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What is the best way to detect that a garage door is open?

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    What is the best way to detect that a garage door is open?

    I attached a HM-DW001 Door/window to one of my garage doors and it works OK but the clearance is really tight. I found that the magnet (attached to the door) has to be less than 1 inch from the main unit (attached to the wall). This was pretty tricky to find a spot that worked that didn't bind the door somewhere.
    There is barely 1/4" clearance between the door and the main unit when the door opens and I am really concerned that when the temperature changes the door might start to contact it and break it (or the door).

    Anyone have a better suggestion?

    There is the little green screw jack inside the main unit. Can I put a mercury switch on those and then just attach the main unit to the door. Then the mercury switch will detect when the door is vertical (closed) vs. horizontal (open). The advantage then is that there is no clearance requirement and the unit can be mounted anywhere on the door which will also help get a clear signal to the Ztroller.

    I haven't found any docs on the innards of the sensor.

    #2
    im only using ds10a's to monitor my 2 garage doors.. i had the same problem with the magnet clearance...

    i would like to get something better done... subscribed as i want to see if ya get it going...
    HW - i5 4570T @2.9ghz runs @11w | 8gb ram | 128gb ssd OS - Win10 x64

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      #3
      My DS-10s are fine for this. If you are having gap issues check eBay for Rare Earth Magnets. That will give you a bigger gap to have since the magnets are so much stronger.


      ~Bill

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        #4
        +1 for DS10 with rare earth magnet.

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          #5
          Yep. DS10. Properly positioned, it will let you know if the door is open even a crack.
          Real courage is not securing your Wi-Fi network.

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            #6
            I did mine with the same contact type used on my alarm system. Its designed for the gararge door. Just hook it up to the DS10a


            http://www.homesecuritystore.com/p-2...r-contact.aspx


            http://www.homesecuritystore.com/c-7...r-windows.aspx

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              #7
              Originally posted by Gerard View Post
              I did mine with the same contact type used on my alarm system. Its designed for the gararge door. Just hook it up to the DS10a


              http://www.homesecuritystore.com/p-2...r-contact.aspx


              http://www.homesecuritystore.com/c-7...r-windows.aspx

              i cant imagine that hooked up.. got any pics? i like the idea....
              HW - i5 4570T @2.9ghz runs @11w | 8gb ram | 128gb ssd OS - Win10 x64

              HS - HS3 Pro Edition 3.0.0.435

              Plugins - BLRF 2.0.94.0 | Concord 4 3.1.13.10 | HSBuddy 3.9.605.5 | HSTouch Server 3.0.0.68 | RFXCOM 30.0.0.36 | X10 3.0.0.36 | Z-Wave 3.0.1.190

              Hardware - EdgePort/4 DB9 Serial | RFXCOM 433MHz USB Transceiver | Superbus 2000 for Concord 4 | TI103 X-10 Interface | WGL Designs W800 RF | Z-Net Z-Wave Interface

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                #8
                Originally posted by TeleFragger View Post
                i cant imagine that hooked up.. got any pics? i like the idea....
                It's pretty simple actually... some of those have 2 leads off the magnetic switch for a standard NC switch, others have a 3rd lead so you could use it in NO instead. You take your DS10's input leads and hook it to the 2 leads coming off of the switch and you're in business.

                The magnet for this thing is like a 1/2"x1/2"x4" brick that sits on an L plate that you attach to the door. Works solid.





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                  #9
                  I use a standard DS10A magnet assembly mounted to the top of the garage door (see photo). Simple and reliable.

                  A magnet at the bottom of the door is unacceptable here because snow and ice frequently builds up in the winter time and a snow shovel is needed to remove the snow. A floor mounted magnet would be in the way.

                  Steve Q
                  Attached Files
                  HomeSeer Version: HS3 Pro Edition 3.0.0.368, Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 - Home, Number of Devices: 373, Number of Events: 666, Enabled Plug-Ins
                  2.0.83.0: BLRF, 2.0.10.0: BLUSBUIRT, 3.0.0.75: HSTouch Server, 3.0.0.58: mcsXap, 3.0.0.11: NetCAM, 3.0.0.36: X10, 3.0.1.25: Z-Wave,Alexa,HomeKit

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                    #10
                    I bought some mercury switches from http://www.surplus-electronics-sales...roducts_id=307 for less than a buck each.
                    These plug in real well to the HM-DW001 which has a 2 pin screw terminal. When the mercury switch is vertical, the switch is closed and the DW001 sends a "closed" command. When its about 45 degrees then it reports open (actually even less than that but 45 seems about worst case). I haven't installed it on my garage doors yet but I hope to get to that this weekend and I'll post some photos.

