Hi, newbie to Hubitat.... I have an existing DSC alarm system with communicator but due to the difficulty in integration i rather just build another system that is compatible with hubitat where i don't have to pay monthly. Any suggestions on a solid alarm system with sensors, etc... that works with hubitat and alexa that i wouldn't have to replace anytime soon?
Not officially compatible, but there's a community integration that works really well. I still use it with mine. Ring fits all the criteria you have. The Ring Alarm integration is local to HE too, so you can use the sensor input for other things on Hubitat Elevation with concern of cloud reliance.
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I strongly recommend against getting a Ring alarm system if you don't already have one. The primary reason being that Amazon (which owns Ring) refuses to make any sort of official public API available, so there's no telling when the unofficial integration will stop working and if/when it will be fixed. I certainly don't have the time or skills to reverse engineer it should they break it, and the original author of that integration is no longer doing anything with the Hubitat platform.
Aside from that, Amazon has been really dicey with regards to what they do with the data collected by the various Ring products. I've personally already removed my Ring doorbell and camera, and will likely follow suit with the alarm system before long.
Unfortunately, I'm also in the same boat of not being aware of any alarm system that really plays nice with Hubitat.
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I guess you could be worried like that, but it makes no sense to me to be concerned about a problem that doesn’t exist. I’ve been using this since December of 2019. They would have to break their own API to kill this, and even if they did, I’d still be able to use the sensors and keypad directly in HE.
No offense but the sentiment reminds of my friend who wouldn’t use Homebridge for years, wouldn’t even investigate it because he was convinced Apple would somehow kill it. Now he’s a huge advocate of it.
If you've got an extensive collection of wired sensors then the best route would be to install a Konnected system. Wired sensors beat wireless every day of the year. The Konnected products integrate with Hubitat. There are 2 modes: 1) take over your alarm system (which sounds like what you want), and 2) work in parallel with existing system without interfering with existing monitoring service.
You may also want to investigate the Envisalink interface from DSC to Hubitat.
Caveat:
Again, as before, this was written by someone who no longer uses Hubitat.
However, it's a great piece of software, and it does work.
(I've used it for 2 clients - no complaints).
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I have heard about the Envisalink... Most of my sensors are wireless so that rules out that konnected system, but Envisalink might work. Although setup on the DSC side seems fairly straight forward, but i couldn't find any information how to integrate Envisalink to Hubitat. I was curious so i went into add apps in HE and i didn't see Envisalink, so how would you integrate Envisalink to HE?
However, as we always say, "your mileage may vary".
It's not really a supported app, but it does work. If you can try it out without too much trouble, then it might be worth it.
You can also get a dedicate HE hub just for the alarm system and use hub mesh to use the sensors for other automations.
This is not correct. They can, and have, implemented countermeasure that have broken this app without impacting their own implementation. Thus far we’ve found ways around it, but 100% they can break this app without breaking their own API. Up to you whether you want to use something else because of this fear, but it is a real possibility. We just don’t know how likely.
Personally I hesitate to use any cloud base security system. My old hardwired ademco is just fine hooked up to HE. I like having an actual UL certified alarm system.
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Cool. Thank you very much developers. I will tell you though, that I am using the original code, not the code that has been updated. It all still works. Maybe it's more a matter of version 2 Ring Alarm (I have version 1 obviously since I purchased in November of 2019) and not that Amazon intentionally implemented a counter measure.
OK. To each their own. As a general rule, I don't buy stuff that relies on the cloud either. For some products I make exceptions and this is one because it's owned by a company that doesn't have a history of killing their cloud based products, unlike Google. But, this isn't a purely cloud product either. The components are Z-Wave and compatible with HE. So even if they decided to kill this product, which they pretty clearly have no plans for, you can see that by their continued iterations and additions such as the indoor drone, the product can still be armed and disarmed from the keypad, without the cloud.
Sure, you can buy alarms systems without cloud capabilities, and you also lose the benefits that go along with that as well. Free Cellular backup and $10 a month pro monitoring is pretty enticing with this product. Not to mention the Alexa integration.
Unlike my early mistake of buying a cloud based iSmart Alarm I bought for $200 USD that has no integrations, and a bunch of proprietary sensors I cannot reuse, the $200 I spent on the Ring wouldn't be a total loss since I'd still have the Z-Wave sensors and keypad available to use.
That’s a UL safety rating. Not UL alarm system certification (UL 681)
Some of them are zwave, some are not. Some are lorawan and not compatible with HE.
FYI I have Alexa, cellular backup, and local monitoring with my traditional system. I pay $20/mo so a bit more but I don’t think I “lose” anything. But yes, costs a bit more.
UL 681, 15th Edition, January 16, 2014 - UL Standard for Safety Installation and Classification of Burglar and Holdup Alarm Systems
These requirements provide criteria for the installation of protective wiring and devices for burglar alarm systems covering premises, stockrooms, alarmed areas, safes, vaults, night depositories, automated teller machines, and other security containers. The amount of alarm protection installed in a system is designated as the extent of protection.
Burglar-alarm systems are classified by type of system. The types of systems covered by these requirements include central station, mercantile, bank, proprietary, and national industrial security systems. Requirements for residential burglar alarm systems are covered in the Standard for Installation and Classification of Residential Burglar Alarm Systems, UL 1641.
But, it all works, and that's really what matters to me. Electronic don't check to see if they're UL 681 or UL 1641 before they fail.
It’s not about failure. It’s about insurance companies. If it’s not UL 681, it’s not classified as a security system by almost any underwriter in the US.
OK. Well my insurance company just asked for my receipt for the alarm system and gave me a discount since I provided one. They are going to cover loses if my home is broken into regardless of the alarm system because I pay them for that coverage.
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I'm not going to argue with you about this, I'm just saying, API changes happen all the time by companies as they evolve their products. The fact that they don't have a Public API means they have no need to communicate these changes, document them, or provide backwards compatibility. Without the original author working on this anymore, I'm doubtful about the ability to react to whatever Amazons next change will be that breaks the integration in a timely manner, and I say this as the person that recovered and re-released the code after coda pulled it offline.
This all said, I think our best bet for getting a good solid non-reverse-engineered alarm system integration may be Scout Alarm. I reached out to them about this yesterday and already heard back, they had an integration with SmartThings, which is being permanently deactivated by Samsung because of Samsung moving away from the existing SmartThings platform and putting everything into Samsung Connect. If people are interested in this, I'd suggest reaching out to them and letting them know, see if we can make it clear there's a financial incentive for them to get their integration working on Hubitat.
Oh, and they have UL certified monitoring to boot. I suspect I'll be ripping my Ring Alarm out and replacing it with Scout before long at this rate. Seems like the best bet.
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Nice. Mine is very different. Depending on an alarm system it adjusts coverage and deductibles. Also, without an alarm system, if a door is unlocked, coverage is handled differently. But with an alarm, as long as it’s armed, I’m fully covered. I also only get a premium reduction if I submit the UL 581 document. Glad yours is more lenient! But regardless, the fact that our companies are so different exemplifies that people should check their policies and not rely on forum posts!
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I've a yale system with custom driver, api isn't supposed by yale
