Migrate from Echo Plus as hub to Hubitat

Welcome to the community. HE integrates with echo. You just need to, like you said, forget them in echo and connect them through HE. There is a skill for that and a .. I think .... native driver. (I'm not home to check on the driver) After you're migrated, you expose what you want to echo and you're good to go.
You'll need to reset your ge switches and they're a bear to deal with. I had 15 to migrate when I came from ST. Reset them and do a generic zwave exclude. If you get in the logs "unknow zwave device excluded" then you can join that one and move on. If you're on a C7, I'm unsure of the protocol for that as I have C4 hubs. I used this youtube video to reset the switches. It worked for me

There is a harmony integration. Search it out
Hue can connect with the bridge
and sengled connects directly to the hub.

1 Like

Heads up - that is for Z-Wave switches... I believe the OP has Zigbee switches, which should be simpler to unpair from the Echo Plus and then reset and pair with the Hubitat Hub.

2 Likes

OP yep might've missed that one. Thanks for pointing that out. All the same, most of his stuff will definitely come over okay.

1 Like

Thank you for the replies. My Philips Hue does use the bridge. I'm guessing that keeping the Echo Plus running the generic Wifi plugs for now is not a problem. At least until I can change them to zigbee or Zwave devices.

1 Like

I believe you might be able to connect the wifi plugs. Did you check the compatibility list? Or search the community for a post about your device? I don' have any devices on wifi, but I know of several that do.

1 Like

In addition to what has already been mentioned, the GE Zigbee switches should be migrated first, to establish a strong Zigbee mesh. Then you can migrate the Sengled Zigbee bulbs. The Phillips Hue bulbs can stay directly paired to the Hue bridge, and their Alexa integration can remain unchanged. You can simply add the Hue Bridge to Hubitat using the built-in Hubitat - Hue integration.

As for the Harmony Hub, you can leave it directly integrated with Alexa. To integrate with Hubitat, you can use my Harmony Hub Integration.

You can then add the Hubitat Alexa Skill within the Alexa mobile phone app and expose the Switches and Sengled bulbs. Be sure to not create duplicates in Alexa for devices that are already connected to Alexa (I.e. the Hue bulbs and Harmony Activities).

2 Likes

Oh yes. This is a good one. We use this. Flawless integration.

@ogiewon - what about the wifi they mention?

Unfortunately, I don’t use any WiFi switches/outlets...so I can’t add much about how to handle those... :man_shrugging:t2:

1 Like

Thank you (and everybody) for the replies. I'm feeling good about ordering one today. I'm sure I'll be back with lots of questions!

1 Like

A couple of things to keep an eye on... I have noticed that HE is a lot more responsive when all the devices paired the HE. I had an Echo motion detector turning on and off lights on the HE and it was a little sluggish. When I swapped the Echo motion detector out and used a zigbee motion detector paired to HE the responsiveness was significantly improved.

I'm not sure whether the hub and device integrations you plan on using are cloud-based or local... in some cases the HE can talk directly to another hub without going to the cloud. This has a couple of advantages - first there is obviously more latency when going out to the cloud and back. Second you're dependent on the stability of the cloud service, and obviously on your internet connection. For Echo integration you really have no choice, though I have noticed that's pretty solid.

Thank you for taking the time to reply. My hub just arrived and I have a day off tomorrow so I expect to spend a little time working on this. My plan is to start (as suggested) with the Jasco/GE switches. I’ll move on from there to the other Zigbee devices and the Alexa(s). The generic Wi-Fi devices are last and I’ll be sure to watch for any slowdown as noted. Aloha!

2 Likes

... and I have a dead hub. I switched the USB power cable, switched the wall wart, and tried a different outlet. No LED on the front panel, and no discovery.

Ouch - an unfortunate first experience, but these things happen. Hubitat Support (support@hubitat.com) is really good and will set things right - in the meanwhile, tagging @bobbyD.

1 Like

It happens, email is sent to support.

1 Like

I moved from an Echo Plus to HE, mainly Zigbee devices.
The first few I moved I deleted them from the echo and then spent ages trying to get them back in pairing mode and discovering them.
After a couple I noticed that when deleting them from the echo it was putting them straight into pairing mode, so start the HE discovering before deleting each item from the echo and they then get picked up straight away. It made the whole process a lot quicker and easier.

Hey, look on the bright side. At least it died before you added everything!

The replacement hub arrived and I have installed it. Things go much more smoothly when the little light on the front turns on. I managed to add my GE/Jacob switches with no problem at all. The Phillips Hue hub only controls a couple of items and those went smoothly as well.

The Sengled bulbs are a little more difficult, only because some of them use the Sengled Hub and some connect directly to the echo. Is it possible to ditch the hub entirely and connect all of the bulbs directly to HE?

Lastly and perhaps the most frustrating has been my inability to create a dashboard. Should be easy right? Should be the easiest of all the things I’ve done today but it remains a no-go. When I press the “create a new dashboard“ it takes me to a screen that asks me to name the dashboard, when I put a name in, it takes me to a screen that says this dashboard is locked and enter the pin. I must be taking a wrong turn somewhere but it’s a little embarrassing to get stuck with this LOL. Any guidance would be appreciated - Aloha

Edit: I managed to create a dashboard. It required doing a reboot of the hub, uninstalling the pre-install dashboard app, and then reinstalling it.

1 Like

Thank you for the tip, it helped my GE switches move over perfectly.

1 Like

Yes, as long as they are all Zigbee based bulbs, your Sengled bulbs should be able to be reset and paired directly to the Hubitat hub.

1 Like

@Colin

Just one little thing - some sengled bulbs are very difficult to reset. About 8 months ago, I moved 8 from one Hubitat to another, and two RGBW bulbs wouldn’t reset with the on/off sequence described by manufacturer (memory says 10 on/off cycles). It took me several such iterations before they reset - so be patient if it doesn’t work right away.

1 Like