Let me start by saying, “I am not having any issues with my garage door.” I am just trying to educate myself.
With that said: what are the benefits of having a z-wave garage door opener (such as a Zen16 MuliRelay) over WiFi (like MyQ”)?
I know it will keep it Local and If the internet goes down, the rules will still work.
But Is that the only benefit?
Let’s assume the internet is down.
If I need to open the garage door from the mobile app standing next to the door, doesn’t the mobile app still need to connect to wifi for either to work?
If I am 200 miles away and want to open the garage door for a neighbor will the app work if the internet is down, or will the app still be able to connect to the hub? There again, will it matter if its Wifi or Z-wave?
First, your home Wi-Fi network and the Internet are different things: your home Wi-Fi can be up with your Internet connection disrupted. (You might be using an all-in-one router/modem combo from your ISP, but the the services themselves are separate.) You might already know this, but it's worth mentioning in case anyone reading this isn't sure.
The scenario you describe with Hubitat and a Z-Wave device will still work with no Internet. If you're on the same LAN, the hub will use the local Dashboard connection (I'm assuming Dashboard is what you're thinking of). If you're away, you can use the cloud Dashboard. This is available with or without the Hubitat mobile app, really, and if you're local you can use either that or the admin UI. The Z-Wave communication is, of course, all local from the hub to the device. (And any automations you've set up from the hub would even work without your LAN--but if you're looking for manual/on-demand control, you of course need a way to get to the hub.) MyQ, as you know, would fail without Internet--no matter where you are.
Another advantage is that the Z-Wave solution is not an "off label" use for the product--by which I mean that it's fully supported in that it's used in a way the manufacturer intended. The MyQ integration is very unofficial; Chamberlain could decide to block it at any time, as they have done in the past with previous SmartThings versions. MyQ does not have an official Hubitat integration--or many official integrations, for that matter. With a Zigbee, Z-Wave, or entirely local LAN device, you don't have to worry about someone else's cloud being down or them changing their mind.
If you don't mind the fact that MyQ needs the Internet and that it could stop working at any time, there's no reason to rush out and buy something else. But if that's a concern for you--or if you're starting new and can choose any device you want--I don't think I would recommend that option. (I used it for a while myself just because I already had a MyQ-compatible opener, so it was easy to try out.)
For this scenario Wi-Fi or Z-wave doesn't matter. If the internet is down to your home, you can't access your Hub from outside your network. So no way to tell your hub to open the door.
As stated above any automations you have setup in your hub will still function as it transmits commands to your devices via Z-wave or Zigbee. If you had a really trusted Neighbor you could give them a password to access your WIFI and they could open the door via the app.
Thanks for your reply bertabcd1234
The one question I was about to ask you, was answered by terminal3 .
Thank you both for helping me understand this.
I actually have a MyQ garage door opener. It was the first smart device I had.
I had an issue recently where the MyQ lost wifi connection due to an LED bulb I had in the opener. Apparently, the LED bulbs interfere with the MyQ. It was a PITA to reconnect it to wifi. I have recently added a Zooz relay to it, to make it Local, but started questioning myself if this made sense or just how do these things work.
Both of you have helped me greatly.
Thank you
I struggled with getting MyQ or using Z-wave, and ultimately used Z-wave and a relay to trigger my garage. The quality of MyQ was going down, and them adding a fee to integrate into Alexa/Google Home really rubbed me the wrong way. At the time, MyQ was like $80, so using Z-wave was the cheaper option for me.
If you have the means, I would suggest going the Z-wave option. If you're going to use a ZEN16, you still have 2 other relays that you can use for other automations
My garage door opener has the MyQ built-in (no separate MyQ hub). So when the wifi part disconnected, there was nothing to replace. I installed the Zen16 and a dry contact adapter as described by erniemillerDeveloper in this Link: https://community.hubitat.com/t/diy-garage-door-control-solution/34095.
I also got the MyQ wifi connected again, so I have both options, but will probably just use the Z-wave.
I have not figured out what to do with the other 2 relays
https://www.amazon.com/uxcell-Surface-Sensor-Magnetic-Switch/dp/B07F5VYZ2B
you could use a magnetic switch to make one a garage door sensor. using this you can turn on/off any devices. i currently have a tilt sensor that when it opens will turn on my garage light. helpful when i come in at night
