Homerun Window Contacts?

[broconne]

Is there a good reason to homerun window contacts rather than just one run per room? Any good automation reasons? I suppose I would then know which window is open - but if I know the room it feels like that would be enough for me and I could visually identify which window is up.

Just wondering if I need to ask the LV sub to price out homeruns on these window contacts or not.

 

[sic0048]

I guess there is no right or wrong answer here, but I suspect you'll find the cost to be prohibative. It would be one thing if you were doing it yourself. But I doubt it is worth the extra cost if you are paying for installation.

Still, probably not a bad idea to get a price both ways just to satisfy the curiousity.

 

[gatchel]

It would be easier to troubleshoot if there were a problem with each window homerun. It depends what you need to get out of your installation, really.

 

[speacock]

I find the cost is in the labor, not the wire. If you run four wire cable in a daisy chain layout you could get three sets of contacts with minimal additional cost while still allowing you to convert back to single zone if you wished.

The one advantage you might gain would be the ability to leave one window open and bypassed while still protecting the other windows.

 

[Lagerhead]

From the DIY perspective (the pros might have a different view)...

My house came with all home runs, which were rather logically combined into 12 zones at the panel.

When I installed the M1, it was plainly not cost-effective nor useful to dedicate one zone to each window. So I guessed at some sensible combinations and separations, for example I combined all six windows along the front porch, but separated the MBR windows into individual zones. In addition, essentially all of the paired windows in the house I joined into individual single zones.

It is nice to have home run flexibility, along with the ability to isolate a troubled zone in the event of some in-wall failure. Apart from that, I haven't really used it. In practical terms, it has been more than enough to know which zone is violated to go there and make it secure.

Why not do hybrid wiring -- some pure home run, some combined. I think you can reasonably combine pairs or triplets of windows where you have them.

 

[broconne]

I guess there is no right or wrong answer here, but I suspect you'll find the cost to be prohibative. It would be one thing if you were doing it yourself. But I doubt it is worth the extra cost if you are paying for installation.

Still, probably not a bad idea to get a price both ways just to satisfy the curiousity.

There is some stuff LV that I am going to beg the builder to let run myself.. Or perhaps phrase it in a way that doesn't get him in trouble such as.. "If someone were to come to the job site who didn't work there, would they be arrested or would there work be torn out?"

 

[jlehnert]

Probably depends on how many windows you have. I counted 51 individual windows in my house, and remembered why I wired them in groups.

I agree that the cost may be the deciding factor. The materials cost is negligible, but the labor could get you.

 

[Sacedog]

I ended up homerunning each of my windows, simply because I did the labor, and the cost of the wire was not a factor. If you want a seperate zone for each window, there is a cost associated with the additional expanders you will need, plus it can take a while to hook up all those zones.

I did like the idea of being able to bypass an individual window.

 

[CollinR]

I wouldn't charge significantly extra for homerun unless you had soo many windows I had to drill more then 1 3/4" hole to get the wires through. It really makes little difference basically using a 3/8" drill bit vs a 3/4". I would put them in series (or parallel depending on your contacts) back at the panel. My run of thumb is: same area, same type, same zone. Having it homerun to the panel gives you the option to either or and makes for simple troubleshooting should a contact fail.

 

[broconne]

I wouldn't charge significantly extra for homerun unless you had soo many windows I had to drill more then 1 3/4" hole to get the wires through. It really makes little difference basically using a 3/8" drill bit vs a 3/4". I would put them in series (or parallel depending on your contacts) back at the panel. My run of thumb is: same area, same type, same zone. Having it homerun to the panel gives you the option to either or and makes for simple troubleshooting should a contact fail.

I am hoping I don't get charged too much since it sounds like home runs are the way to go - I can always put them into one zone at the panel.

Of course we have the LV guys charge, then you have to put the builders charge on top of that. The floor plan has 41 windows, I think 39 of those are operational and would need sensors.

 

[IVB]

1 CAT5 to the room, each window hooked up to a different pair.

If you have more than 4 windows in a single room, you're too damn rich to be whining about the cost of a 2nd CAT5

 

[broconne]

1 CAT5 to the room, each window hooked up to a different pair.

If you have more than 4 windows in a single room, you're too damn rich to be whining about the cost of a 2nd CAT5

LOL - Unless I am going broke paying for those windows!!!

Is cat5 the best option for this? I guess as long as the pairs are twisted you are fine of course.. I just would be worried about two wires running that long without a sheeth given how far windows could be apart.

 

[Steve]

While Cat5 would certainly work, I prefer standard 22/2 for windows. I also like to have them homerun as you have alot more flexibility. And it really should not cost all that much extra. It's no big deal to drag several runs from the wiring closet to the room at the same time and then from there its really about equal either way. So, since the wire is cheap and the labor *shouldn't* be that much more, I would tend to lean homerun as well.

 

[Neurorad]

There is some stuff LV that I am going to beg the builder to let run myself.. Or perhaps phrase it in a way that doesn't get him in trouble such as.. "If someone were to come to the job site who didn't work there, would they be arrested or would there work be torn out?"

He probably won't even notice the extra cables.

Arrested? As long as you look productive while you're there, nobody would prob care.

All depends on what type of guy the builder is.

 

[BraveSirRobbin]

It's all about liability (and making sure the home builder passes inspection). In a track home the design is set, contractors are established by the builder, and anything that deviates from this plan will (in my case) not be approved unless it the work is "pre approved" and performed by one of their contractors.

I ran into this situation with my current home which was part of a track home (Woodside Homes). I had to pay the electrical contractor to get some wiring ran (after I went through their "design" phase and established a rough print) as I was prohibited from performing the work myself.

Of course I have read all kinds of stories about people sneaking in and running cables themselves, giving the security guard various goodies to let them in the place, etc... so YMMV.