Smart Home Tips

Matt

Administrator
Staff member
I'm getting into the idea that I want a 'smart home' the first investment is a (free) Amazon Echo. I've already tinkered with IFTTT and can see a lot of potential.

Unfortunately, Nest seems tricky, as my fancy new heating system doesn't work with it unless I crack it open and hack it (possibly will, but not just yet) but I've considered Nest Protect and DropCam.

Other things I'm considering are whether to go with Hue bulbs or fixtures vs leaving existing in place and changing the switch. I'm also looking at Wemo smart plugs.

Anyone out here who has a smart home setup already and can share some ideas?
 

Peridot83

Level 2 Member
I'm getting into the idea that I want a 'smart home' the first investment is a (free) Amazon Echo. I've already tinkered with IFTTT and can see a lot of potential.

Unfortunately, Nest seems tricky, as my fancy new heating system doesn't work with it unless I crack it open and hack it (possibly will, but not just yet) but I've considered Nest Protect and DropCam.

Other things I'm considering are whether to go with Hue bulbs or fixtures vs leaving existing in place and changing the switch. I'm also looking at Wemo smart plugs.

Anyone out here who has a smart home setup already and can share some ideas?
How'd you get a free Amazon echo?
 

Matt

Administrator
Staff member
I'm not sure if it falls under "smart," but I love the kitchen upgrade of the touchless faucets. My brother is a big fan of the Bluetooth keyless entry system for the front door.

The HGTV Smart Home is a great source of inspiration, especially if you have an unlimited budget!
http://www.hgtv.com/design/hgtv-smart-home
I might consider the faucet, I did install our sink and plumbing so am game :) I've been looking at the keyless entry also, with Kevo and some other firm as options - though they don't really sync up to the home for security reasons, they do look nifty.

Ideally I'd like to geofence the property so as I leave the doors lock, lights go onto a random security setting, heating reduces, etc, and as I return, some robot puts the kettle on.
 

Tom Juhn

Level 2 Member
I have the Honeywell thermostat and love it. I can cool or heat the house when coming back from vacations. I also have the WEMO switches for security. I turn lights on/off at random times to make it look like I am home. I also have the Dropcams. They are great for daytime, but not so good at night. They also are not rated for outdoors. I would love to find a camera for outdoors and work like the Dropcams.
 

Kendon

Level 2 Member
I second the Honeywell smart thermostat, I just installed two a few weeks ago. It wasn't terribly difficult, and I'm far from an electrician. You can also purchase them from Best Buy with Apple Pay :)
 

Matt

Administrator
Staff member
I second the Honeywell smart thermostat, I just installed two a few weeks ago. It wasn't terribly difficult, and I'm far from an electrician. You can also purchase them from Best Buy with Apple Pay :)
I would love to, but they don't work with my system right now. I've got these swanky Fujitsu mini splits which require a hack to add a receiver to make them work :(
 

ElainePDX

Level 2 Member
@Kendon and @Tom Juhn, Is there a specific Honeywell model you like or is the entire line good? We may be in the market for a smart thermostat too.

I had trouble getting our furnace to go on this week - finally got it going after turning the thermostat on and off a few times - so I called the company who serviced it in August, when we were told we were all set for the winter. Yesterday's technician told me:
1) we have the worst thermostat there is so we should replace it ASAP, and;
2) the furnace is old and is leaking carbon monoxide, so we should replace that too, and BTW, it will come with a shiny new thermostat!

Now the thermostat has worked just fine since we upgraded to it 7 or 8 years ago, but he may be right. However, he was very hard sell so I am taking his remarks with a grain of salt. And the thermostat seems to be working just fine again. I will get a carbon monoxide tester to check the air and will start investigating new furnaces, but I am not rushing into it just yet.

He did say one useful thing: think of your 19 year old furnace as you would a 19 year old car. You could have it serviced and be told all is well, but that doesn't mean something won't break down shortly there after.

So does anyone have any furnace suggestions for a good unit for 3 story townhouse? Oh, and I'd rather it be something that will work with a smart thermostat w/out my needing to hack anything ;) .
 

BuddyFunJet

Level 2 Member
@Kendon and @Tom Juhn,

So does anyone have any furnace suggestions for a good unit for 3 story townhouse? Oh, and I'd rather it be something that will work with a smart thermostat w/out my needing to hack anything ;) .
Lots of things come to mind so PM if I skip too fast. CO usually comes from a cracked heat exchanger. A CO detector will say when the levels are Very bad but a cracked exchanger will get progressively worse. Best to replace before very bad but sounds like the hard sell so may not be a real problem. Usually heat exchangers have a 10 yr warranty but yours is beyond that so usually better to replace the whole unit with a new higher efficiency. At 19 yo, it may make economic sense to replace unit for higher efficiency even if the exchanger isn't cracked.

