Hi,
I have few Z-wave devices placed within 100ft from the C7 Hub. Two of the switches as shown below 0x13 and 0x1A are automated to run with sunset/sunrise rule. Most of the time they work but once in a while they both randomly will not work. I bought two more switches to use as repeaters but it did not completely solved the problem. 0x1A sits within 10ft in attic from 0x14 switch located in room below but still it does not work reliably. Either the switch will not go off in the morning with sunrise or will not come ON at sunset.
I have cell phone notification set on the rule. When the rule executes I get a notification. So I have to manually turn ON/OFF the switch that has issue. It happens once or twice a month.
Can anybody recommend troubleshooting steps? Tried to do the repair but it did not help.
0x13 is telling you that there are 59 route changes. This means the hub and device are hunting for a good path. Additionally the RTT (round trip time) is the worst of your set of devices.
0x1A is making a direct connection to the hub, but it's at the edge. It has the lowest dB reading of your set. It's also your 2nd worst RTT. And those Rout Changes... again telling you the hub and device are searching for each other.
Your other 3 devices look great
0x13 (your worst) is finding your 2nd worst device to route through, at least this iteration of the routing table.
There's two ways that jump to mind as a way of improving this. I would get some plug-in range extenders.. they can be moved and stick out from the wall, which helps if you have metal wall boxes. After joining, I'd put one within 8ft of the hub. Then do a zwave repair on it. That's an individual repair. Then, I'd do a zwave repair (individually) on 0x1A and 0x13. Did any choose the new Extender? No? Move it to 8 ft from 0x1A and redo the individual zwave repairs. Eventually you'll find a nearly optimum place for a repeater. In my house, wall wart style anythings get unplugged by the family. But knowing where the optimum place is, I'd get another in-wall switch or outlet to become the permanent repeater.
That's my interpretation... get two more opinions and average the advice
Which Leviton devices are you using? I started with the Z-Wave receptacle because at the time it's all they offered. There is apparently now a Z-Wave Plus product in their lineup. I made the horrible mistake of thinking I could rely on the Leviton name. Their standard Z-Wave devices are some of the worst products I've used. The proved to be horribly unreliable exhibiting many of the same issues you are complaining of. Mine were also nowhere near 100-feet apart. After I replaced/upgraded them all to the GE/Jasco Z-Wave Plus product, my problems disappeared.
Whether you have plastic or metal boxes installed will also make a huge difference. Here in Canada, we've always seemed to love metal. I've swapped many metallic boxes out for plastic. This aside, Leviton (in their standard Z-Wave receptacle) buried the antenna deep inside the receptacle. The GE/Jasco product on the other hand has located the antenna pretty much around the perimeter of the faceplate. In this configuration, there 'may' be a much better potential it will communicate more effectively with either the hub, or other repeating devices.
+1 for adding extenders. I use Aeotec, others like Ring. Adding two per building took my z-wave from sketchy to rock solid for the past two years, in each of those buildings.
BTW, I have a couple of Leviton plug-in z-wave modules in a tiny house on our property that I use as an office. The entire building is 5'x8', so no need for an extender there. But those Leviton devices are the only z-wave plug-in devices I have that have ever just disappeared from the network. That could be a coincidence, but it is what it is. I'm not buying more of them.
another +1 for extenders. I've added them to my systems, and they make a world of difference. Because they're powered, they communicate with the C7 without difficulty and provide better signal reliability to all the devices around them.
I used to have a problem with my keypad locks, once I put in extenders, the problems vanished.
Thx. This does help in understanding the details of the issue somewhat. I did not catch the last column before. It makes sense now. 1C sits at 50ft from hub and rest are farther out somewhere another 25-50 ft from 1C. 1A bypassed 1C that is interesting as it is mid way between hub and 1A.
Like the extender idea. I was thinking the switch will act as extender. But it is not working as intended.
That's exactly why I suggest the Wall Wart variety. All the AC powered ZWave devices are repeaters, generally. So, yes, it should work BUT doesn't account for that HVAC duct running next it that just kills the signal. I'd probably find a general area that works, then decide that I could just replace that wall switch with a ZWave one.. not caring I'd never use it in an automation... but put the wall wart extender on an extension cord and blue tape it to the switch plate and verify that that exact spot is good. I might just decide to replace the in-wall outlet that worked for the wall wart extender.
The point is, we can't see the RF and can't see the ducting, and pipes that coincidentally block the RF. Experimentation becomes the "RF Goggles" we'd much rather have.
The idea of switches (in-wall) being less useful than dedicated repeaters because of their physical location inside walls, near ducting, pipes, and wiring, is sound logic. My experience supports that idea. However, I didn't get as much improvement from even wall warts as I get from dedicated repeaters. There's something about those purpose-built devices that makes a difference, in my opinion. I know almost all AC-connected z-wave devices are designed to serve as repeaters, and I'm sure they do so. They just don't do it as well as dedicated repeaters, I find.
Also the initial setup of devices seems to be very critical on how your mesh will perform going forward. I can't say this for certain but a lot of the "fallback" routes appear to revert to their original routes when issues arise. They get locked in and sometimes bypass seemingly better routes.
