Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Insteon vs z-wave

Collapse
This topic is closed.
X
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • silverton38
    replied
    Originally posted by Larry68 View Post
    So, what does Insteon do that z-wave cannot?

    I am migrating to z-wave, but before I completely remove Insteon, what can it do that z-wave cannot?
    Insteon gives you instant ON/OFF for scenes. It uses both the power line and RF so that you can get hard to reach devices to work better then Z-Wave. You do not have to worry about network repairs for big installations. To me it also appears to respond faster. I do use both at the same time. What Z-wave does better is in 3 phase installations the power line on Insteon is disabled. Z-wave has many more devices and new ones coming out all the time.

    Leave a comment:


  • nyc2pit
    replied
    Originally posted by JimSpy View Post

    Yes, I agree. We are each personally responsible for voting the right people into office, who can develop and manage our power infrastructure competently! 🤪🏭⚛

    (I know, off topic, I'll stop now.)
    I agree Jim. Also a cautionary tale for these fly-by-night power providers that deregulation brought us. I get at least one direct mail a week from them. Most of them are undercapitalized and don't bother to hedge, so when the power cost goes through the roof a la Texas, all they do it pass on that variable rate to their customers. Most people probably shouldn't be on a variable rate plan unless you have a really good understanding of what you're agreeing to .....

    I have a relative who does energy trading, and specifically in Texas. It was a mess for that week, for sure .....

    (Sorry for the topic deviation as well, I'll stop now)

    Leave a comment:


  • JimSpy
    replied
    Originally posted by nyc2pit View Post

    Lol .... ONLY if you are on a variable plan (dumb) and ONLY IF you picked a cut-rate energy provider who didn't bother to hedge themselves in any type of way.

    There's a little personal responsibility needed here as well ...
    Yes, I agree. We are each personally responsible for voting the right people into office, who can develop and manage our power infrastructure competently! 🤪🏭⚛

    (I know, off topic, I'll stop now.)

    Leave a comment:


  • upstatemike
    replied
    Not really feasible for wall switches but for plug in equipment like expensive stereo gear it is a good idea to use something more reliable than MOV surge protectors. I supplement with inductor based protectors like "Brick Wall" and similiar. For incoming phone line protectors I prefer gas tube over the carbon protectors the phone company provides.

    Leave a comment:


  • nyc2pit
    replied
    Originally posted by JimSpy View Post

    And when you do have it, it's $9000 per kWh!
    Lol .... ONLY if you are on a variable plan (dumb) and ONLY IF you picked a cut-rate energy provider who didn't bother to hedge themselves in any type of way.

    There's a little personal responsibility needed here as well ...

    Leave a comment:


  • JimSpy
    replied
    Originally posted by devoir View Post

    PS I now live in Texas we just don't have power when you need it the most....

    Devoir
    And when you do have it, it's $9000 per kWh!

    Leave a comment:


  • baudi
    replied
    Originally posted by devoir View Post
    baudi, If you suspect lightning..... I thought about our question and wanted to share
    ...
    Devoir
    Wow! Thank you very much. My to-do list has just grown by a lot.

    Leave a comment:


  • devoir
    replied
    baudi, If you suspect lightning..... I thought about our question and wanted to share


    I lived in an area where the trees and house was struck once a year. I didn't lose equipment, when I bought the house I invested in several levels of surge protection. Surge protection isn't something your go to Walmart to buy a fancy strip to fix things it's much more inclusive than that...

    0- Soil conditions greatly affect grounding and the ability to disperse lightning into the earth. If a home is older the integrity of the ground rod needs to be checked . Some parts of the country use different methods than a ground rod to establish an effective ground

    1- starting outside enhance the ground grid. The single ground rod at your utility meter will not suffice it's there to meet code and establish an electrical reference plane. It does a pitiful job at sinking the surge energy to ground. Most direct strikes are 30,000 amps . Lightning needs to deplete the charge into the ground. A single ground rod will not disperse the energy as effectively. Improve the grounding system with a triad grounding system.

    2- Surge suppression: This must include every single wire or cable coming into your house. Until you handle each of these you leave holes in your protection.
    a- sprinklers: lightning hit a valve and runs in the wire to the control box in the garage then jumps into the ac, which runs to your ac panel then killing any 120vAC device it can punch holes in it's insulation, ie your light switch
    b- cable coax
    c- Phone
    d- Power from utility
    e- Ethernet cable to and from your barn/shed/remote outbuilding

    3- Surge protecitve devices are like a cube of sugar they melt... in the case of over voltage lightning strikes the surge arrester slowly degrades its useful life every time it handles a surge.
    install surge protection at the Service entrance minimum 240 ka device
    install surge protection in every panel 100ka device
    install surge protection strips on all sensitive equipment or the crap that cost you a lot to replace. 50ka rated device
    intall surge protection on items 2 a- 2e above


    I can tell you this because I worked at an industrial location that was struck 20 times a year. It forced us to learn how to harden a facility to take a direct strike and continue to operate.


    Most people will not do what I shared they will let nature run it's course and deal with it when it happens..... what's a $50 light switch when I spent $1500 for the lighting protection above.


    PS I now live in Texas we just don't have power when you need it the most....

    Devoir

    Leave a comment:


  • mrceolla
    replied
    Originally posted by JimSpy View Post

    In fact, Insteon has seen fit to discontinue several devices, along with some useful appurtenances. The Insteon Thermostat is an example, I believe. They've also discontinued the Ivory color series. I know, big whoop, but most of my switches are ivory, and if I have to replace one (which I have had to several times(!)), I have to get it in Light Almond, which means I have to get a new switchplate as well. There are paddle color change kits, but those are being phased out as well, I understand. So be sure and choose a color scheme that isn't likely to go away!
    I recently did some reading. There are some posts and articles on the interwebs that are relatively recent which that talk about the changes at Smarthome and Insteon. I won't try to paraphrase here. The good news is they aren't going away yet, hopefully never. I guess they've been focusing on their mobile app recently. I just wish they'd let other people make Insteon-enabled hardware.

