MavRic's Cocoon

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30 October 2008
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ok, so i haven't updated this thread in a while. It's been rather busy with work, making choices and decisions on the house and spending many hours researching all the different automation options out there.

Updated pics will be posted soon, there has been much progress. Interior is being primed and kitchen is going in next week.

All the alarm wiring is in andbehind sheetrock, conduits are all in. I'm pretty happy with it overall. The hard thing is that there is no phone, coax and LAN wiring in the house at all, just the conduits. So first task at hand after closing is for me to go pull some wires so that we have at least some basic TV and Internet service in the house untill i run and terminate everything and install the panels, etc.

I'll be ordering the Elk soon and programming it as much as i can before we move in so there less time lost on that.

Construction is a bit delayed now, move in date is the day before Thanksgiving now...tentatively..





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1 september 2008
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Framing going on in full force. Progress is not bad with only 1 month of work in. But this baby needs to be delivered on 5 November which seems unlikely at this time.







Electrical walkthrough and final definition of any pre-wiring is coming up soon.

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14 August 2008
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Basement wall are up.





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9 August 2008
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Foundation poured and form remvoed.

Forms up for the walkout basement. Yep, it's 9', the tip of my finger is 8'.









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6 August 2008
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Foundation forms up.




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2 August 2008
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3/4" Flexible conduit experiment:
To test my planned concept of running 3/4" flexible conduit to the basement/attic from the LV outlet location I went to Lowe's an got 10' of Carlon ENT (blue smurftube) and some Cat5e and RG6QS. I don't expect any of the flex coduit run to be over 10' so that works out.

I load the 10' flex conduit on the floor and put 2 90 degree bends (one at beginning and one at the end) of about 1' radius in.

I was able to PUSH 2 RG6QS and 3 Cat5e runs through, I didnt even use the pullcord. With a bit more effort one might be able to get another cat5e in or make the total bundle 3 RG6QS + 2 Cat5e, but my feelings are that's about all that will fit in there.

I didnt' try to put some in first and then add some more...with a pullcord this may be possible, but worst case you unterminate, pull the existing cables and push the whole lot through again...a pain if if you plan right it shouldnt be necesarry.

Also did my first Cat5e keystone termination as a test .... (*^*&^ these wires are tiny... took less than 5 mins total so i don't think it's too bad. Didn't have a tested available...so i don't know if I did it right.

I have done some RG6QS termination before and this seems to be pretty straightforward with the right tool. I actually still don't know if i'm doing them fully correct. After i strip I peel and fold back the 2 layers of braid and foil, wiggle the plastic conductor into the compression fitting (remember to put the other piece on the cable first and compress. I have been wondering if this is the proper way but can't seem to find a good answer. Alternatively on could try to wiggle the fitting between the plastic center conductor shield and the foil/braid, but that just seems hairy to me. My concern is that part of the braid gets distroyed when you fold it back, but i suppose since the whole thing is inside the connector i suppose it's properly shielder.

Next up: OnQ ALC Dimmer and Scene Switch Bench Test / Pilot install.


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31 July 2008
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The permit is FINALLY in. Supposedly digging starts on Monday the 4th of August leaving exactly 3 months for completely construction from nothing (well..the lot is cleared) to move in. I'm not so hopefull they can make it, but we'll see.

Cleared Lot:



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28 July 2008
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Framing / Final Layout meeting with developer/builder today.
- Changed bathroom to make it 5' x 3' with 2 shower heads, each with it's own control.
- Changed basement depth from 8' to 9' to ensure we can get 8' ceilings if we ever finish to basement.
- Builder confirmed the site allow us to have a walkout basement and he's proving sliding door and 2 windows without extra cost ( i guess framing/siding is much cheaper than concrete so they don't mind)
- Bulder confirmed the garage can be a 'sideload' rather than 'front load'. We much prefer the sideload since it makes the curb appeal much better IMHO.
- Made adjustments to the Master Bedroom closet to make it more functional

Unfortunately it appears the builder will frame/build of the red-lined set of prints we made that meeting. I actually don't have a copy to scan/post. Soon I'll probably draw up the house in Visio or something since i'll need that for GUI purposes anyway.

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4 June 2008
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Hi All,

Today 4 June 2008 i signed the contract to get my new house built. It is a 2500sqf 2 story single family home on a 1 acro lot in Connecticut. It is being built by a deveoper as one out of ten so technicall it's a tract home, but the builder/developer (actually the same guys owning both companies) are very flexible to adjust the house to our needs.

