Need Advice on Relay/Switch

[Big517]

Cliffnote Version;
Is there a switch or button that can (and how) be wired to tell my ELK that it's been turned on, and if so, allow the ELK to pass that closed circuit, or not depending on a certain condition.  
 
 
Backstory;
My Fireplace has wired to a on/off toggle switch at the front of the fireplace, it's one of the pilots that can be setup for a remote.  I didn't buy the remote for it, instead I put a relay controlled by my Elk M1G (Out 3 NO) in Series with the manual toggle, so even if the switch is on at the fireplace, the relay from the ELK may be open which results in the fireplace not turning on.  I did this because I have another sensor to tell if the flue is open and it will NOT turn on fireplace is Flue is closed... (not important but additional info if needed) I also have the ELK output controlled by an Aeon Labs minimote tied through my Vera to control the ELK Output.  I also have verbal announcements that tell you the flue is shut, or tell you the fireplace is turning on / off etc..
 
Current Story;
Wife does not accept, and wants to control with the switch that is by the fireplace, not switch then find remote.
 
Concern:
I still want the automation to not allow the fireplace to turn on when flue is closed (safety reasons), and still have verbal announcements (monitoring of output status)
 
Solution?:
Is there a 3 way switch or button that I can replace the toggle with that will still tell the ELK to turn the Output ON?  
 
Wiring;
From the fireplace the millivolt controller has 2 terminals that need to be closed in order to open gas line.  
There are 2 wires from there running to the front of the fireplace into an on/off toggle switch.  
I took one of the wires and put the Elk output in series so both switches have to be on for the controller to turn on the gas.
 
Since I have the Elk programmed to not turn on the relay if the Flue Zone is violated, it's pretty safe.  Even if the sensor fails it will result in volation of zone and fireplace cannot be turned on.  I just need to figure out the best way and cosmetically pleasing (if there are options) to have 1 switch or button that will accomplish this.   I'm only a novice, and it may be as simple as wiring the on/off as a zone somehow, but I wanted to reach out in case anyone had some advice and hardware / wiring suggestions.

Thanks!
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

[BraveSirRobbin]

Off hand, I would say the easiest would be to use a double pole switch and have one of the poles monitored via an Elk input, then write a rule to status the relay output conditional on that input (if I'm understanding your request properly).
 
So, you would switch the decora 'manual' switch on, one pole of that switch closes the contacts to your fireplace controller, the other pole closes contacts to the Elk input.  An Elk rule would then turn on the relay output that is in series WITH the pole controlling the fireplace (based on that input status being 'closed').
 
Another rule would turn that in series relay output off if that pole monitored input was open.
 
You could go the Z-Wave, UPB, Insteon route and have that status update, but if you don't already have that infrastructure in place, it's an expensive option.  Plus is that status would get 'missed' it would not work.
 
The only problem I see with the switch is if you can get it in a 'decora' style suitable for WAF.
 
Edit:  Found

 

[Big517]

I do have Zwave in place, but I like the idea of a rocker switch...
 
I'm not clear on how this would be wired, here is the wiring diagram for that switch;
 

 

[BraveSirRobbin]

Like this: 
 
Rules like this:
 
If Elk Input is 'on' AND Flue is 'open' then turn on relay output (the 'Flue' is of course another digital input).
 
If Elk Input is 'off' then turn off relay output.
 
Actually, rethinking this, you could wire the flue status (if it is an open/closed contact) in series with the digital input pole of that switch; but, in your description above, I don't think that is the case.

 

[Big517]

Thank you very much...
 
So I understand this; 
 
Turning switch ON would close the circuit on ELK input Trigger -> ELK Checks Flue Zone
Flue Zone OK -> Closed Relay Output to complete circuit -> Gas is ON.
 
and turn on fireplace flue if Relay is Closed.
 
 
I have some standard On/Off light switches, can those be used?

 

[JimS]

You could use a standard switch as input to Elk and have Elk control the relay to turn on and off fireplace based on switch input and also flue input.  You loose the ability to turn off fireplace if the Elk rules don't work properly and keep the relay on so you need to determine if that is acceptable.  But the rules can handle everthing else.
 
Or have switch control DPST relay.  Lots of different ways to do this... 

 

[Big517]

Definately don't want to lose control of shutting off manually so I think the Double Pole switch is the solution.  I appreciate the quick feedback.

 

[BraveSirRobbin]

The main reason I suggested that a double pole switch be used is because you went through ALL that trouble to incorporate a 'hard' relay connection to enable the fireplace control based on the flue status, I thought it would be a shame not to include a 'hard' switch connection to turn it on/off as well!
 
As stated above, you could just use a single pole regular light switch to toggle an Elk input; but, you would be at risk if those rules failed.  Safety is paramount in fireplace control

 

[Big517]

What was the zwave solution?  Just replace the ELK with a LFM20 or something?  That is what I had in there before ELK.

 

[BraveSirRobbin]

A z-wave switch wouldn't directly control anything, just act as a status indicator to the Elk.  Again, this would rely on the status always being detected and is not as safe a solution as the hard wired option.
 
Your hardware store may even have these switches.  I noticed Home Depot has some for six bucks!