    "Unless the paddle is what broke you should be able to move the old ivory paddle to the new switch."

    Agreed, just swap the paddles. I even put one of the new on/off paddles with just 2 light pipes on a super old SwitchLinc On/Off switch. Any paddles should fit on any model, except the discontinued Icon line.

    I use the PLM (serial version) for the extra responsiveness that Mark talked about. I have it connected to a LAN cable extension and plugged into an outlet I had installed right next to the breaker panel which is on the other side of the house from my Windows 10 PC running HS3. Anxiously awaiting Mark's HS4 plugin before I make the jump.

    As someone else also mentioned, the KeypadLinc is a very important part of my home. I have at least 6 scattered about, including bedside in a tabletop enclosure. I've heard some Z-wave users will adopt Insteon as well just to use the KeypadLincs. I also love and make heavy use of Insteon groups/scenes where any number of devices will react simultaneously to a single message. I think some Z-wave devices support that now.

    I use Z-wave for my thermostat, locks, fire/CO2 detectors, and some multi-sensors. All of my lighting is Insteon, plus some motion and door sensors and the siren. I've never tried to use Z-wave for lighting, but I feel like I'd be disappointed since my experience with Insteon, and this plugin, have been so positive. Changing individual device settings and managing groups is easy. Even if you have to replace a device, this plugin makes it a breeze. If the PLM or Hub dies, no worries. This plugin makes replacing those easy too. I've read nightmare stories about replacing z-wave controllers. Perhaps those hassles are fixed these days.

    Leave a comment:


  • upstatemike
    replied
    Originally posted by JimSpy View Post

    In fact, Insteon has seen fit to discontinue several devices, along with some useful appurtenances. The Insteon Thermostat is an example, I believe. They've also discontinued the Ivory color series. I know, big whoop, but most of my switches are ivory, and if I have to replace one (which I have had to several times(!)), I have to get it in Light Almond, which means I have to get a new switchplate as well. There are paddle color change kits, but those are being phased out as well, I understand. So be sure and choose a color scheme that isn't likely to go away!
    Unless the paddle is what broke you should be able to move the old ivory paddle to the new switch. Pretty sure I have some old ivory paddles if you get desperate.

    Leave a comment:


  • JimSpy
    replied
    Originally posted by upstatemike View Post

    Not much in the way of new products have come out for Insteon in a long time.
    In fact, Insteon has seen fit to discontinue several devices, along with some useful appurtenances. The Insteon Thermostat is an example, I believe. They've also discontinued the Ivory color series. I know, big whoop, but most of my switches are ivory, and if I have to replace one (which I have had to several times(!)), I have to get it in Light Almond, which means I have to get a new switchplate as well. There are paddle color change kits, but those are being phased out as well, I understand. So be sure and choose a color scheme that isn't likely to go away!

    Leave a comment:


  • baudi
    replied
    Originally posted by devoir View Post
    THe PLM works great with a dedicated PC...... I've never been able to get the PLM USB to work with my VM on a Dell r829 XCP-ng r 8.1 something about USB port and XCP VM's ...... I shifted to the ethernet version and so far it works flawlessly with the VM. Holding my breath cause it's day 1 of testing the VM and HS4

    Super pleased with the Insteon switches, receptacle, etc. they are fast and reliable. In 7 years I've only lost one switch due to moisture ..... It was outside in an IP69 enclosure it died due to condensation WAF hosed it down a little to much ....

    I also have a switch that turns on/off a waterfall it has hit over 7000 operations without failure.
    ...

    Are you in a place that gets thunderstorms and lightning? I've had half a dozen switches fail in the past couple of years, and I suspect it's due to a few big thunderstorms. But I'm not sure.

    Leave a comment:


  • devoir
    replied
    THe PLM works great with a dedicated PC...... I've never been able to get the PLM USB to work with my VM on a Dell r829 XCP-ng r 8.1 something about USB port and XCP VM's ...... I shifted to the ethernet version and so far it works flawlessly with the VM. Holding my breath cause it's day 1 of testing the VM and HS4

    Super pleased with the Insteon switches, receptacle, etc. they are fast and reliable. In 7 years I've only lost one switch due to moisture ..... It was outside in an IP69 enclosure it died due to condensation WAF hosed it down a little to much ....

    I also have a switch that turns on/off a waterfall it has hit over 7000 operations without failure.

    SO I'm a huge fan of Inseton and Mark's support with this plugin.

    Z-wave is just to inconsistent form my satisfaction...


    Devoir

    Leave a comment:


  • mnsandler
    replied
    The code base for each controller will be the same between the hs3 and hs4 plugin. I prefer the PLM as the plugin is more responsive to inbound messages from switches and other devices. the plugin must poll the hub for inbound messages. That said, the Hub can be located anywhere in the house that has a plug and ethernet port. the PLM must be connected to the hs server. there are several threads already that discuss PLM vs Hub. Lets not start that discussion again here.

    Leave a comment:


  • musilex
    replied
    Originally posted by mnsandler View Post
    you will need my plugin to use either the PLM or HUB with HS3 or HS4
    This reliability issue aside, does the PLB or HUB work better with your plugin/HS4? Or same difference?

    Leave a comment:

Working...
X