100th Insteon Device Installed

[upstatemike]

As of this morning I have hit the 100 mark for installed Insteon devices. I guess it's about time to decide if this is the technology I'm going to standardize on... before I get too deeply committed.

 

[markthomas]

Yeah, good thing you've only covered a small fraction of your house...

 

[Steve]

Yeah, that was just the lab and the basement. Gotta choose before moving into the main part of the house.

 

[Guy Lavoie]

Tread carefully, there are only 16,777,216 possible unique device ID's. You might need to mix in some UPB and Z-Wave to get everything done.

 

[Mike]

Congratulations. Out of curiousity, how have you fared with bad units? Seems you have enough to provide a better percentage.

While some of the smaller installations were showing 20% failure rates on early units, I'm guessing you had better results than that since you have a real sample.

 

[upstatemike]

Congratulations. Out of curiousity, how have you fared with bad units? Seems you have enough to provide a better percentage.

While some of the smaller installations were showing 20% failure rates on early units, I'm guessing you had better results than that since you have a real sample.

I've had 2 bad relay switches. Both were slave units so no load attached. Both worked fine for a few hours and then just died.

52 of my Insteon devices are relay switches.

I have not had to return any other type of device.

 

[Mike]

Thanks, that makes a lot of sense. I was suspecting the numbers would get better with a larger amount of units. I have 3 bad so far but only have around a dozen units, so while the percentage is bad in my case, I did not think it was indicative.

 

[Guy Lavoie]

Could you list a more detailed list of the approximate quantities of devices by type? How many are Switclincs, Icons, etc.

 

[Squintz]

You must have the lowest WAF out of the entire HA community. I feel for you!

 

[upstatemike]

Could you list a more detailed list of the approximate quantities of devices by type? How many are Switclincs, Icons, etc.

4 ApplianceLinc
3 ControLinc
13 Insteon Dimmer SwitchLinc
2 Icon Dimmer
12 KeypadLinc
10 Insteon LampLinc
39 Insteon Relay SwitchLinc
13 Icon Relay Switches
2 SignaLinc
1 Insteon Timer Switch
1 Insteon Translator

 

[Guy Lavoie]

Thanks, that's interesting. So you only have about a dozen Icon devices, which will make any reliability comparison between Icons and Switchlincs a bit harder. Are you using the more expensive Switchlincs because of the load rating (if there is indeed a difference...) or is it just that you started this a while back when Icons weren't yet released? Its also interesting that you only appear to need two RF signalincs.

Also, why do you have so many relay switches? Is it due to the type of lighting that you use?

Needless to say, your installation is a nice case study for Insteon. Keep us posted on your experiences.

 

[upstatemike]

Thanks, that's interesting. So you only have about a dozen Icon devices, which will make any reliability comparison between Icons and Switchlincs a bit harder. Are you using the more expensive Switchlincs because of the load rating (if there is indeed a difference...) or is it just that you started this a while back when Icons weren't yet released? Its also interesting that you only appear to need two RF signalincs.

Needless to say, your installation is a nice case study for Insteon. Keep us posted on your experiences.

At this point I probably don't need any RF SignaLincs at all. I'll check that out some time when I get a chance.

I use Icons in locations where low cost is more important to me than looks. Basement, garage, attic storage, etc. The reverse LED on the Icons kind of bugs me, especially when I have two mounted side-by-side. If only one of them is ON I tend to hit the one that is lit to turn it OFF. It takes me a moment of pushing with no response before I remember that the unlit one is the one that is ON and needs to be pushed.

 

[jeffx]

How are you handling the linking/programming of all these switches? Are you doing it manually?

 

[upstatemike]

How are you handling the linking/programming of all these switches? Are you doing it manually?

It has been manual up to now and I have been holding off on some non-critical stuff until a better method is available. I have ordered a USB PowerLinc and hope to test out PowerHome in the near future.

 

[Herdfan]

It has been manual up to now and I have been holding off on some non-critical stuff until a better method is available. I have ordered a USB PowerLinc and hope to test out PowerHome in the near future.

WOW!

I thought I was in deep. I could not imagine linking all of those switches manually. In fact, after a couple (hell more than a couple) of dead Switchlinc's (early ones with the resistor issue) I gave up trying to get all the status links redone. As long as the switches would turn off and on what I wanted, I was OK.

Well, over the weekend I installed Power-Home and as of last night I had 377 "VERIFIED" links over 42 devices. Power-Home is one strong linking program. I will be interested to see what SH comes up with, but they will be hard pressed to top PH in terms of linking capability.

You won't be sorry you tried it.


As for the Icons, I was slightly confused with the LED status until my wife told me that it was so you could see it in the dark to turn it on. Made sense. I only have a few Icons in places like the attic, furnace room, storage etc. Mainly places only I see, but that bright green LED in the dark is nice.

At 42, my guess is I am about half way there. A rough count yields 37 more to install. My next install, maybe tonight if they come, is a timer on the MBR closet. It stays on all the time. Soon it will stay on for 15 minutes.