I hope to post the progress and ofcourse my home automation consideration here for other to see and hopefully for me to share what I learn as i go so that others may learn and I get a chance to give back to the cocoontech cummnity from which i have so far been mostly a taker.


12 June 2008
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Below are the tentative plans pending permit review and final framing meeting. Any comments on the floor plans are much appreciated as there is still time to change things if anybody has a good idea. Outside walls are pretty set, but inside walls can be moved without cost.

Ground Foor Plan


2nd Floor


Elevation


General Strategy:

Since the house is being built by a developed I cannot do any of the wiring myself. Therefore i must be carefull not to put in too much since i am paying dearly for it. The focus of pre-wiring is primairilly on the ground floor level since the 2nd floor is easilly accessed from the attic with batt insulation (no blown in....yeah).

For Alarm:
I am having the contractor pre-wire and mostly likely install recessed sensors in all doors/window. Also I will have him pre-wire for the keypads, sirens, thermostats and outside temp monitors as well as motion detectors at strategic locations on the ground floor. For alarm/automation platform i am looking at the Elk M1

For CATV/Ethernet:
Instead of having the contractor pre-wire i am having him put LV brackets with blank faceplates and 3/4" smurftube up to the attic (in case of 2nd floor) or down to the basement (in case of ground floor). They gave me a good price i think, $65 to put one of these locations in. I can then by the type/quality wiring i want and run it myself later. TV will be mostly ethernet based using HD extenders and SageTV. I am having three 2" trunks put in between the attic and basement.

For whole house audio:
I am having wiring put into every larger room on the ground floor for speakers and keypads and will have actual speakers and keypads installed in the kitchen and family room. If i want to go back and do the living/dinign room the wiring is already there. On the 2nd floor i am having speakers/keypads put into the master bath, master bedroom and office. Thats a total of 5 zones so 1 is available for outside. For audio distribution i am undecided, but running 14/4 and cat5 from basement to keypad location to speakers gives lots of options. Like i will be using a Russound CAV or CAM.

Other house info:
- Gas heating
- Well water
- Septic

This is about are far as the plans are now. I am working to mark up the plans with the location for all the devices. I hope to get comments from the good patrons of CT.

First post updated.

Make sure you take a look at our wiring guide also.

MavRic said:

Below are the tentative plans pending permit review and final framing meeting. Any comments on the floor plans are much appreciated as there is still time to change things if anybody has a good idea. Outside walls are pretty set, but inside walls can be moved without cost.

Click to expand...

This is all personal type stuff, but I would maybe consider switching the tub and shower in the master bath and making the shower larger. I guess it depends on your habits, etc but from doing my remodeling and talking to alot of people it seems larger showers are a better bet. You may be able to fit a nice corner tub where the shower is and have the shower a few feet bigger and perhaps with multiple heads or something nice.

Depending what you are doing with wiring, you may want to consider having them finish the floor in the unfinished attic space. Sure you can do it later, but its a pita and its much easier to walk in an attic without accidents when there is a floor in place, or at least a path. Will help alot with storage too.

Where are you planning on your wiring closet?

Hi Steve,

Thanks for your time looking at this.

Regarding the attic, the house uses engineered trusses so i may be able to walk/crawl through the attic, but using it for storage is not likely. Besides i found out today my basement can be a walkout basement so i have about 1200sqf of basement for storage.

Wiring closet is planned somewhere in the basement. I am waiting for new plans. During review of the siteplan today i also found out the garage will be sideload which is what we wanted but werent sure it was possible on the lot. I also need to know from the builder where the electrical service panel will be etc. When all that is known i'll pick a spot for my wiring closet. I plan to build that myself later or possible ask the building to do it if he gives me a good price.

Regarding the bathroom, we were thinking about having 2 heads put in the 3'x4' shower, do you think this is too small? I thought 3x4 was already on the larger side.

MavRic said:

Regarding the bathroom, we were thinking about having 2 heads put in the 3'x4' shower, do you think this is too small? I thought 3x4 was already on the larger side.

Click to expand...

Well, like I said, its really a personal matter of what you are used to or want. My old one was around 2.5 x 4 and I wanted to make it bigger and just get rid of the tub. We all just shower and rarely use the jet tub we had. It also kind of depends if its going to be a shower for 2 (simultaneously) . For me, I prefer the larger shower and multiple heads/sprays and a system like the Kohler DTV. But I can't really speak since my master bath has been torn apart for 4 years waiting on funds but when we get going hopefully later this year, it will likely be around 3.5 x 5 (largest I can do without MAJOR work and relocating drains, etc) with a DTV system.

