Hello
Are there good retrofit smart home systems available?
We bought a semi-detached house as a new build from a developer.
The electrician declined to work with KNX and said he is not familiar with it and won’t do it.
My question is: Are there good retrofit options for smart home systems that don’t require opening up the walls (that is not an option)?
Which systems would you recommend?
Functions:
Light control
Window sensors (preferably invisible)
Shutter control
Music control
Video doorbell
It should definitely be possible to create scenes and rules.
I’m also open to other suggestions for useful functions I may not have thought of yet.
Are there good retrofit smart home systems available?
We bought a semi-detached house as a new build from a developer.
The electrician declined to work with KNX and said he is not familiar with it and won’t do it.
My question is: Are there good retrofit options for smart home systems that don’t require opening up the walls (that is not an option)?
Which systems would you recommend?
Functions:
Light control
Window sensors (preferably invisible)
Shutter control
Music control
Video doorbell
It should definitely be possible to create scenes and rules.
I’m also open to other suggestions for useful functions I may not have thought of yet.
S
Stefan0013 Aug 2021 14:03Mycraft schrieb:
It’s just the nature of the thing.
Lost messages and long response times are common here.Hm, PoE and Powerline Ethernet are actually quite successful standards. So, I wouldn’t say it’s just the nature of the thing.Do you have a lot of negative experience with Digitalstrom?
Okay, so Digitalstrom is unfortunately out.
I have spent a lot of time researching the topic of smart homes, and as a conclusion, only the following solutions remain:
Retrofit: basically only possible via wireless, right?
New construction: wired, if the electrician or builder cooperates.
If the new electrician is familiar with smart homes, I still have some questions about wired smart home systems.
What is the difference between a bus smart home system (KNX) and a smart home with star topology wiring?
I have spent a lot of time researching the topic of smart homes, and as a conclusion, only the following solutions remain:
Retrofit: basically only possible via wireless, right?
New construction: wired, if the electrician or builder cooperates.
If the new electrician is familiar with smart homes, I still have some questions about wired smart home systems.
What is the difference between a bus smart home system (KNX) and a smart home with star topology wiring?
@Stefan001
Comparing apples and oranges. The systems work as intended for the purposes they were developed for. Of course, not always without limitations and only as well as the quality of the transmission medium and the components used allow—and that’s exactly where the problem lies.
There are always some opportunists who rely on Powerline Communication (PLC), but it remains a niche product or disappears just as quickly as it appeared.
With Power over Ethernet (PoE), the whole setup is essentially completely separated and free from alternating current interference—in principle something entirely different since separate conductor pairs are used for transmission in the consumer sector.
With Digitalstrom, the situation is as I described. It is suitable for someone who does not value fast response times, a wide range of possibilities, or a good price/performance ratio. Reliability, yes, it also stumbles a bit.
Still, it allows you to have a little bit of that smart home experience from your TV without major renovations or even changing light switches and lamps.
Price-wise, as I said, it is positioned above KNX.
And yes, my negative experiences with Digitalstrom are the response times and the price. Neither is satisfactory.
@Pacc666
Yes, retrofitting is really only suitable with wireless technology. For anything else, you simply spend more money than necessary because careful planning, component selection, installation, and integration are the key with wired systems.
There is none. It’s the same thing, just in green.
Comparing apples and oranges. The systems work as intended for the purposes they were developed for. Of course, not always without limitations and only as well as the quality of the transmission medium and the components used allow—and that’s exactly where the problem lies.
There are always some opportunists who rely on Powerline Communication (PLC), but it remains a niche product or disappears just as quickly as it appeared.
With Power over Ethernet (PoE), the whole setup is essentially completely separated and free from alternating current interference—in principle something entirely different since separate conductor pairs are used for transmission in the consumer sector.
With Digitalstrom, the situation is as I described. It is suitable for someone who does not value fast response times, a wide range of possibilities, or a good price/performance ratio. Reliability, yes, it also stumbles a bit.
Still, it allows you to have a little bit of that smart home experience from your TV without major renovations or even changing light switches and lamps.
Price-wise, as I said, it is positioned above KNX.
And yes, my negative experiences with Digitalstrom are the response times and the price. Neither is satisfactory.
@Pacc666
Yes, retrofitting is really only suitable with wireless technology. For anything else, you simply spend more money than necessary because careful planning, component selection, installation, and integration are the key with wired systems.
Pacc666 schrieb:
What is the difference between a bus smart home (KNX) and a smart home wired in a star topology?
There is none. It’s the same thing, just in green.
untergasse434 Aug 2021 07:53Pacc666 schrieb:
Where is there potential to save costs with KNX?Doing a lot yourself. Especially the programming or parameterization is expensive because with a good system integrator (SI) or skilled electrician, you are paying for many years of experience.Pacc666 schrieb:
What is the difference between a bus smart home system (KNX) and a smart home wired in a star topology?@Mycraft I think he means the difference between bus systems and PLC derivatives. With a bus, you can connect everything anywhere and distribute the wiring flexibly (almost, no ring topology!) as you like. With a star topology (which is required, for example, in simple systems like Loxone), everything must be wired individually back to the distribution board. That is of course more labor-intensive. In short: a bus system (e.g., KNX, DALI, SMI, etc.) saves effort in wiring and is much more flexible. Although a bus system can also be wired in a star layout, that would be pointless.
Pacc666 schrieb:
How can KNX be installed as cheaply as possible?Use KNX-RF, which saves a lot on cabling and installation. But is that what you want?