Advice on automated blinds

Hello,

I have a large window in the kitchen that has a width of 90 inches.
I don't have any blinds yet but I would like to have motorized blinds, so I can create rules like open the blinds at sunrise.

Ikea Fyrtur or Kadrilj could be some valid options as they work with Hubitat but they aren't wide enough to fit this window.

So what should I look for? any advice?

Zigbee or Z-Wave enabled blinds that come in 90 inch wide version (will be pricey)

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I can't know what your window looks like but, would two narrower blinds work aesthetically?

Zebrablinds was mentioned in a recent thread.

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I don't know if they are available in your market (with the correct Z-Wave frequencies) but in the U.S., a firm called Zebra Blinds (https://www.zebrablinds.com/), carries a number of products including Graber's line of shades and blinds that use the Somfy Z-Wave automation. I just installed one and it pairs up with Hubitat and will use the Generic Z-Wave Shade driver. They seem to have models that might work for your size requirement.

PS - The discount code "Smartthings" was still working to provide a substantial discount off their advertised prices as recently as this week.

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The window looks like this

image

Zebra blinds seems fine but I don't think I can get them in Europe.
I thought about buying two separate motors but it would create a gap between the blinds and I don't think it would look good

I have a large, heavy roller blind I'd like to motorize. I have been looking at this tube motor

https://rollertrol.com/store/en/diy-motorized-window-blind-kits/291-projector-screen-motor-or-large-blind-kit.html

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I have some large windows one is (from memory 2.2m) wide and I found a company that made bespoke electric Roman blinds. I then just brought a z-wave blind controller for it. This way I have a switch directly connected to the controller for local control and I can open and closed them at sunset and a specific time.

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I have hunter douglas blinds. One of the windows is 121” and it does what you are looking to do. Batteries in the pack last about a year.

It’s not cheap though but the only other options I had was to split it into multiple blinds which I was a fan of.

You will also need the hub to control them but there are community drivers and control is local over wifi which is nice.

It’s an option if you can get them where you are.

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iBlinds is an option if you are satisfied with 2" slat blinds. iBlinds is a motor that fits in the headrail and controls tilt but not raising/lowering. I have it on a blind that's 72" wide but I wound expect it to be able to control a 90" blind (again, tilt not raising). Price is $120-150.

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I have lots of iBlinds motors around my house and like them too! Their official maximum tested width is 72", but I wouldn't be surprised if they worked on larger widths too. I'm not sure if they're on discount now, but they've had a few sales recently that bring either the price or shipping cost down, so if they don't now and you don't mind waiting or testing your luck, you might find a better deal. They aren't cheap but certainly aren't as expensive as many others--about comparable to Mysmartblinds in terms of appearance and installation, as far as I can tell (never used those), except they're Z-Wave and can work directly with Hubitat.

Their driver does seem to have some oddities (doesn't update Last Activity when they respond find to commands) and I wish the one exposed button was useful for anything besides inclusion and exclusion (apparently what their beta testers wanted), but I have them automated enough that I don't usually care too much.

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How many iBlinds do you have on your network. I was able to get my first 5 working, but then the next 2 would not include. I then tried them on my other hub and they both include right away.
In the user guide it states:
Z-Wave Association Group The iBlinds product grouping identifier is 1 and maximum number of devices that can be added to the group is 5.
Does that mean there is a maximum of 5 per network? Is the Association Group changeable?
Thanks

I have seven throughout my house and plan to add a couple more. Most were able to be included to my network without a problem. If they fail, I would try the usual troubleshooting steps of trying to exclude them first just in case, plus one extra: sometimes I've had to "restart" the iBlinds by pulling the battery (and solar, if you have it) connector for a few seconds and re-inserting. Not sure if that really helped, but it did work after. :slight_smile:

What you found in the manual sounds like it's just talking about Z-Wave association. This would be a way to directly "pair" it with another Z-Wave device like a switch or remote to open/close, bypassing the hub. It shouldn't be related to the problem at hand.

Thanks for the information. Knowing that it should work always helps. I excluded some of them with my Z-Stick, added them to my other hub, excluded them again, and was finally able to get them added to my main hub.

These look really good and have custom sizes up to 144"

I can't tell if there zwave or zigbee

Looks like it may be RF>Wi-Fi combo...You use Wi-Fi from their phone app to talk to hub, hub uses RF to control blinds.

image

Generally if a vendor is using Zigbee or Z-Wave it shows up in the info, don't see mention of either yet. Did some more searching, looked at their manual, no mention of anything but Wi-Fi and their own hub.

One insteresting angle, this might be controllable via the Bond Bridge, which is designed for controlling fans, fireplaces, etc., that have a similar setup. The Bond figures out what RF signals the native controller is sending, and copies them to allow you to control the devices via Bond. Then the Bond integration allows you to control via Hubitat. Only problem is there is no tru "status reporting" from Bond devices in HE, the integration doesn't really know the current state of the device it's controlling, and assumes when commands are sent the device status changes. That can lead to disconnects between actual status and the HE/Bond integration, and means you can't use the original controller once you set up the Bond Integration or things will get out of whack.

Thanks Dan,

Good info. I might be more interested in finding a product that uses Zwave or Zigbee that way I know it will work.

Any ideas on a good one?

Hobs

I found this one that uses Zwave. But boy o' boy are they expensive

I ordered my shades from Zebra a few years ago - this model:

I found they often have discount deals and they allowed me to stack discounts. I was able to get a 36% discount on my last order. They are expensive but they have worked well. Their manufacturing tolerances seem very good (they are made to order) and they have a huge selection of materials and colors.
I get no kickback from them and I own no stock in their company.