Alternative to I/O Linc?

[fahrvergnuugen]

I'm finding that I/O Lincs are dreadfully unreliable. I have 5 I/O Lincs and I am constantly having either communication issues or relay issues (communication works fine, but the relay doesn't trip or it trips and doesn't hold). 

 

Is this common? Do these relays simply wear out?

 

Are there any alternatives?

Any DIY/Arduino based solutions that you know of?

 

I really wish they would make a dual band I/O Linc with a solid state relay...

 

 

[paulbates]

I'm finding that I/O Lincs are dreadfully unreliable. I have 5 I/O Lincs and I am constantly having either communication issues or relay issues (communication works fine, but the relay doesn't trip or it trips and doesn't hold). 

 

Is this common? Do these relays simply wear out?

 

..

 

I really wish they would make a dual band I/O Linc with a solid state relay...

 

To answer your first question, I've found that some things don't trigger it reliably. Things that are hard relay contacts work fine for me, other things, not so much.

 

On X10 with Powerflash (PSC01) I could read if my furnace was on with a simple current sensing doughnut around the hot.  The sensing part worked perfectly, but the X10 signal part sometimes was lost. I connected the doughnut to an iolinc, i got a faint green glow from its led, but it would never trip it. I got advice on changing the doughnut, putting in optically isolated sensor,, could not get it to work. I now have a thermostat that reports the on time and reassigned the iolinc.

 

Point is, what type of contact source it is can make a difference.. and having said that, when they're connected to something that is a clean contact, they work fine last for years. I've had one in my attic and garage for 6+ years, they continue to function great. So its not been reliability as much as the sensing mechanism as you point out. Also, as they are single band, you do have to make sure that you have a range extender if you don't have another dual band device in the area. Everything in my garage is single band so I had to add put an access point (old version of the range extender) there.

 

Paul

[stusviews]

I've never had any reliability problems using any dry contact interface to trio the sense on an I/O Linc, even after years of service.

[paulbates]

To answer the other question, there is the SmartenIT line of of products that includes the EZIO that are Insteon and ISY compatible. I believe that they can be configured for dry contact and analogue input. I think there are some limitations for the full feature set on the ISY.

 

Info and comparison chart here

 

Paul

[Techman]

I have 9 IOLincs in my system and have never had a problem with them. Being that they're powerline only devices it's best to have a dual band device in close proximity to them.

[LFMc]

To answer the other question, there is the SmartenIT line of of products that includes the EZIO that are Insteon and ISY compatible. I believe that they can be configured for dry contact and analogue input. I think there are some limitations for the full feature set on the ISY.

 

Paul

 

I will second Paul. I am implementing a EZIO8SA for controlling and monitoring my pond, pumps, filters and other outdoor items. 8 SPDT relays capable of up to 3A of 120VAC each,  plus 7 sensors, 4 digital input or On/off, 2 analog input with trip point settings and 1 Dallas Semi. 1 Wire connection for temp input. It does require a PLM, but that can be located close to your signal source and it is dual band. It is just going into the system this week. I will update you if you like about how well it does, but testing has been good. 

 

Also, I would like to mention that Smartenit's support is outstanding, just like UDI. They get back to me day or night or weekends. Very impressive so far. 

[fahrvergnuugen]

The EZIO2x4 seems like a really nice unit, but its quite overkill (and therefore expensive) for what I'm doing. FWIW, I'm trying to toggle an Arduino input pin to know that I toggled an Insteon light switch in order to turn on some WS2812 LEDs.

 

What about this ZWave MIMOLite? Could I integrate an insteon switch with the MIMO using the ISY?

[stusviews]

The MIMOLite has the same function as the I/O Linc, sense and relay. But the settings (e.g., duration) need to be set using parameters of a program.