madcodger Posted January 14, 2018 Posted January 14, 2018 Hi all. I originally purchased my ISY994 (which working well and stable, and connected via network to my Elk system) with the intention of installing the Zigbee-based GEM energy monitor. I never got around to installing the GEM, and would now rather have Zwave support instead. Questions: 1) Can I just swap out a card in the ISY to accomplish this, or is there more involved? 2) If possible but more is involved, can you please elaborate? 3) Is it possible to have all three capabilities within the ISY (original Insteon, Zwave, and the Zigbee support that would allow for the GEM)? Thanks!
Teken Posted January 14, 2018 Posted January 14, 2018 1. Yes 2. Yes - See item 3 3. Your options are to use Node Link with a node server running 5.X.X code. The other option is to purchase the Brultech Dash Box and send State Variables to the ISY Series Controller. Both methods are a compromise when compared to a direct connection via ZigBee. For the average user this may not be an issue though. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
madcodger Posted January 15, 2018 Author Posted January 15, 2018 (edited) Thanks Teken. I have long appreciated your help. I am a little bit frustrated with my ISY right now, simply because I want a better user interface and the ability to speak to my Nest, but do not write code (so going the node route for GEM or for Raspberry Pi is not currently workable for me) . But I’ve spent so much on Insteon I suppose I will be sticking it out and if I can make this work, gradually start a shift to Zwave. Do I just buy the Zwave card from UDI amd plug it in (swapping out the Zigbee)? Do I then download the other firmware, and am good to go, or is there more to it? Edited January 15, 2018 by madcodger
stusviews Posted January 15, 2018 Posted January 15, 2018 The ISY will support either a Zigbee card or a Z-Wave card, not both. There may be a work-around to support the hardware limitation, but the native ISY will support only one card.
Teken Posted January 15, 2018 Posted January 15, 2018 Thanks Teken. I have long appreciated your help. I am a little bit frustrated with my ISY right now, simply because I want a better user interface and the ability to speak to my Nest, but do not write code (so going the node route for GEM or for Raspberry Pi is not currently workable for me) . But I’ve spent so much on Insteon I suppose I will be sticking it out and if I can make this work, gradually start a shift to Zwave. Do I just buy the Zwave card from UDI amd plug it in (swapping out the Zigbee)? Do I then download the other firmware, and am good to go, or is there more to it? I believe the Z-Wave card is not available from UDI at this time. But you can purchase the same from any of the 3rd party vendors along with the ($1.00 activation) Z-Wave module. If deploying a RPi and working with the Node Server concept isn't your direction. I would encourage you to purchase the Brultech Dash Box (DB). As this will make integrating the GEM into the ISY Series Controller much easier . . . The DB is a stand alone Linux box that stores all of your energy and much more locally with no cloud dependencies which provides charts and graphs. It offers many features and resources like IFTTT, DNS Forwarding, Conditional E-Mail Alerts, 3rd party data send, SEG Support, Weather, and dozen of other features. The DB once set up is a Plug & Play device with very little maintenance . . . There isn't anything on the market that offers so much for so little with respect to energy monitoring & energy management. Please let me know if you require more insight or clarification . . . My signature below offers a direct link to my projects thread which show cases the advancement of this incredible energy storage server. 1
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