Questions regarding Elk M1GSYS4S install and lighting config

[holydragon]

Hello,

I just purchased and completed installation of an Elk M1GSYS4S. At the moment I am using it strictly for security and everything is running smoothly; however, I have a few questions regarding configuration.
1) I need to install a smoke detector and see that my existing smoke detectors do not appear to be alarm compatible. What is a good smoke detector to use with this system?

2) I purchased the eKeypad and was hoping to turn my alarm on and off from my ipad. What additional equipment do I need to connect to the M1GSYS4S to accomplish this.

3) I am only using one alarm output from the unit. As a consequence, "output 2 trouble" is constantly being displayed. Is there a way to this message or to disable output 2?

4) I currently have a cable from phone and internet. If my cable goes down, I lose both. Is there a wireless call out option for the M1GSYS4S?

And finally...

5) I am controller my lighting through and Smarthome SmartLinc module. How can I get my lighting and the Elk M1 to communicate with one another without breaking the bank.

Any feedback that you can provide is greatly appreciated!

HolyDragon

 

[wuench]

2.) You just need an M1XEP (Ethernet Interface)

5.) Best bet is a Universal Devices ISY

 

[Del91574]

1. I uses System Sensor I3 units personally. 2 or 4 wire would be personal preference (I prefer 2).

3. Install an EOLR across the unused terminals.

4. The easiest and most feature rich unit vs. cost would be an Uplink 2500 via an XSP and secondary power supply, since you're going to have an XEP using the onboard serial.

5. There's ways, but the M1G will not be able to directly "poll" the insteon devices, however there are a couple of workarounds. Depends on what level of integration and automation you want.

 

[tmbrown97]

In case #3 - EOLR doesn't make sense - grab one of the resistors that came with the panel and just put that between the + and - terminals of the unused output 2.

5 - Use the ISY - that seems to be everyone's preferred way.

and to elaborate on the remote access... you have to have an M1XEP and you have to have some basic network understanding... you can either use Port Forwarding in your router to forward requests to the secure port to the M1's IP address (by default that's 2601) - then ekeypad will work. Alternatively, you can set up VPN so you have to VPN into the house first, then hit it by IP. Either way I strongly recommend setting up a Dynamic DNS service and setting up that feature in your router so you can always get to your house even if your IP changes - Ive used DynDNS for many years - so you'd register a name like holydragon.dyndns.org - then set up port forwarding so port 2601 gets forwarded to the M1; and configure eKeypad to know the alarm is at holydragon.dyndns.org - and this should work inside or outside the house.

 

[holydragon]

Thanks for all the great feedback.
Based on your recommendations, I purchased an m1xep and an isy99.
Now what.. Do I Need an 2412S to talk to insteon devices?

I also am using the dyndns service. Now I always know my router ip address but am not clear on have to access the various device on e network. Any ideas?

HD

 

[wuench]

Nope, just the M1XEP. The ISY should come with a PLM to talk to Insteon. And it talks to the M1XEP over ethernet.

You just need to follow the instructions on the eKeypad website to setup the M1 and router to forward/talk to port 2601. That's it. Direct access to the M1XEP's web interface isn't really feasible through port forwarding (or secure). You can also port forward to the ISY, but probably won't need to with eKeypad.

eKeypad --> router --> M1XEP --> ISY --> PLM --> Insteon

 

[apostolakisl]

Thanks for all the great feedback.
Based on your recommendations, I purchased an m1xep and an isy99.
Now what.. Do I Need an 2412S to talk to insteon devices?

I also am using the dyndns service. Now I always know my router ip address but am not clear on have to access the various device on e network. Any ideas?

HD

You'll actually want a 2413s. This is a dual band model and has more memory and supposedly is faster. And you will definitely want the ISY module for Elk.

I am pretty sure you will need to port forward to ISY and/of Elk to get to it from outside your LAN. I don't have ekeypad so not exactly sure about it, but I have my port 443 (https forwarded to ISY and the secure port for Elk (2601 I do believe) forwarded to it. ISY has a provision that allows you to just click a button and have it automatically setup port forward if you have compatible router, otherwise you have to do it manually. Elk is for sure a manual setup.