Three story is a challenge to do well with a single unit. You really need to find a very good heat contractor to look at a zoned ducting system to avoid overheating one floor to get the other at a ok temp. Particularly important if you want to keep a floor/section at a lower temp unless you have guests. A higher efficiency unit may also require redoing the vent stack.

My main advice is to talk to a few contractors, see who feels good, see if any propose similar solutions and check their proposal out with friends.
 

ElainePDX

Level 2 Member
Lots of things come to mind so PM if I skip too fast. CO usually comes from a cracked heat exchanger. A CO detector will say when the levels are Very bad but a cracked exchanger will get progressively worse. Best to replace before very bad but sounds like the hard sell so may not be a real problem. Usually heat exchangers have a 10 yr warranty but yours is beyond that so usually better to replace the whole unit with a new higher efficiency. At 19 yo, it may make economic sense to replace unit for higher efficiency even if the exchanger isn't cracked.

Three story is a challenge to do well with a single unit. You really need to find a very good heat contractor to look at a zoned ducting system to avoid overheating one floor to get the other at a ok temp. Particularly important if you want to keep a floor/section at a lower temp unless you have guests. A higher efficiency unit may also require redoing the vent stack.

My main advice is to talk to a few contractors, see who feels good, see if any propose similar solutions and check their proposal out with friends.
Thanks so much, @BuddyFunJet ,this is very helpful! The furnace and thermostat are both working just fine, but I do think there is a new furnace (and thermostat) in our near future. I will share what you said with my husband; I know he'll be grateful too!
 

fpguy

Level 2 Member
I'm getting into the idea that I want a 'smart home' the first investment is a (free) Amazon Echo. I've already tinkered with IFTTT and can see a lot of potential.

Unfortunately, Nest seems tricky, as my fancy new heating system doesn't work with it unless I crack it open and hack it (possibly will, but not just yet) but I've considered Nest Protect and DropCam.

Other things I'm considering are whether to go with Hue bulbs or fixtures vs leaving existing in place and changing the switch. I'm also looking at Wemo smart plugs.

Anyone out here who has a smart home setup already and can share some ideas?
Hi Matt,

Not sure if you are into any development or scripting at all, but these: https://www.ubnt.com/accessories/ethernet-surge-protector/ are awesome. You can essentially SSH into your surge protector from anywhere, and turn power on/off. I've been using them at home for a while now to do things like turn lights on and off, power down servers during storms when I'm not at home, turn on the TV etc. It's a little more work than some of the premade products that you can buy outright, but I think it's pretty damn cool.
 

Matt

Administrator
Staff member
Hi Matt,

Not sure if you are into any development or scripting at all, but these: https://www.ubnt.com/accessories/ethernet-surge-protector/ are awesome. You can essentially SSH into your surge protector from anywhere, and turn power on/off. I've been using them at home for a while now to do things like turn lights on and off, power down servers during storms when I'm not at home, turn on the TV etc. It's a little more work than some of the premade products that you can buy outright, but I think it's pretty damn cool.
Cool! Yeah I play, am ok with a little script. Will look into it.
 

sketchc89

New Member
Tasker for Android has a lot of geofencing related scripts. Rather than geofencing which requires power hungry GPS to be on a lot of people will use the presence of WiFi APs to 'fence' their house/work. More localized fencing with bluetooth beacons is also an exciting field to look into (iBeacon, Eddystone). Estimote and Kontakt are big players in this new industry.
 

agrippa472

Level 2 Member
Not sure if you have a irrigation system but I have a Rachio Iro (the equivalent of Nest for the yard) and I really like it. Took a little bit to get all the wiring done to keep the GFCI outlet to stop tripping but once I did it's really nice to not be wasting all that water when it rains.
 

Matt

Administrator
Staff member
Not sure if you have a irrigation system but I have a Rachio Iro (the equivalent of Nest for the yard) and I really like it. Took a little bit to get all the wiring done to keep the GFCI outlet to stop tripping but once I did it's really nice to not be wasting all that water when it rains.
I don't have a lot of land, but would love something like this with heat for a winter like the last one..
 

Matt

Administrator
Staff member
I'm looking for some geothermal heatpump system that prevents my driveway, steps and path to the front door from freezing. Ideally for zero cost using the magic of evapotranspiration.

Shoveling snow sucks, and a guy can dream..
 

TheBOSman

Moderator
Staff member
I'm looking for some geothermal heatpump system that prevents my driveway, steps and path to the front door from freezing. Ideally for zero cost using the magic of evapotranspiration.

Shoveling snow sucks, and a guy can dream..
You'd have to install coils filled with hot water underneath the surfaces you want. They do it at football stadiums, but not sure it would be cost effective for you (it is probably big $$$). But it is physically possible and there are people who will do it.
 

BuddyFunJet

Level 2 Member

Matt

Administrator
Staff member
Based on the last week, this seems pretty epic! Linked to a sensor in rooms where there is risk of a leak, and Bob's your Uncle...



Screen Shot 2016-02-19 at 5.27.41 PM.png
 

BuddyFunJet

Level 2 Member
I don't know that product but I agree with the concept. In Santa Fe, I have the floodstop valves on the water heaters and the washing machine to auto shutoff in case of a leak.

http://www.diycontrols.com/c-200-floodstop-shutoff-valves.aspx

I also have water sensors wired into the alarm system to notify the alarm company and me about the leak.

Another sensor to wire into the alarm is a low temp sensor so that I'm warned about a heat failure before the pipes would burst. Mine are set to alarm if the room temp goes below 41 degrees. If you have multiple heat systems, place one in each heat area.

https://www.surveillance-video.com/security-60-742-95r.html/
 

Matt

Administrator
Staff member
I don't know that product but I agree with the concept. In Santa Fe, I have the floodstop valves on the water heaters and the washing machine to auto shutoff in case of a leak.

http://www.diycontrols.com/c-200-floodstop-shutoff-valves.aspx

I also have water sensors wired into the alarm system to notify the alarm company and me about the leak.

Another sensor to wire into the alarm is a low temp sensor so that I'm warned about a heat failure before the pipes would burst. Mine are set to alarm if the room temp goes below 41 degrees. If you have multiple heat systems, place one in each heat area.

https://www.surveillance-video.com/security-60-742-95r.html/
Yeah, I'm not sure on the specific product either, but love the idea of being able to stop a supply pipe based on a signal from a sensor. Will be certainly getting something along these lines for under the house and laundry rooms etc.
 

BuddyFunJet

Level 2 Member
While not supply plumbing, the other thing water consideration is the drain line from the drip pan under the central AC unit. There isn't a continuous flow of water through that drain so water stands in the low points of the line , mold can grow and block the line. Particularly at seasonal startup, flush the line and run a bit of diluted bleach through to kill the mold. Catch the bleach solution where it comes out of the house so you don't kill plants.

Also, have your HVAC contractor install a float switch in the drain pan that will turn off the compressor if the water level gets high enough to indicate the drain is clogged. Should be less than $100 additional on the service call.

I learned this lesson the hard way. We were gone on a two week vacation and came back to the spare bedroom ceiling fallen in and soaked along with the carpet underneath.

With the switch, the AC quits cooling before any damage is done.

BTW, if you wire water sensors into the alarm circuit, be sure your alarm company know those zones are water sensors so they notify you but not the cops.
 

atravels

New Member
A little late to this discussion, but in case anyone is still working on a smart home setup, I will chime in...SmartThings is both the coolest thing ever and the most poorly designed. I got several SmartThings from Samsung using points I generated from Samsung Pay. The good thing is that it's fairly intuitive to set up and works fairly easily with the Echo. However, if you aren't careful, you will be buying batteries by the truckload. One of the arrival sensors they shipped me was practically DOA. Customer service wasn't very useful because I waited a couple of months to report it. They did suggest that leaving the arrival sensor in your car was a bad idea because it would cause it to continually search for a signal (or something like that) and would therefore drain the battery. I have since switched to using our phones as arrival sensors, and that tends to work fairly reliably.

If using the Hue system, has anyone preordered the candelabra bulbs?
 

atravels

New Member
I have not preordered but will be purchasing.
Are you using the Hue Bridge with Amazon Echo? If so, have you had any issues lately with the Bridge becoming unresponsive? I am reluctant to invest in more bulbs because a couple of times in the last week Alexa has informed me that my Bridge has become unresponsive. I have rebooted the bridge and I hope it resolves the issue. Those new bulbs look nice, and I would like to have that option.
 
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