Hello,
Does anyone have a suggestion for a z-wave vibration sensor that the sensitivity can be adjusted within Hubitat?
Thank You
Matt
Just attempting to revive this thread/question another user started (but apparently received no replies). I want to be able to tell when our generator has started, and the best way to do that seems to be with a vibration sensor on the engine. The generator is outside (in a metal housing) in Maine, so we can see temps down to -20 F, which would then increase to about 70F or more when the engine starts, in cold weather. In the summer, it can exceed 120F in the housing. I currently monitor temps in the housing to tell me the gen has started, but I think combining that with a vibration sensor would give me more/better info. Suggestions welcome and appreciated. Thanks in advance.
I have the same issue though perhaps without the extreme weather conditions. I stuck a SmartThings Multisensor under the hood. It reads vibration, temperature, and contact (if enabled - mine is not). Seems to work just fine.
Thanks! I think this may be in my future.
Cheap but effective. The smart things sensors have been hard to find recently but rumor has it they are being produced again by Aeotec.
I just got a new Generac and plopped my Zen16 relay in it (powered by an extension cord), just to see if it works. It does. It works via the dashboard as well as via a Zen34 push button that's directly associated with one of the relays.
I wonder if it could be because the housing is now aluminum? The Generac Mobile Link wifi antenna is also inside the housing.
With your Generac, you should look at Genmon. It works great, and is easy to build and install.
There is an integration for Genmon in Hubitat via a community app. You can't do any bi-directional control, but you can use it on a dashboard or to trigger rules.
I've looked at it but it seems daunting and it's not clear if it will remain viable as time passes, since Generac has already changed protocols or whatever.
Plus, it's either Genmon or Mobile Link. Mobile link shows the status and emails or texts any change. I'm enrolled through my dealer, so there is some possibility of them monitoring it when I'm away, or something like that, To me, it's worth the 40 bucks a year.
What I'd like to do is fake out a sensor with the Zen16: I think the over heat one might work, So, if I'm at home and it's raining or snowing, and I want to shut down the gen to conserve propane or whatever, I can shed the load on the main panel, let the gen continue to run to cool down for several minutes, then hit the off button on the Zen34. Reverse order, say in the morning.
This way, I wouldn't have to run wires a long way and it might be easily reversible, in case a dealer visit is required. Then again, if they're monitoring what I'm doing....lol.
Thank goodness, we haven't had a long outage for a while, knock on wood.
Unattended or remote on/off control is more complex because the transfer switch must be used to shed load.
GenMon can also send an e-mail when the generator starts and runs.
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