I am just starting build out my smart home setup. I currently have the smartthings hub and a couple of GE z wave smart switches. I am wanting to add many more devices such as water leak detectors, motion sensors, etc. I also plan to buy a 2GIG GC2 panel and use alarm.com. I am confused about what make/model z wave devices (i.e. water leak detectors, motion detectors, switches, etc) I should be purchasing that will work with all three systems (2GIG GC2, alarm.com, and smartthings hub). I was hoping I could just buy a device and as long as it was a z wave device it would be compatible with all three systems, but I am not sure that is correct.
Is is true the 2GIG GC2 and alarm.com will only work with some z wave devices (such as the Resolution RE219 and not other devices such as the Samsung SmartThings Water Leak Sensor)?
If so, how do you know what devices to buy that would work with all three? I do not know to buy a device/sensor to only find out it can only be used by smartthings and not alarm.com, etc.
I have the same setup. The zwave portion is really just for simple zwave devices like light switches and dimmers. You can control them using schedules and sensors.
For all the sensors - like motion, water leak, etc. - you need to get 2Gig compatible ones. This forum has been a great resource to get recommendations or confirm if something is compatible.
Is is true the 2GIG GC2 and alarm.com will only work with some z wave devices (such as the Resolution RE219
The RE219 is not a Z-wave device. It is 345mhz.
Z-wave devices that may have compatibility:
Light switches. Thermostats. Locks. Energy Meter. Fan control switch. Water Valves. These are automation devices that are controlled.
Z-wave devices that will not have compatibility:
All sensors: door sensors, motion sensors, flood sensors, glass break sensors, smoke detectors, CO detectors, etc. None of these can be Z-wave. Z-wave sensors are not compatible with the Alarm panels.
The 2GIG panel utilizes 2GIG/Honeywell 345 Mhz sensors. 345 mhz is a separate radio frequency from Z-wave.
Compatible sensors on suretyDIY can be filtered by selecting the 2GIG Go!Control from the panel compatibility drop down menu on the right side of store pages.
I currently have the smart things hub...I am confused about what make/model z wave devices...I should be purchasing that will work with all three systems (2GIG GC2, alarm.com, and smartthings hub).
It’s really two systems, the 2GIG panel is a device in the Alarm.com ecosystem. In my opinion it’s a world of hurt to have Smartthigns and Alarm.com integrated currently. You can do it but it’s limited and difficult. You might consider keeping the automation on the Smartthigns side and using Alarm.com for security features. Or, take a close look at the automation features you want and see if you can do them all on the Alarm.com side (and eliminate the Smartthings hub).
After more thought I am thinking of having two z wave networks. The SmartThings would control my lights and home automation and my 2gig panel and alarm.com would only have one z wave device and that being the front door lock. This should allow me to disarm the security system and get a text notification with a video clip when someone enters their code on the front door z wave lock. With all other z wave devices being on SmartThings I would have more control over them and a more fully featured home automation than what alarm.com ptogides and also not have to worry about whether the 2gig panel sees them or not. Thoughts?
After more thought I am thinking of having two z wave networks. The SmartThings would control my lights and home automation and my 2gig panel and alarm.com would only have one z wave device and that being the front door lock.
That’s pretty much what I’ve been thinking about but haven’t done yet. The main downside is there’s no good way to trigger events based on arming status (which is the best way to determine occupancy), or an alarm status (turn on lights if alarm goes off). Alarm.com can communicate with Smartthings through email but the latency can be 10 minutes. Secondary downside is control is split into two apps so it’s less elegant.
Good point about the arming status being the best way to determine occupancy. So maybe I should have the 2Gig panel control the front door AND Garage Door openers and then let lights be controlled by smartthings (and amazon echo) since I need to lights be controlled by echo without having to say echo “tell alarm.com to turn on living room lights”. It would be nice to have lights go on and off if an alarm occurred but I am willing to give up that feature in order to use the tighter automation (on non security related devices) smartthings with things like ifttt and echo.
Do you think 2gig will produce an app with the wifi enablement that can directly use the GC3 as a zwave hub without going through alarm.com at least locally(maybe even from anywhere through router config). I am still doing research, but it seems to me that
-Alarm.com is $5/month to control zwave stuff through the GC3 from anywhere
-Smartthings hub is free to access your zwave stuff from anywhere through their cloud.
With the use case of 99.9% time using zwave stuff while at home, why would I want to pay $5/month to do so when a free option exists. If they don’t plan on creating a way to directly access the GC3 with an app, then as noted by Ben it is strictly an alarm.com security device.
I cant believe this doesn’t already exist when it does for sprinklers (rainmachine)
Do you think 2gig will produce an app with the wifi enablement that can directly use the GC3 as a zwave hub without going through alarm.com at least locally
I would say almost certainly not, it’s not their business model.
why would I want to pay $5/month to do so when a free option exists
If you’re only doing automation, you absolutely shouldn’t. The $5/month is for the convenience and seamlessness of having the automation integrated into the Alarm.com ecosystem. Alarm.com’s service also meets a higher level of assurance than free services like Smartthings, though this is more important for security vs automation.
Personally I would have no problem with paying the automation premium if Alarm.com were better with their 3rd party integrations and rules. The Hue color lights are the first devices that made me fragment out of the ADC ecosystem - not really ADC’s fault as Philips made the Hue lights proprietary, but the end result is the same. I also continue to be frustrated by the lack of robust conditional logic - Smartthings is much more flexible in this regard.
