Bumbershoot

My humidifier runs a lot keeping the house humidity to 40% here in the high desert. Itchy skin, dry eyes, dry cigars and desiccated fruits/veggies are problems, though I wouldn't trade 'em for the reverse. This house is full of wood, and I haven't had any issues with any of it at current humidity levels (the house is less than 20 years old), though when remodeling a couple of years ago, the contractor let large pieces of wood (glulam beams, fireplace mantles, cabinets, etc.) acclimate in the house for at least a week before moving them into place. Automating the use of half a dozen exhaust fans in bathrooms and the laundry room (I use CAO wireless tags to get humidity data in these rooms) is helping to keep the humidity in the house fairly stable, though I don't know if driving humidity up with the humidifier, then driving it down in these rooms with the exhaust fans is really a smart practice. I have no way to measure the long term cost/benefits of this. It seems like it might be the right thing to do, though I don't really know. One thing is for certain: installing quieter exhaust fans is my next HA upgrade... I moved to the high desert from the Puget Sound area when I retired, and I don't miss the battles with mold, moss and damp clothing at all. I do miss the feel of soft, Puget Sound air on my skin and eyes.

I've always seen this on outlets that are attached to switch, though I don't think it's any sort of standard.

Yes, I have Z-Wave controlled garage door openers/sensors and Insteon controlled lights in my garage, both combined in programs to control lighting upon door opening/closing. It works well.

This is correct. The fan I'm controlling with Z-Wave has no light. It works fine for just the fan.

Here's the link to 5.0.10. Version 5.0.11 was just released and it seems to have broken a few things. Keep in mind that it's still ALPHA software, so if it breaks, you get to keep both halves...

I've got a mixed system, and I'm getting very good results with both. I use Insteon mostly for lighting, outlets and appliance control, but I have a few Z-Wave devices scattered around as well - sensors, door locks, a fan control, a water shutoff valve, garage door controls, etc. All work as intended with the ISY, but I'm running on alpha firmware that has improved support for Z-Wave multi-channel devices. Ergonomically, I prefer Insteon wall switches and outlets. For stuff that needs to be secure, I use Z-Wave. Both Insteon and Z-Wave have been nearly 100% reliable in my installation, so I'm not in any hurry to choose. I'm very curious to see if the new management of SmartLabs revitalize the Insteon brand.

Wow, seven minutes from problem report to a fix and responding back to the user? What planet is this? Nicely done!

True. Status is partially reflected once you control a device, and in the case my Nest thermostat, it shows current temperature and setpoint. With the development resources at Amazon's disposal, and their apparent interest in this platform, I'll be bit surprised if they simply leave it at that. Since device status is available on the UDI portal, and since UDI doesn't provide a mobile app of their own, one might think that UDI and Amazon may cooperate further. I guess time will tell. For now, it's a free download, at least for iOS. They may, however, simply just "leave it at that", conceding the full featured market to commercial apps like MobilLinc and Agave. Again, time will tell.

I just installed the latest iOS update to the Alexa app. It now appears to provide limited control of devices. Insteon and Z-Wave devices, including scenes and programs that are discovered by the app are in some way controllable, including Nest (temp settings) and LIFX bulbs (on/off and brightness). Most interesting, a STATE variable with the spoken of "kitchen lights" is controllable with a small amount of configurability (see screenshot). This is no threat to MobilLinc, but it's a start. Client Version - 1.24.3033.0 Bridge Version - 2.2.464.1

I bought one of these older units (link below) on Amazon, and it connects to the Smoke Bridge just fine. I only have one of these; all my other detectors are the interconnected Kidde detectors that came with the house. Testing any of these alarms sends a signal to the Smoke Bridge --> ISY --> Elk. The only issue is that I'm not informed which zone is in alarm, but in my installation, that's not a big deal. I just want the house lights to come on, sirens to sound and a simulated F1 button press to happen on my Elk panel. It's kind of a Rube Goldberg setup, but it'll have to do until I get the 2-way wireless transceiver for my Elk and wireless Elk detectors. I currently don't receive a low battery notification from the Kidde detectors, but they chirp in the middle if the night just fine. First Alert SA521CN Interconnected Hardwire Wireless Smoke Alarm with Battery Backup

Yes, you can if you run the Nest node server and you're running Alpha 5.x.x firmware on your ISY. I've been doing this successfully for quite some time. This enables lots of functionality. Edit: My favorite uses of this are: Shutting off the air conditioning and starting ceiling fans if certain Elk zones are violated Pre heating the house when we're still 45 minutes away, using the Occupancy node server functionality in the ISY portal, along with Locative

The skill is out of private beta, and now is in open beta testing. Some of these issues, such as the limited music sources, should be improved before long (adding Spotify, etc.), though I have no information about the full gamut of possible Sonos sources. Here are the currently available sources: ...Amazon Music (Prime or Unlimited), TuneIn, Pandora, SiriusXM and iHeartRadio. Alexa can add Pandora stations to Sonos, and they appear, and persist, in both the Sonos and Pandora apps, so there is some interaction between the three systems beyond just directly control of the speakers. This ability isn't currently listed in the Customer Support Page for this skill, which indicates to me that it is under active development. I'm not having any issues with grouped speakers. I simply direct a command at one of the group members and they all respond in sync. I'm primarily using Pandora as a music source, however. This skill depends upon two cloud systems, and as a result it doesn't have any access to any of your local playlists or queues. Sort of a deal breaker in some regards, but it's in some ways an improvement to using network resources in my ISY. Your Amazon Alexa devices are listening for you to say the wake word, “Alexa”. When they hear that word, the microphones record what you say and send the audio to the Amazon Alexa cloud to be translated. That voice line turns into a string of text. The Amazon protocols determine if it’s meant for Amazon Alexa or for a Sonos player. If it’s for Sonos, that text is then sent directly, and securely, over to the Sonos cloud to be turned into a command using our own codes. Finally, the Sonos intended command goes down to the system.

