Now that I have made the decision to up my home automation game, I have been searching the internet looking for products, and it their seems to be a lot of them.
This is both a good, and bad thing. Good in that there is a lot of flexibility and competition, bad in that it it takes a lot of time to research them.
So, I am building a Google Sheets database of Zigbee and Z-Wave products (other protocols may follow.)
I'd like community help building the database, but I have never considered the ramification of allowing just anyone access. I can image a lot of things.
What are your thoughts?
Do I allow anyone full access (add, change, delete.) I can imagine any number of bad things going wrong.
Or, do I do all the work, and just ask people to send me their recommendations? Not sure I am up to that task.
I can't comment on your options in Google, but one or two things to consider ...
It depends on what information you intend to capture. Hubitat maintain a list of devices they have tested and consider compatible with the hub, linked at the top of the Devices page. Plus there is a Wiki here on the Community that we can maintain for devices that have Community developed drivers / apps (not developed or maintained by Hubitat).
These are both primarily lists of devices. If you want to record more information, then you may need something else, like what you were describing.
Also, depending how you would like to interrogate / search through the devices, then a Wiki-style page may not be suitable.
Based on my experience, one of the most reliable home automation systems is Caseta devices by Lutron. I use their dimmers and switches to control nearly every lighting device in my home as well as exhaust fans in the bathrooms. Caseta uses a Clear Connect communication protocol that seems to be rock solid. I also like that the Pico Remotes can be paired directly to the lights for easy three-way and four-way setups. Just be sure to get the Lutron Caseta Pro hub as the standard hub does not work with the Hubitat Telnet integration. The Telnet integration is very fast.
After that, I would suggest Zigbee 3.0 devices with multiple repeaters. The Hubitat hub runs the older Zigbee HA 1.2 standard, but the 3.0 devices work well and you will be ready when Hubitat offers Zigbee 3.0.
I do have a variety of Z-wave devices. Some devices tend to be offered only in Z-wave. For example, I have a Z-wave actuator on my main water valve to shut off the water supply if a water leak is detected. In general, Z-wave is a lot fussier than Zigbee. I never could get Z-wave sensors to work in my bathrooms due to the large mirrors, water pipes and heating ducts. Zigbee deivces and Luton Caseta work well.
Lastly, you can get WiFi devices, but unless you need to access something a long way away, I would suggest you avoid them. Many times these devices require a special app and access to the Internet. If the Internet goes down, you may lose access to the devices. There are a few devices like TP Link Kasa devices that are so popular that they are now integrated directly into Hubitat though your router. Those are OK to use, but I still recommend Zigbee plugs.
Finally, if you are like me, you want to be able to control your lights and other devices using voice commands. Hubitat has worked with Amazon Alexa and Google Chromecast for quite a while. Compatibility with the Apple Homekit was added with a recent system update.
You can find a listing of Hubitat compatible devices here:
