Need a little help getting started from the experts

[bonez05]

Hi all,

I'm buying a home, and started doing a little research on home automation. I'm newb, and am having trouble telling what components do what. So I figured I come on here for some advice.

I think I'm pretty sold on z-wave rather than INSTEON, as it seems zwave has more reputable manufacturers on board, ( schlage and kiwiset door locks)

So here is what I'm looking to do:

door locks
alarm system ( the house right now has an older style alarm with hardwired contacts )
t-stat ( possibly integrating with the nest)
some lights
and control everything from a mounted ipad

I'm looking for a system that I can tinker with A BIT, but something that still works, obviously I have to have working temp control and locks. I looked at VERA as a controller but it looks kind of ghetto to be honest. I'm a computer programmer by trade, and i would consider this kind of a hobby so it would be nice if i had something to play with i guess in terms of scripts or drivers or customization. For instance I know there are some scripts which can interface with the NEST.

My major question is how can I get everything integrated into one system? As far as the alarm goes, i'm not even sure where to start there. I've seen 2gig systems, but i'm not sure if its a direct replacement w/ my hardwired contacts, and also I really don't want a 2gig controller, plus another controller for everything else. I would really like to run everything through the ipad.

Thanks for any advice you guys can provide.

 

[tmbrown97]

Welcome! There's a lot of information around here if you dig deep enough.

If you're thinking Z-Wave, honestly I think the Vera really is the best way to go. It's the most universal Z-Wave controller around. It can also control certain security systems and already handles thermostats, lighting, locks, etc.

The Nest is an awesome concept - but everyone I've heard from first-hand who has installed one has since pulled it out and gone back to an old thermostat. They aren't the most reliable devices yet. Check out reviews some place like Amazon; essentially they lock up and potentially cause damage to your HVAC system when they lock in certain modes or just stop working and let your house get to very uncomfortable temperatures. I'd steer clear for a bit and just stick with a nice Z-Wave thermostat.

Your security system most likely will be very easy to replace. Some panels use EOL Resistors at the contact or built into the contact which can make things a little more challenging, but for the most part, they're usually pretty universal. If you want to tell for sure, disconnect a zone from the alarm panel and hook it up to your continuity tester - see if it's a dead short when closed or if it's some amount of resistance. Dead-short is the best case scenario for swapping panels but if there's a resistor, you can tell what the value is and if it's compatible with other alarms or if you'll need to compensate for it.

Even if the Vera's interface isn't to your liking, I believe you can write your own pages - I believe it supports scripting against it.

If that's not to your liking, you can always do something like an Elk or HAI and go full-blown automation. A system like the Elk is a pretty full featured security and automation system in itself, with iOS apps as well as 3rd party software that can control it (premise, CQC, HomeSeer, Elve) - and with those you have unlimited flexibility. With any of the software apps you can make your own touchscreens and some have native iOS apps - like with Elve, you can interface with just about anything you can dream of and make your touchscreen apps 100% custom to your liking. And you can write drivers for anything it doesn't do out of the box. If you want a long-term hobby, full-featured software servers are the way to go.

 

[jaymartin]

And if you have a Mac laying around check out Indigo - if we don't support whatever technology you want directly then we have 3rd party plugins that support lots of different things (various alarm panels, the Vera for Z-Wave, etc.).

Writing plugins (drivers) and scripting is all done through a well documented Python-based API. The 40+ 3rd party plugins (the API has been available since last November) seem to indicate that it's a pretty simple to use API.

 

[etc6849]

Premise is a great PC program to try (completely free and 100% stable). It easily supports everything you have listed and can do much more with its free SDK (C++, .net or Java). Premise also has an easy to learn object oriented and event driven (vbscript based) Builder IDE.

Users have built opensource modules for most things not natively supported such as: Z-Wave, Elk M1G, W800RF32, Weather Underground, etc...

 

[bonez05]

Great thanks everybody. I will dig deeper into the recommendations above. This should be a great starting point.