Seeking narrow contact sensor recommendation

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1

Hi folks.

I have some aluminum windows that have very narrow rails, stiles, and jambs (like 1-2cm narrow). I can just barely get the Iris v2 contact sensors to fit. Sadly, I ran out of those sensors, and the eBay well seems to be running dry.

I looked into sensitive strips, but because the window frames are aluminum, that seems like a no-go.

Does anyone have any recommendations for narrow contact sensors that won’t have to be mounted on the glass?

Thanks!
alk

2

I use sensitive strips on a steel door… they work fine. Should work better on aluminum as its not magnetic.

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3

Interesting. Does your door have a wooden frame/jamb?

I’m not concerned about the aluminum interfering with the magnetic reed switch. Because the window stiles and channels are both aluminum, I’d essentially be enclosing the strips in a faraday cage (surrounded by metal in all sides), and I’m highly skeptical that any signal would escape. I’m curious about your setup. If the door jamb is also metal, that’s intriguing.

Thanks,
alk

4

I had trouble with sensative strips on an aluminum window and I assumed it was a signal interference issue. Probably a YMMV type situation. They are hard to beat for super slim form factor though.

5

Yeah. @sidjohn1’s suggestion had me look up the Sensative manual. They don’t explicitly say it’s not possible, but that if mounting on a metal surface, one should increase the adhesive padding to 2-3mm.

https://sensative.com/download/strips-guard-detailed-mounting-guidelines/

I had been assuming I’d have to place the strips in the channels of the window frame. It seems like I could mount them on the surface, too. That might work for me.

Thanks to both of you for the suggestion.

Anyone else have any recommendations?

Thanks,
alk

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6

The Faraday cage issue might not be as bad as you think as long as you use Zigbee sensors. I have a Zigbee sensor inside each of my freezers to monitor temperature. They are essentially Faraday cages with the exception of the small seals around the doors. They seem to work fine, although below 0 F, battery reading may not be accurate.

I have enough trouble with Z-wave signals under normal conditions. I would never try them in something like a freezer or inside the frame of aluminum windows.

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i use them in a freezer fine.. i just make sure an extender is nearby