Adobe homes- Anyone live in Santa Fe?

[Tymon]

Ok, so my dad came to visit and now wants me to come out and "automate" his house.
He wants an HS server, security system, phone system, etc.

Big problem, adobe walls! His interior and exterior walls are about a foot think and made of solid adobe.

Running wires would be a nightmare as the walls are solid. I am not sure if wireless can make it through walls that thick. Could Z-Wave work through walls that thick? A wireless alarm system?
Did I mention no attic?

I am kind of at a loss here. How the heck do I do this stuff when the house is built like a nuclear bunker?

If anyone has any ideas, PLEASE throw them out there.

Thanks
Ty

[Rupp]

Tymon,
One nice thing about the ZWave modules is the fact that they all act as repeaters. So if you have trouble getting a signal through the walls then you can simply add another module closer to the USB transmitter. This could get expensive but it should work. 3ways are coming soon so that should fill that gap.

As far as the other requests good luck. If the house isn't wired for security then it sounds like it could be a tough job. Does the house have a crawl space?

[BraveSirRobbin]

I don't know a lot about adobe construction but I think the metal screening inside the adobe walls would be more of a problem for wireless than the adobe itself. Same problem I have with a stucco home (chicken wire frame acts like a faraday cage sucking wireless signals into the ground).

One thing I did find out though is not to mount anything wireless (antennas, motion seneosr, etc...) right on the wall itself (i.e. right next to the chicken wire).