Analog inputs on the Elk?

[jwilson56]

Does anyone here use analog inputs on their Elk? What is the capabilities of the inputs and what uses are you using them for?

John

 

[GraysonPeddie]

Yes. I use my wireless doorbell that's connected to my Elk.

See my thread here: [HOW TO] Connect the wireless doorbell to Elk M1 Gold.

The Elk M1 Gold functions as a voltmeter when you go into System Diagnostics and go to Zone Voltage menu.

Advantage of going with analog input:

• You don't have to worry about connecting a relay. Some relays may require a high enough voltage in order for the relay to be tripped and sending it through the Non-Alarm zone.
• You can setup rules depending on different voltages, even with the same device.

Disadvantage:

• There's no way to check for change of voltage with the WHENEVER unless you have it checked for like every 1 second, on which you'll need to create a counter and assign a value of 0 or 1. See my thread up above for an example.

 

[BraveSirRobbin]

You can build the Ultimate Garage Door Monitor

One problem that is worth mentioning is the Elk has pull-up resistors on the zones, which could effect some monitoring scenarios.

 

[znelbok]

I use the analog inputs to measure 4-20mA current loops and plan to add some voltage monitoring for the solar HWS.

I did remove the pull up resistors so the M1 can truly measure voltage from an external source.

Mick