My first goal: Install some light strips under my toddlers bed and his dresser and then use a motion sensor under his bed to turn them on when he wakes up in the middle of the night to use the potty. I don't want him to get used to sleeping with a night light, but I also want him to be able to see if he gets out of bed.
I don't really know anything about LED strips. I don't think I really need any that are RGB, just white and dimmable. What are some good resources to learn what I actually need, how to wire it, etc.
Would I want to plug them into a zwave plug or are there some that are zwave capable? I'm only just starting to research what's out there. Do I need to know how to solder?
IMHO light strips might not be the right solution in this case. The typical led strip adheres to the object and the adhesive is not the greatest. (it can be changed or expensive enclosures can be added) I feel like this would be an opportunity to play with something that a toddler shouldn't be messing with. Instead, I'd put a smart bulb in a lamp and place a motion sensor to trigger when your little's feet hit the floor. Much safer. NOT that you always leave your little unattended, but it only takes 2 minutes and pretty light strips seem very enticing. Otherwise, another option would be to elevate the strips into a piece of molding around the top of the room on the wall and have a plug installed that is hidden by the molding. That would be something to last for years. You'd still need a motion sensor to trigger when they get out of bed (under the bed somewhere that catches little feet or under a dresser where it can't be reached.) While you 're at it, you might want to set up a notification that lets you know when littles are about. since you'll have the ability to do that.
There are several light strips out there. RGBGenie makes a controller and sylvania has some cheap ones out right now, but be aware that the sylvania can cause problems and best to stay away from them unless you've researched them before you buy. (know what you're getting into)
That being said, you may want to make sure that you have powered zigbee and zwave devices in your mesh so that your automations are reliable. LED's don't generally repeat well. I see you've been a member for about a year, but your statement "my first goal" leaves me unsure of how deep your rabbit hole goes.
I just meant my first goal with light strips. I've got a few mains powered switches on this side of the house, so my zwave network should be pretty good.
I had thought about that, but I don't really have a good place to put a lamp. Putting light strips under his dresser should be fine, since he wouldn't be able to get to them. I am a little bit worried about him playing with any lights under his bed though since he can crawl under it.
I have done this very thing for my little dog. In the night when he gets up he has issues seeing when he jumps off and onto the bed so I light it up for him.
Below are the light strips (sylvania) and motion sensor (inovelli) that I use. I have to admit that the light strips were a pain to add to the hub. It seems like the sequence to add them almost had to be exact but I eventually got them added and they have been rock solid since.
I also notice that the light strips are great repeaters. They seem to be very strong, most of my zigbee devices want to repeat through them. Even my Xiaomi sensors repeat through them without any issues.
My rules are setup so it only kicks in when our night scene is active. However you can do it based on lux etc if you want.
I have to throw caution to this statement as sylvania/Lightify bulbs and strips have proven in "most" large environments to be troublesome. Xiaomi motion sensors use a non standard zigbee protocol. Most users that have sylvania and xiaomi put these specific devices on a second hub away from their main environment for that reason. If you consider purchasing these devices please research them in the community before you purchase. The trouble these devices cause for you may outweigh the price.
I know. I have this specific model installed and have mapped out the network and see how well it is working and can say from personal experience that it works well with my xiaomi and other zigbee devices. I have 70+ xiaomi devices alone in my place so I am very sensitive towards what I add to my network.
I do usually add comments about xiaomi compatibility though because people don't think about it until they add a device and their sensors start dropping off.
I can't speak though for other sylvania/lightify products. Who knows what they do between model numbers. They always find some way of screwing it up with a small model number change.
I have the Zen31 and it works well, just make sure your power supply is enough amperage for the strip you go with or you will see very strange behavior from the Zen31. I hooked the leftover 2'chunk from a 16'roll to my Zen31 thinking since the 16' roll said it needs 5amps that a 2' piece could be driven by a 2.5amp power supply, that wasn't the case. I only got red no matter what color I turned on.
Consider going color. I have put color strips in places I originally envisioned just using white and found I use the RGB more than I though I would. Plus a dim red makes a great night light. So let's say you need to check on the little one and don't want to step on a Lego, a dim red would work perfect. White light may wake up the baby. Just a thought.
I have our bedroom light at dim blue. So ambient.
I have a second hub, so I have sylvania lightify strips running on it right now, but when they start to go to the wayside, I plan on looking into rgbgenie for my next set.
I've decided to go with the Zooz Zen31 because I've had good experience with their products and support. But I'm really confused on what I need. So I've decided to not put any under his bed, but he has a small nightstand. So I'm going to put some under the nightstand and under his dresser. That should give a decent amount of light.
The nightstand should be the easiest. I've measured everything and there is about 24" max of usable width underneath it.
The dresser has about 60" of space under it, but there is a support beam going across the middle so I'd need 2 strips, 30" max length.
I have not decided on a light strip yet. It's a little confusing. I'm having a hard time figuring out what type of power supplies I'd need and how to connect the two light strips under the dresser. I'm also looking for a small plastic junction box that I can put the Zen31 inside just in case little ones get to it. But that should be easy to find.
I had used this strip for a previous project with a different controller that had the 6 wire terminals to take full advantage of this strip however i had about 30" left of the strip and used that with my Zen31, I just didn't hook up the white I didn't think I'd use which for me was the 2700k white. The 16' roll came with wires on both ends which made it easy to use both sides however if you wanted to use the rest of the roll later you'd need to solder wires to the terminals where you cut the roll which is tedious as they are so small and close to each other.
You have options thought you could go with a 12v power supply and 12v LED strip if you'd prefer just make sure the power supply can handle the full amps the LED strip can use when all lights are in use. Some strips use variable amount based on how many lights are lit and some seem to use the full amount no matter how many lights are lit.
Will these connectors and this wire work for connecting two strips together? I'm guessing no because the connector says 20 - 18 AWG wire and the wire says it's 22 AWG wire... but Amazon lists them as products frequently bought together.
What is meant on the product description by "PIN Order : +24V-G-R-B-W (NOT RGBW+24V or +24V RGBW)". I plan on getting a Zen31 as the controller, so I assume this means I just need to be careful to make sure I put the right wire into the correct terminal of the controller. Also, they are 12v and not 24v, I noticed that part of the description didn't change when selecting the different products.
I think you'd want the ip30 strip instead since the connectors say they are not for waterproof strips the wire you have selected would be fine. I've heard those connectors can be a challenge to get a good connection.
I don't know how I messed up the link in my post. I probably had to many tabs open and copied the wrong one. The black ip30 12V strip is the one I was looking at.
I found some 18 AWG wire that I figured I'd get instead since the connectors specify 18 - 20 AWG and I wouldn't want the wire to be to small for the connector.
I've heard those connectors can be a challenge to get a good connection.
I read through the negative reviews and that seems like a common problem. I don't really have the desire to learn to solder (and buy the required supplies) since I don't really need it for anything else. I'm sure it'd be handy to know how to do, but I just don't have the time for now so I'd rather just get some connectors. I can't find any that have good reviews though.
since you'll have the ability to do that.
