on it directly into a dummy plug, so the light is still grounded and just bypasses the dimmer. It's perfectly OK to do that and still provides you the grounded protection. Since it's on the end of an extension, you can pick up a weaterproof extension junction box and put it all in there. They're $20-$30 on amazing, and your cords go in, and things go out. Sure, you'll probably shorten the life of the dimmer module a bit because it's not designed for extremes of winter and summer, but they're cheap and if you blow it out in 3-4 years just throw in a new one. Alternatively, wire the whole thing with an In-Line dimmer into a weatherproof box contraption of your own making using standard outdoor boxes. The In-Line dimmer is much more durable than a micro module, and the boxes are cheaper, but it's a bit more work to put together. Nothing wrong with either approach.

At this point, SD cards are cheap and your config is wiped anyway, I'd replace it.

If it's not getting the first command, it's due to network noise almost always. Something on your electrical is throwing noise and causing the troubles. I have that issue for one switch, and for the life of me I can't figure out why just that one since the other one of the 3-way pair works 100%, but if I increased the retries it works fine.

When I did my search, I found that Tripp-Lite and StarTech both make them in 6' in black, but none in 10'. Of course, with a bit of careful work with a Dremel or similar, you could just cut a new hole in the battery cover and use a straight USB cable.

You can also use a dimming outlet and the existing wet in use cover if it's a plug-in fixture. If it's a permanent fixture, put a micro module or In-Line into a protected box (the In-line is almost certainly more durable outdoors).

For what it's worth, I'm waiting on the TRÅDFRI compatible blinds out of Ikea to come out, tentatively November 1st in the US. I'm not thrilled on the idea of a rechargeable battery since I have AC power right there, but the price is right and hopefully I'll be able to control them via a nodeserver, since they're ZigBee 3.0.

Smarthome has been shipping 2.4 at least since last year when I picked up my spare. They FIFO their inventory and is the best way to get a PLM for that reason: they go through them.

That's why I have filterlincs all over my house. I picked up a pile of them with the 50% off sales.

Right click on the device in the Admin Console and hit Restore Device. It erases and re-writes the EPROM so that it matches what's in the ISY database for the device.

If you're using an IOLinc with your sensor, you might want to restore it from the ISY just in case. I've found that I have to restore mine every year or so because it goes wonky being attached to the same circuit as the garage door motor load.

Network Resource. I use LiFX, because the lighting strips do not dim at the longer lengths I was using them for, but they are largely similar in compatibility. Older LiFX devices had some compatibility issues with multiple dual band WAPs, but the newer controllers have fixed those. I would choose to go with whichever system fits your lighting needs best, and for me that was LiFX, but for you may be different. There are also other systems with color change bulbs you could try as well, including some Z-Wave ones (Aeotec I believe has bulbs and strips) and I do have one caveat to bring up: LiFX is a larger security risk since it's more direct WiFi devices. It's not an issue for me, but I have them VLANed off and controlled access for them. For someone less savvy about networking, the Hue which use ZigBee or any of the Z-Wave devices may be better simply for that reason.

Yeah, and also to raise cash so that UDI can make a large enough production run initially to bring the per unit cost to reasonable levels. Not that I'm complaining though! You guys are a for profit business and I'll take any discount I can get.

Perfect. Since I won't be using antennas and did not order the pro (Bluetooth lacks the range and I have hardwired WAPs and Ethernet drops in every room) this is almost ideal. It can sit on the same shelf as the ISY994! It wouldn't have been a deal-breaker if it couldn't, but not having to move shelves around is certainly a nice benefit.

One simple question @Michel Kohanim: will it fit into a single RU? The dimensions listed are 8x8x2, but of course this product will be shipping in October and those numbers seem rounded off quite a bit, possibly from 1.75"? Currently I have my ISY taking up 1RU on a shelf, and am wondering if I will need a second RU for a Polisy.

Thanks, but that answers the heat issue (which I'm not concerned about), not the size issue.

One question.. the dimensions are listed as 8x8x2, is the height number rounded from 1.750? I'm asking because my ISY currently sits on a shelf with 1RU of space, will this fit onto a 1RU shelf?

I just have a keypad in our bedroom with a, "Garage," button that is lit whenever the door is open. Push it and it closes or opens it - lets me remote start the car on cold mornings, too.

Yes, very do-able, but you'll have to use network resources to send commands back and forth if you want them both to respond to the same triggers. Basically though, you just run two split systems (one ISY controls one set of devices in the home, the other controls the ones in the shop, and they can only command their own) besides the aforementioned triggers to send a few things back and forth between them (For instance, you could set variable states remotely). Two separate sets of programs and et cetera would be involved. Work involved to get it going, but very reliable. Honestly I'd probably do the dual ISY setup in your case, the work would be worth it.

The right hand button disables motion detection for a set period - that's how to set that period.

It's not that much cheaper anymore, especially compared to the devices involved. Check SH.com. The ISY is much more reliable and more flexible. The hub only allows basic schedules without any offsets. The major advantage to the hub (aside from cost) is its very nice app interfaces and easy connection to a number of other devices. Polyglot and the UDI Portal get rid of almost all of those advantages though. For more basic users, it's also simpler to set up - I don't think that'll be an issue here though.

I think something missing here is that, generally, Insteon is at least on par if not beyond many of their competitors. There's nothing like the Keypads, for instance, and the dimmers are only matched in Z-Wave by Leviton (and even then not quite matched), which come in at the same price point. The newest Insteon dimmers are really second only to Lutron, for instance, and have been updated even over the last two years and are now thinner and even higher quality than the ones I put in when I first bought my house. It's not perfect, but if you want a bulletproof reliable system, they're still top notch and slowly but surely moving the bar forward. Personally though, I have a primary Insteon system, but recognize that Z-Wave also provides unique devices that Insteon doesn't (and vis versa), so I have the Z-Wave module installed as well. Not really used yet, but the next big expansion is into Z-Wave with smart locks and enough outlets to support a decent network.