johnstewart Posted January 23, 2013 Posted January 23, 2013 I've recently built up a setup in my house during a kitchen remodel with a few Keypadlincs (2486DWH8), some Togglelincs (2466DW), and an ISY-994i PRO. I'm trying to integrate now a 2842-222 Insteon motion sensor. I had it in my kitchen, where it was working well, but then moved it to an entry hall which is farther away from the ISY. It seems like the RF signal is not making it to the ISY (which is a bit shocking; it's not a big house by any means). I've heard mention that in order to get the RF signal repeated properly, you want dual-band devices. I guess the above units are NOT dual band (I'd assumed they were). What's the cheapest way to add a dual-band unit? Or otherwise extend the range of the 2842-222? It's all a bit frustrating because after dropping $1000 or so on Insteon stuff, the RF range isn't nearly as good as my cheapo 15 year old X10 junk! thanks
arw01 Posted January 23, 2013 Posted January 23, 2013 A couple of 2443 access points should do it. I pick mine up from Ebay, but lately got a bunch of stuff when smarthome did their 20% sale. A whole lot of items now are dual band so anything you buy going forward would probably help. The exception seems to be the keypad units so far. I personally, am hopping for a significant improvement to the product. I have a motion sensor that just does not seem to work real well too. It's 6 feet from an access point and does not always report every motion. The settings show it as supposed to send ON all the time with motion. I just bought a new one on the sale in December and it arrived last week. I will take a look at the chart function to see if it has day long gaps like another sensor I have.
LeeG Posted January 23, 2013 Posted January 23, 2013 Neither the indicated KeypadLinc nor ToggleLinc are Dual Band. That means the Motion Sensor must have been communicating with a 2413S Dual Band PLM? Evaluate the location of the Motion Sensor in relationship to the PLM location. Simple things like a refrigerator or metal filing cabinet between the Motion Sensor and the PLM can disrupt the RF signal. Something must be reducing the RF signal. Can be a combination of distance and object. With only one Dual Band device (assuming the PLM is Dual Band) how are the 120v legs being coupled? An Access Point is the easiest and I consider the best RF option. It can be plugged in where ever it needs to be to provide RF coverage.
johnstewart Posted January 24, 2013 Author Posted January 24, 2013 Yes, exactly, a 2413S. Not much I can do about the location of either. I'll look into picking up an access point or two; thanks! That's exactly what I was looking for.
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