So I installed a few Hue Outdoor motion sensors and a noticed a couple of them just wouldn't communicate with Hubitat when installed in their final location. I have them Installed on Stainless steel brackets which interferes with the signal on some of the motion sensors. Drove me crazy for a few minutes because I have 28 hue Outdoor lights and some are less then 4 feet away from the motion sensors that were having problems. Then I noticed that since I have the Hue lights connected to the Hue bridge & I have no other zigbee repeaters Hubitat doesn't use the lights as repeaters on the zigbee network to connect to the motion sensors. If I'm not mistaken? I deleted the Lights from the bridge and added them to Zigbee on hubitat and all is well. I read that I should use the Hue hub because people have trouble with the Hue lights when they don't use the hub. Everything seems to be working right great response times. Besides updates from Hue what else would I be missing not using the hub & should I be looking for connections problems in the future because I'm not using the bridge?
You’re doing it right. Keep the bulbs by themselves on Hue and the motion sensors on HE.
You are correct. It’s only updates they won’t get. But if they work perfectly, why would they need it?
I don't think I am doing it right lol. Because Now I'm not using the Hue bridge at all because I need the lights to act as repeaters to communicate with the Hue motion sensors? Your Right about the updating no need to update if they are working good.
Why do you need the bulbs to repeat for the sensors? Sounds like each is doing fine for themselves just as you have it now.
Because a few of the motion sensors wouldn't communicate with the hubitat zigbee Unless I used the lights as repeaters.
I should have said I deleted the lights from the Hue Bridge
I see. You didn’t mention that in your OP with HE. Sounded like it was only a problem with the Hue bridge and that once you added them to the HE, all was fine.
Keep the Hue lights off the HE hub. They will poison your mesh, in a sense.
If you have a weak signal to the motion sensors, go grab a few IKEA TRÅDFRI outlets. They’re inexpensive, on sale right now ($5 at at least one IKEA in the US I read), Zigbee 3.0, and will improve the HE mesh nicely a few days after you install them. Or, shut the hub down for 20 minutes. That will speed up the rebuild of the Zigbee mesh.
Thanks for that Info I'll definitely pick some up because I'm thinking I'll need the lights connected to the Hue Bridge for like changing color scenes and things like that I don't really want to write rules for color or fading hue lights in RM. Who knows maybe there's a Hue app for Hubitat that makes scenes or something.
Nah, the Hue bulbs directly on HE is never a good idea, unless it’s their own second HE hub, with no other battery powered Zigbee devices.
If you’re using color, I would tend to agree that the Hue interface and the huge number of very cool third party apps for the Hue bridge is a big advantage.
I'm using Hue Calla Outdoor bollard & Spots. It seems like they are doing good at repeating ATM maybe they repeat better then the bulbs?
Have not read anything one way or another on them. Keeps us updated as time goes on. If you start to have problems with your Zigbee mesh, that would be your first suspect.
Absolutely agree.
There's also the relatively inexpensive Securifi Peanut plug.
I don't know to much about Zigbee I mainly have lutron lighting and Zwave everything else except for my outdoor hue lights and Motion sensors. Will the Plug you suggested repeat to the outdoor hue motion sensors is it Zigbee 3.0 or do I need to take a trip to Ikea and get the ones they sell? All this hue crap really gets confusing even if you read up on it. I'll have to add some Zigbee repeaters because a can't rely on the hue outdoor lights as repeaters because they seem to repeat ok up until someone turns the switch of that powers them or they aren't repeating at all and I'm hit or miss with 2 of my outdoor motion sensors losing connection to the Hubitat hub.
The Peanut plugs are considered to be good repeaters from what I have read. I'm only using Peanuts and Samsung plugs, as well as two GE/Jasco/Honeywell light switches, which as powered (non-battery) non bulbs are also repeaters.
As a general rule, with few exceptions, Bulbs are NOT good or even useful repeaters. The Securifi Peanuts, Samsung Outlets or the Tradfri outlets are all repeating devices that should work well as repeaaters.
S
Thanks for the info I'm actually going to order some xbee's to go along with the plugs. I read up on the Xbee's a little seems like a cool project to play around with. I'm going to get rid of my Zwave Door locks I'm done messing around with them. Going to switch them out for Zigbee locks since now it seems I'm bringing in more Zigbee devices.