Updated

ok, my ELK order has come in and i'm starting to put the system together eventhough i'm not moved into the new house. I'm planning the 42" can layout and plan to put everything in and connect it up to test before moving to the new house. Unfortunately i have to do it this way because the house is delayed and i have limited time to get the alarm installed before we go on vacation.

Things I've learned so far:

- The M1DBH comes with a SWP3 mounting bracket, but doesnt actually fit on it. It aligns with 4 holes on the SWP3 but these holes are too small for the plastic standoffs. I just drilled them a little bigger with a 5/32 drill bit and now it's fine. The M1XIN's don't come with a SWP3 but their holes align with the correct size holes on the SWP3 and mount without issue.
- For drilling holes to mount the M1 control unit a 9/64 drill bit did the trick for me. You can remove the cover from the control easilly and the boards comes of the black plastic backplane. Mark the holes and drill. Screw the plastic to the can. Insert circuit boards, put cover back and done.

MavRic - I had the same goal... Moved in in Sept, Vacation in Nov... Totally intended to have alarm running before I went. Alarm went in following august. Would you be offended if I started a poll as to what month the system made it in?

Good luck with the bench test. I tried the bench test but found it kinda pointless without the zones - I couldn't do any programming or setup without the system in place. The real progress happened within the first few weeks of having the system installed. The good news is, the more you play with the system, the more you'll see what you forgot to order! Took me 4 orders to get it right...

I'm still jealous - i'd love to build rather than retrofit...

Hi todd,

Poll Away...not sure where i'm putting my own money...

I got the control,.expended and DBH mounted in the can already in such a way that can mount the can as a whole into the new house.

I know what zones/wires are in the house and i'm programming the zones (zoen types, etc) and then jumpering them for the time being.

Getting my serial cable today so i can tinker with Elk RP, programmign 40 zones through the keypad gets a bit old.

I got all the keypads connected through cat5 locally so i know it all works. When i move i just need to replace the temp cable with the longer cat5 thats already in the house.

I want to get the dailer configured soon since that seems to be a tricky part as well.

Very interesting thread! I enjoyed reading it.

I've been slacking and not updating it with pics and such.

Current status is that the place is 95% complete but the bloody power company is giving us a hard time bringing power to the place.....its a long story...

In any case....no power, no CO, no closing, no move. Was supposed to close day before Turkey Day so i had a 4 day weekend to move. Now i'm just going to sit in my apartment with boxes stacked to the wall and all my stuff packed up fuming about the stupid delays...

Word of advice...whatever completion date a builder tells you, add at least 2 months for safety....

ok...the ELK configuration is progressing nicely...i know exact how many wires and sensors i have in the new house and i have programmed the ELK with the zones names, wiring type, etc...then i put jumper wirer on the M1 and expander cards for so i can test reporting and such. When the can with all the component already mounting gets moved to the new house theoritically i can just replace the jumpers with the actual wires and 'presto'....

Next up is the reporting configuration...in the process of signing up with nextalarm so i can get that part of the process going...

So far no major hurdles and pretty smooth installation/configuration....the little things that did creep up were purely me not reading the manual correctly or just wiring things up incorrect...pretty easy to troubleshoot.

Where is was quite concerned about this whole process i'm not getting quite confident and find the ELK pretty easy to configure...especially once you get ELK-RP connected and don't have to wander through the endless keypad menu options...

More updates soon...

ok, so a long time has based since the last update and a lot has happened. It's been a long road but today 12 January 2009 we finally closed and received the keys for our new home.

First thing to do is to mount some plywood on the wall next to the electrcial panel so that i can mount the ELK can and start hooking up all the pre-installed sensors and such to get some security going.

Also i need to run some wiring to ensure we have TV and Internet when we move in this upcoming saturday. I have 2 boxes of cat5e, 1 box of cat6 and 2 boxes of RG6QS (all from monoprice). I don't know if it will be enough to complete the job, but at least it will get the essentials in.

The ELK has been bench configured and tested with NextAlarm over a month ago, but has been sitting idle since then due to the home not being complete on time. Hopefully the LV guys did a descent job on the security pre-wire and sensor install and all the wires actually are what they say they are. We'll soon find out.

Congrats! Now the real fun begins.