Pool gate alarm

[niffel]

Hi all,
I'm looking to install an alarm on the gate to my pool.  I was thinking of building my own on an arduino or Raspberry pie.  But before I go down that road, I thought I would ask if anyone here knows of any turn-key ( or nearly turn-key ) solutions that would be simpler/cheaper/fast to install.
 
My requirements:
 
The alarm should function in two modes, armed and disarmed.
Transitioning from armed to disarmed should be done by entering a code on a keypad located near the gate.
The alarm must automatically re-arm after a programmable delay.  ( 20 min or so )
If the gate is opened in the "armed" mode, there should be a loud and annoying alarm played in the house.
If the gate is opened in the "disarmed" mode, there should be a less loud but noticeable chime played in the house.
In ether mode, if the gate is held opened from more than 20 seconds, there should be a loud and annoying alarm played in the house.
 
I do not currently have any sort of alarm or home automation system installed in the house, but I've been wanting to.  If the pool gate requirements could be satisfied using a more complete, expandable system that could do more, that would be great as well.  But my primary concern right now is the pool gate as I have a 2 year old boy that loves to swim.
 
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. 
 
Thanks,
dave

 

[tmbrown97]

There are off the shelf pool alarms for this purpose; at the same time, I know I could accommodate all of what you've mentioned in an Elk and I'm sure with other systems too.  Depends on how much money you want to spend.
 
The thought of rolling your own via an arduino scares me - the cost of a crash/malfunction could be a price I couldn't bear to pay, should something tragic happen and you're not properly notified.  If you do try to roll your own, please use an off-the-shelf remote alarm as a backup of sorts.

 

[az1324]

I doubt there are off the shelf systems that fulfill all of those requirements.  Many standard alarms would probably have trouble meeting them too. 

 

[jabe421]

I looked into this for my pool and I never did find an off the shelf pool alarm that went much beyond the basic requirements that the national code requires. Not being happy with my existing DSC system I upgraded to an Elk M1 and I could not be happier with the flexibility it provides. With the M1 system you could meet all of your requirements with their rule programming but I'm not sure if your requirements meet the ASTM F2208-08 Safety Standards for an alarm device but it may pertain to only doors that access the house. For the house doors I believe the alarm will need to sound after 7 seconds and go for a minimum of 30 seconds before shutting off. There would be no "disarmed" mode allowed but you can have a bypass button no less than 54" in height next to the door. Because your pool exists I'm not sure if you need to adhere to the national standards and if they are only pool gates it is just added protection in addition to the automatic latch you probably have on the gate now.
 
The Elk system would not be the most cost effective way to go but it does give you a lot of flexibility and is very expandable.  I started with home security, now I have control over my pool gates, pool lights, spa, landscaping light, and irrigation system. I also have it connected to a mail server to send me email notifications when certain zones are violated.
 
jabe

 

[radiohead]

I looked into this for my pool and I never did find an off the shelf pool alarm that went much beyond the basic requirements that the national code requires. Not being happy with my existing DSC system I upgraded to an Elk M1 and I could not be happier with the flexibility it provides. With the M1 system you could meet all of your requirements with their rule programming but I'm not sure if your requirements meet the ASTM F2208-08 Safety Standards for an alarm device but it may pertain to only doors that access the house. For the house doors I believe the alarm will need to sound after 7 seconds and go for a minimum of 30 seconds before shutting off. There would be no "disarmed" mode allowed but you can have a bypass button no less than 54" in height next to the door. Because your pool exists I'm not sure if you need to adhere to the national standards and if they are only pool gates it is just added protection in addition to the automatic latch you probably have on the gate now.
 
The Elk system would not be the most cost effective way to go but it does give you a lot of flexibility and is very expandable.  I started with home security, now I have control over my pool gates, pool lights, spa, landscaping light, and irrigation system. I also have it connected to a mail server to send me email notifications when certain zones are violated.
 
jabe

Jabe,
 
Was there any reference or tutorial that you can suggest for some one beginning with the Elk products to do some of the things
that you have reference, such as controlling lighting etc?
 
Thanks,

 

[tmbrown97]

Once you start to learn how relays an inputs work and how the programming of the Elk works, you'll find that the options are pretty much limited only by your own creativity, and it's all pretty interchangeable.  It shouldn't take long to get used to the Elk rules, especially if you peruse the code examples that are available.

 

[radiohead]

What is the code written in for the ELK, java? What platform are you guys developing on, eclipse? anyone have source code for the software? how are
you guys developing for it?

 

[jabe421]

I have only had my M1 system for a short time but my background is in microcontrollers so the entire system is pretty simple to me. The rule programming uses simple Whenever/And/Then event commands similar to if then statements in C. It's somewhat limited but I have been able to get everything working the way I wanted to. One of the limitations I hear about is the memory for the “Rules”. I’m about 50% so I’m OK but I know you can expand the rule using the PowerHome2 Software. PowerHome2 supports programming languages and Windows Script Host. For my pool lights I used a solid state relay just because I wanted something durable and last forever. Is there a specific thing you are thinking of doing?
 
Here are some links to check out.
 
PowerHome2
Elk Rules App notes
Irrigation Example

 

[tmbrown97]

What is the code written in for the ELK, java? What platform are you guys developing on, eclipse? anyone have source code for the software? how are
you guys developing for it?

Noooooo nothing that complex - it's a GUI driven when/if/then engine where you pick conditions and actions, such as "Whenever Front Door becomes Not Secure AND It Is Dark, then Turn On Entry Light".
 
If you have experience with coding you can get used to making somewhat reusable components in an almost object-oriented sense by using phantom outputs and triggering actions based on their changing state...  it comes down to how the logic works with the system.  It's very basic but actually pretty powerful once you get the hang of it.

 

[radiohead]

So you 'program' the system from its own touchpad? ie there is no writing code?
 
tk,

 

[electron]

You can configure it via the keypad, but it would take forever.  But ELK also created Windows based software to manage your entire ELK system.  Here's a video showing off the software, created by ELK:
 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LP7E3Lt8yFQ