I'm having a problem getting a Sengled zigbee outlet to work properly. The device sets up and works fine but after a while it stops responding to Hubitat directives. I returned it as defective and now I'm having the same problem with the new one.
Any ideas on what's going on or how to fix it?
THX!
Two related questions:
I'm a newbie so I don't know much about setting up the zigbee mesh however my sense is that's probably not the problem since the outlet (located in 1st floor living room) is <10' away from the Hubitat (mounted in basement floor joist) w/ a wood floor in between.
I have 4 Cree bulbs in the living room which should be repeating. No problems with any other zigbee devices including on the 2nd floor.
I'm trying your suggestion and re-paired the outlet in place. Hope this works.
THX!
Those are likely the problem, or at the very least a problem. Most Zigbee smart bulbs (Sengled again being the exception, so they're ok) are repeaters, but they do a bad job at it and are prone to drop messages from other devices, especially non-bulbs, and cause problems. Not only that, but the Cree bulbs are reported to be particularly problematic in this regard. If you have non-bulb Zigbee devices, it is generally recommended to keep them on their own network. For most Zigbee bulbs (Sengled and Osram/Lightify being two exceptions I know of), a Hue Bridge would work well for this purpose, though some people use a second Hubitat (which both of those would work with, but again Sengleds are fine wherever).
I recommend reading this article from the docs on Zigbee meshes, which also has a mention of the smart bulb problems: https://docs.hubitat.com/index.php?title=How_to_Build_a_Solid_Zigbee_Mesh. There is a similar article on Z-Wave if you have any such devices.
I read the article, thanks. I'm reluctant to purchase another Hubitat so based on info in the article and your comments, I think I'll try this:
Shut down power to all the Cree bulbs.
Disconnect/reconnect the Sengled outlet so it's parent is certain to be the Hubitat and not a bulb.
Wait 30 mins before restoring power to the Cree bulbs.
.... fingers crossed.
Thanks for your help!!
That's definitely a good thing to try! But do note that you can't control Zigbee routing--devices are constantly reevaluating these, and so just because it doesn't pair through a bulb doesn't mean it won't change to route through one later. Keeping them off would be one way to rule other things out as a problem now, though, at least. Good luck!
My plan worked.... for a little while. Then I shut down the bulbs and the Sengled outlet was working fine.
This situation is disappointing as I have purchased many Cree bulbs and now need to re-evaluate my setup leading to some amount of wasted money or unexpected added expense. Scrap the bulbs altogether... buy a Hue bridge or another Hubitat Elevation...?
Is there a benefit (other than controlling the bulbs) or downside of having multiple Hubitats? Does a 2-hub setup become complicated? Can Rule Machine rules be written using devices across the hubs?
Like I mentioned, I'm a noob here. THX!
You would (probably) need some way to connect the two Hubitat hubs. Hubitat has a pair of built-in apps called Hub Link and Link to Hub that could work for this purpose. A more powerful community solution is HubConnect. Either lets you share devices from one hub to another (HubConnect lets you go in either or both direction, supports more types of devices, can sync modes and HSM status in either direction, and has lots of other features, but it does require the installation of custom code, for which it does have clear explanations if you are not familiar but would still require carefully following them). This would let you use devices from one hub for the purpose of automation (apps, rules, etc.) on another.
Of course, you don't need to do this if all of your lighting automations can be self-contained on that hub. For example, if all your Zigbee bulbs fit on that hub and you don't need to reference any devices from the other hub, then you wouldn't need to. But this is probably unlikely--for example, maybe you have Zigbee motion sensors you'd use to automate (need to be on a different hub). Even if your sensors are Z-Wave, you'd likely at least want a repeater or two on that hub for Z-Wave (which you may or may not want to use for a "real" purpose there or somewhere else).
I think a Hue Bridge would be the best option here. It's easy to integrate Hue bulbs (or groups) into Hubitat with the built-in integration (or a couple community options, one of which is mine), so you wouldn't have to worry about connecting to Hubitats (again not hard, but the bulbs are really easy to set up on Hue since its only purpose is lighting, and everything you need to get them into Hubitat is built in). I've also tried a dedicated bulb-only Hubitat, and a couple Crees (which I also have) still managed to fall off it--but they've been fine on Hue. It's also a bit cheaper, and you can probably find a used or even new or like-new one on eBay for even less.
I'm still a little confused as I have no familiarity with the Hue hub - I thought it is just for Philips bulbs.
I think you are saying that the Cree bulbs can be attached to the Hue hub - right?
This way they would be segregated to their own Zigbee network but still accessible as individual devices (or groups if I want) on the Hubitat and in RM - right?
All correct! Except I guess the part about the Hue Bridge being only for Philips Hue bulbs. It can actually connect with any Zigbee Light Link (ZLL) or Zigbee 3.0 bulb, which is most Zigbee bulbs. Exceptions are Zigbee Home Automation (ZHA) bulbs like the Sylvania/Osram/Lightify (at least in the US) and Sengled. Cree are ZLL and will be fine on Hue. There are some Hue-only features you'll miss out on (default power-on settings, Siri/HomeKit, etc.), but you'd be in the same boat on Hubitat there.
So keeping the bulbs on your Hue Bridge network will separate them from your Hubitat network and keep all your Zigbee devices happy. You can then indeed import individual bulbs/lights or groups and use them in Hubitat for any app/automation, including Rule Machine.
I guess I should mention one thing: the Hue Bridge integration is mostly one-way. It is two-way, but Hubitat has to periodically poll the Hue Bridge to get bulb status back into Hubitat for changes that didn't originate from Hubitat--Hue can't "push" changes made from outside Hubitat back to Hubitat immediately. So if you turn on/off a Hue Bridge bulb from the Hue app or similar, Hubitat won't see that change until the next refresh interval has passed (I think the default is 60 seconds). This usually isn't a big deal but could matter if you use Dashboard tiles for these bulbs or have them used as triggers in some automation ("bulb X turns on"). But again, if all your changes originate from Hubitat, this isn't an issue (and it really isn't either way unless you have specific needs like this).
Having issues with two new Sengled outlets purchased on Prime Day... I also have 4 Cree bulbs, and no other zigbee devices... Guess I'm screwed on these working properly as I'm not likely to go the Hue bridge or 2nd hub route.
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