I'm looking forward to the new Sonos One with Alexa built in. I have a couple of spaces left without either Sonos or Alexa that could one of both, so this would fill the gap very nicely at the cost of the Sonos One only. Anyway you slice it, it should be a very nice sounding Alexa.

The Sonos - Echo beta testing has ended, and your Alexa devices can now control your Sonos devices. From the emailed announcement (10/5/2017): "Today, we introduced voice control for Sonos and released the re-designed app that you’ve been testing to the world. You can finally tell all your friends about what you’ve been testing for the last 3 or 4 months! Anyone who owns an Amazon Alexa device and is located in a region that supports voice (US, UK, and Germany), can now install the Sonos skill from the Amazon Alexa store and begin controlling their Sonos system with their voice. We’ve fixed all major bugs, established the right experience, and after reading thousands of suggestions, we’ve created a roadmap of changes to further improve the experience and add some of the new features you suggested. On behalf of Sonos and all the Sonos owners downloading the new Sonos app right now—thanks for your time and dedication to testing."

+1. I have two of these, and they've been flawless so far. They also act as secure repeaters for my Z-Wave door locks.

It's easy. Here's a sample of the body of an email with an embedded variable: The ISY was up ${var.1.4} hours between reboots. INTEGER variables are indicated by: ${var.1.x}. STATE variables are indicated by: ${var.2.x} In this example above, ${var.1.4} indicates an INTEGER variable with an ID of 4. You get the ID of the variable from the leftmost column of your variable list.

Greetings, With high August temperatures just around the corner, I've finally started thinking about automating a retractable awning that I have installed over my deck. This awning was installed by the previous owner when the house was built in 2000, and uses a pushbutton IGC switch (pictures posted below) that connects to the motor controller. Nothing fancy. I know very little about how these devices work, but I would prefer to either replace the IGC switch with an Insteon or Z-Wave device, or better yet, If it would work, insert an Insteon micro open/close module in the junction box which holds the IGC switch, which has plenty of space. The IGC switch has three wires coming from a cable out of the motor controller, which I believe are utilized as follows: white = up black = down green = common The Somfy motor apparently has limit switches for the extended and retracted positions already, and the "STOP" button on the IGC switch will immediately stop the awning in place, whether it's extending or retracting. This awning is old, but it works perfectly. If it's possible to manage this relatively cheaply (without replacing the Somfy motor), then I'll do it. I will certainly appreciate any insight/advice on how to accomplish this task. Thanks in advance, Bumbershoot

I believe you need the PRO version of the ISY to use node servers. I also believe your ISY is easily upgradeable by contacting UDI sales.

I just ordered one for backup. Thanks for the heads up!

I have the feeling there's an idea here that I haven't thought of. I'm beginning to fit out an artists studio with controllable bulbs (LIFX 3rd generation BR30 bulbs are preferred at the moment). The test bulb I have installed works fine with the ISY, the LIFX node server and with Alexa (as well as with the LIFX app), but I'm curious as to how you're using a SwitchLinc dimmer in this sort of application? Thanks.

Another option: If you're on firmware 5.x.x and interested/willing to run Nodelink (which I am for other functionality it provides), you can turn on the "ISY Data" node and this problem can be easily solved (see attached screenshot). I've run Nodelink on a Mac Mini and on a RaspberryPi and it's never hiccuped even once on either platform. For me, this is an easy solution.

Another good idea. The bouncing would be somewhat mitigated by the 300 second polling interval I have in climate module, but I think I'll add your hysteresis programs so I'll have the idea codified somewhere in my ISY. I know this will help trigger another solution for me somewhere in the future. Truth be told, I've never paid much attention to the "status" value of programs before. Very handy. Thanks again, this is very helpful.

I like this, and you've taught me something here. I'm currently building out my (somewhat simplistic) HA installation by putting in a ELK system, along with a variety of occupancy sensors. One of the questions I've started thinking about is how to use occupancy sensors in conjunction with lighting schedules, trying to make sure that lights don't get left on unnecessarily, while simultaneously not throwing people into the dark, all the while maintaining a good lighting ambience in the house. This gives me a way to start solving that problem, too. Thanks. I'll put this into production and watch my grass grow!

I understand how this would work. This is a variation of what I was thinking before I started reading this thread and confused myself. BTW, outside humidity where I live tends to swing quite a bit in the spring, with very localized rain and sun conditions. The weather station I use in the climate module is close, but not that close, and I don't need a great deal of precision with this application (the affected area is small).

You described the problem exactly. I've never used the true/false status of a program as a trigger, and I don't recall seeing that technique described before (though maybe I just haven't paid enough attention). I do see how this can solve some thorny conditional problems in other areas, such as lighting schedules being affected by occupancy.