For me the $5/month is less of an issue versus the functionality - today I am keeping the critical mass of my system in ADC because security is more important to me than automation, but I am definitely feeling the pull of the flexibility that something like Smartthings brings.
It is important to remember that Alarm.com integration focuses on a system that for security reasons really should not be opened up to direct third party control and integration. Alarm systems lose a lot of integrity as soon as you open them up, and any problems that result affect a lot more than the automation device you’re looking to add.
In addition, there is really no better “Brain” so to speak for a smart home than a device which is naturally collecting data from sensors around the home. Leveraging sensor data for automation and retaining a secure alarm system that is professionally monitored is the focus of ADC.
Regarding the HUE lights, see the ADC release notes from 10/24. Including the following which may be a good option:
“Multi-Color Z-Wave LED Light Bulb Support
We added the Zipato RGBW and Aeotec LED Z-Wave light bulbs to the list of Alarm.com supported devices. Users can now control these light bulbs in real-time using the Alarm.com Mobile App by choosing a specific color or selecting warm or cool light based on the time of day. Users can also automate these bulbs to communicate events, such as turning green when Dad’s phone crosses the home’s Geo-fence. After the bulb is learned in to the your Z-Wave network, you can find color control in the Mobile App by tapping on the circle next to the light bulb icon. You can set up schedules or event-triggered rules by navigating to the Alarm.com Website > emPower > Rules > Select Add a Rule or Add a Schedule > Automate My: Multi-Color Lights”
Do you think 2gig will produce an app with the wifi enablement that can directly use the GC3 as a zwave hub
This is extremely unlikely. 2GIG has branched out with some of their own devices, cameras, doorbell cam etc., that are outside of a back-end ecosystem, but the alarm systems are intended for use with a back-end service.
In addition, there is really no better “Brain” so to speak for a smart home than a device which is naturally collecting data from sensors around the home.
This is a good point and one of the reasons I haven’t jumped over to Smartthings. To get the same level of intelligence about my home I would have to install a whole new set of sensors, which would not have the same level of assurance as the ADC security sensors.
We added the Zipato RGBW and Aeotec LED Z-Wave light bulbs to the list of Alarm.com supported devices.
Thanks, I actually was not aware of this. Doesn’t help me with my significant investment in Hue, but that’s my own fault
Regardless of the $5/month to use their cloud, I would also like to know if you can or if there is any plan to allow you to use the GC3 hub LOCALLY without sending the message from the alarm.com app to alarm.com and then to the GC3(straight from phone to GC3 through wifi). I ask because my messages are delayed. When I disarm and arm, it can sometimes takes 20 sec or more. When I want to dim the lights or equivalent, I don’t think that is an acceptable lag time for interacting with home devices while at home when you want immediate feedback. This will help me make the decision to route everything through alarm.com or segregate.
if there is any plan to allow you to use the GC3 hub LOCALLY
Some things are processed locally, like rules that are triggered by sensors. Example, porch lights turn on when driveway sensor is triggered. These happen with almost no latency.
straight from phone to GC3 through wifi
Won’t happen, that’s not how the system was designed. BUT
I ask because my messages are delayed
This is largely alleviated by dual path (connecting the GC3 to broadband in addition to cellular). I believe this is in the “any day now” category for the GC3 - it has been rumored as a feature for the first firmware update.
When I want to dim the lights or equivalent, I don’t think that is an acceptable lag time for interacting with home devices while at home when you want immediate feedback.
Yep, as the above poster suggested, IP communication pretty much removes this. Latency is more like 1 second when using broadband as well as cell.
The GC3 is supposed to get wifi enabled in firmware soon, so once it is set to dual path you’ll notice quite a difference.
We added the Zipato RGBW and Aeotec LED Z-Wave light bulbs to the list of Alarm.com supported devices.
Can you confirm that the Zipato RGBW will pair with a 2GIG Go!Control (2GIG-CP21-345E)? Further can you confirm the Zipato RGBW is the only color bulb compatible with ADC? (the Aeotec bulb seems to be white only) I am thinking of getting one to try.
The Zipato RGBW might pair with the Go!control, however, it is not listed as officially compatible. As for additional compatible colored bulbs, only the Zipato RGBW is confirmed as compatible through ADC at this time.
Should I interpret this as “might work but not supported”
That is correct, while supported by ADC for functionality through the app/website, it is not officially supported by 2GIG (not officially tested). We have not tested this product either.
What is the officially compatible way to use this bulb with ADC?
The lights are compatible through the ADC mobile app and website with rules/scenes/schedules and real time multi-color light control (similar to changing the light on the SkyBell HD).
As for panels that officially support the bulb, that would be on the manufacturer of said panel. Neither 2GIG nor Qolsys suggest official compatibility.
As for panels that officially support the bulb, that would be on the manufacturer of said panel. Neither 2GIG nor Qolsys suggest official compatibility.
This is what I’m confused about - is it the case that Alarm.com added official support but no panels have official support?
This is what I’m confused about – is it the case that Alarm.com added official support but no panels have official support?
To clarify, compatibility may be a poor description. A better description would be they do not support full functionality. From what we are seeing the color lights will not have full control on the panel, but only in Alarm.com. All Alarm.com related features should work fine, there is just no local display for them as there is with officially compatible thermostats for example.