                    This should be a very reliable method of detecting the door is open or closed. There is no requirement for the DW001 to be really close to anything else which is required when using a magnet. In fact, it can be installed anywhere on the top panel of the door. Where ever you get the best RF connection would be best. Remember RF won't go thru a large steel car or SUV!

                    The magnet thing just doesn't work reliably due to the spacing needed for a garage door (which isn't exactly the most precise instrument).

                    Now wiring, no precise placement, should detect the door being open anything more than about a foot.

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                      #11
                      Mercury switches work great. Here are a few photos. Note that the mercury switch is bent at about a 45 degrees. Since the leads are metal you can easily position the switch to trigger at the point you want. I have it detect the door is open as soon as its about 6 inches. You can adjust it a little more to your liking but this seems like the best place for reliable operation.

                      Nice thing about this setup is that I could put the door/window sensor anywhere on the door and didn't need a close tolerance for the magnet (which didn't work).

                      One other point, the "Heavy duty" batteries that came with the unit suck. They only lasted a couple of weeks. Hopefully new alkalines will last a reasonable amount of time.
                      Attached Files

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                        #12
                        If you use the correct magnet it's a breeze. This magnet is made for the garage door and mine detect with a gap of 2 inches.
                        http://www.smarthome.com/7455/Garage...SM-226L/p.aspx
                        And it's only $12
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                          #13
                          Eric,

                          What you did is what I did. Works very well. I used it for about 1 year, until the batteries died. As I was still looking into other HS problems, I never did replace the batteries...but I hope to soon.

                          --Dan
                          Tasker, to a person who does Homeautomation...is like walking up to a Crack Treatment facility with a truck full of 3lb bags of crack. Then for each person that walks in and out smack them in the face with an open bag.

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                            #14
                            I used a similiar "armored" cable magnetic NC/NO switch. It has both a NC/NO switch on it and one part is connected to my alarm panel. I read it with HS and it does the garage door open/close TTS. The other part of the switch is wired for a "saftey" loop. The garage door is utilizing the standard light beam should something come across the light beam when the door is closing. I have an X10 switch (could have wired it to an HAI OPII output) across the garage door opener terminal. The saftey loop is wired in such a manner that when the door is open the loop is closed and the X10 switch can shut the door. If the loop is open (when the garage door is closed) then the X10 switch cannot open the garage door. I call it a "saftey" loop for personal reasons and it just prevents the garage door from being opened via X10.

                            While we are on the subject of garage doors. I have two Liftmaster garage door openers. They are about 6-7 years old. I have two cars with Homeminder built in garage door openers and two garage door openers in the other two cars. About one month ago my wife noticed the range on her opener was diminished to a point where she had to be about 5 feet from the garage door to open it. I noticed a similiar thing with the other garage door opener and the two built in Homeminders. I replaced the batteries on her garage door opener. The homeminder uses the car 12VDC voltage. It continued to work with a diminished range. I looked on the Liftmaster site and they recommend an external antenna. Problem is that the home is brick and do not feel like drilling for an external antenna. I have extended the antenna straight up utilizing a straw but its still about the same. I would prefer to keep the transmitters / receiver at this time. The range sometimes (about 10%) works ok from the court but mostly (90%) doesn't. Any suggestions?
                            Last edited by Pete; November 8, 2010, 11:17 AM.
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                              #15
                              Originally posted by Rupp View Post
                              If you use the correct magnet it's a breeze. This magnet is made for the garage door and mine detect with a gap of 2 inches.
                              http://www.smarthome.com/7455/Garage...SM-226L/p.aspx
                              And it's only $12
                              Rupp - can you help to complete the picture as to how this setup would be interfaced to HS? My intent is to detect if the garage door is open (2am) and if true, then close. I have 1 of these garage door magnets as I had started this effort a while back and never finished it. Its on my "list" for this weekend. I do have a HAI panel but would like to reduce HS's dependancy on the panel and do more direct to HS. So I would need some physical way to read status of the magnet (open/close) then drive an action to the opener to close the door.

                              Thanks in advance!!!

                              -Ray

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