Z Wave Fob?

[NickTheGreat]

So I posted on here in June and have gotten some great advice. I've been lurking and learning since then. I finally decided that Z Wave is the route for me, and just yesterday I got my very first Z-Wave package :rockon:

I ordered two outdoor appliance module (for some bedside lamps), an outlet, a wall switch, and the cheap GE remote. Got the lights working and I was thrilled.

BUT apparently the WAF is lower on this project than I thought. We have a cheap RF switch from Target (similar to this) for another light. She likes how it is a simple one-push-and-light-turns-on type of thing. I figured there'd be some sort of Z-Wave equivalent, but I'm not really seeing much. I've seen the Mii-remote and Aeotec was their "panic button" but I'm not really seeing it for sale anywhere.

I really just want some sort of 'fob' that lays on the night stand and will shut her light off. Any advice from the Cocoon? :unsure:

 

[NickTheGreat]

Hmmmm. Anybody know anything about the Tricklestar Remote? Looks to have the form factor I'm looking for. For $40 I may just try it.
http://www.zwaveproducts.com/Zwave-Controllers/Zwave-Remotes/The-Z-Wave-Remote-Control.html

I can't imagine I'm the first guy to want to control one light with Z-Wave. Probably overkill, I'll admit.

 

[tmbrown97]

I think I would've gone with dimmers instead of outdoor appliance modules for those lights; the soft on/off is a huge bonus and extends the life of the lightbulbs 50-fold.

I'm not sure about Z-Wave - I've seen a few; I'm a UPB guy so I got a W800RF32 to let me use the $2 X10RF remotes and motions in my system... they're definitely of the quality you'd expect for the price, but they do the job just fine. I'm sure you could do the exact same thing with zwave if you wanted. In my case, the W800RF32 doesn't directly bridge the UPB - it goes through Elve which programmatically does whatever I want, from turning on the sprinklers to closing the garage door to dimming the lights.

 

[George M]

+1 on the W800RF. Use it for a lot of remote functions.

 

[johnboy70_99]

I think I would've gone with dimmers instead of outdoor appliance modules for those lights; the soft on/off is a huge bonus and extends the life of the lightbulbs 50-fold.

I'm not sure about Z-Wave - I've seen a few; I'm a UPB guy so I got a W800RF32 to let me use the $2 X10RF remotes and motions in my system... they're definitely of the quality you'd expect for the price, but they do the job just fine. I'm sure you could do the exact same thing with zwave if you wanted. In my case, the W800RF32 doesn't directly bridge the UPB - it goes through Elve which programmatically does whatever I want, from turning on the sprinklers to closing the garage door to dimming the lights.

+1 on the dimmers - I am amazed how long my bulbs last .My outdoor post lamp bulbs have been going without replacement for 3 years since I bought this house, going on and off once per night with the gradual dim on and off by my US2-40s. And I am not sure how long they were around before that. Of course now that I say that they will probably all burn out tonight .

I did the same thing with the W800RF32 and cheap remotes and it worked great for a few years. My W800RF32 seems to be dead now though, I haven't had time to troubleshoot. Might have burned out with a lighting strike that took out some stuff a while back.

 

[NickTheGreat]

Thanks for the advice, everybody. I ended up ordering that Tricklstar remote on Friday, but I'll probably take the advice against the outdoor modules. It seemed like I got them for a good price, and I'll surely be able to use them elsewhere.

I said I had a low WAF on this, but I caught her playing around with the lights in the living room, and she seemed to be getting a kick out of it. h34r:

 

[NickTheGreat]

I doubt anybody cares, but I got the Tricklestar yesterday and got it set up. It was a little tricky to setup, but that's probably more operator error than anything.

But it seems like it's gonna do the trick. I'm probably not going to use the outdoor modules where I planned to, but my initial Z-Wave testing is going wonderfully!

 

[Deane Johnson]

I said I had a low WAF on this, but I caught her playing around with the lights in the living room, and she seemed to be getting a kick out of it. h34r:

From what I have observed, wive's tend to be a little negative on HA, viewing it as just another toy for their husband UNTIL they get to using it. Then they become big enthusiasts. My wife absolutely loves to go to bed with all of the lights still on and have the computer shut them down later, as well as getting up in the morning to a lighted house.

 

[NickTheGreat]

From what I have observed, wive's tend to be a little negative on HA, viewing it as just another toy for their husband UNTIL they get to using it. Then they become big enthusiasts. My wife absolutely loves to go to bed with all of the lights still on and have the computer shut them down later, as well as getting up in the morning to a lighted house.

Yeah, I think the thing that bugs her is I have a cheapo RF switch from Target that controls a light now, and it cost ~$25. And this whole setup for just these lights alone will be 5x or 10x that. I tried to explain that this is a network and will work better and have more functionality with more components. But it got heard as "this is expensive already, but I'm planning to buy more" :blink:

But she's okay with it now. And I think with other components like Thermostats and web control she's more interested