ᐅ How to prepare for a smart home installation or approach the topic?
Created on: 21 Nov 2018 12:44
N
netzplanHello everyone,
this summer we will be doing a complete renovation of our house. I am considering smart home technology for this. I have come across wireless standards like Zigbee and Z-Wave, as well as a gateway from Hornbach that apparently can connect different standards.
Basically, I am a fan of wired solutions. There are also systems like KNX, Homematic, etc. With these systems, I would like to remain as flexible as possible. Besides roller shutter, lighting, and heating control, I can imagine setting up some individual customizations such as: “notification when the carbon monoxide detector issues a warning,” water leak, humidity, or a sensor that detects movement and triggers something or starts a script (SMS, email, or push notification, depending on what is easiest or possible to implement).
I was thinking whether it makes sense to start with an open-source tool like iobroker or FHEM to learn the ropes and then integrate the first actuator, sensor, or switch? This would already raise questions about what the wired setup would look like (hardware and cabling). Especially if you later realize you want to use a different system. Are the cabling systems (referring to the cable itself) not largely the same, especially if you install more conductor wires than necessary? For example: network cable with 4 x 2 x 0.25mm² (AWG size).
Best regards
this summer we will be doing a complete renovation of our house. I am considering smart home technology for this. I have come across wireless standards like Zigbee and Z-Wave, as well as a gateway from Hornbach that apparently can connect different standards.
Basically, I am a fan of wired solutions. There are also systems like KNX, Homematic, etc. With these systems, I would like to remain as flexible as possible. Besides roller shutter, lighting, and heating control, I can imagine setting up some individual customizations such as: “notification when the carbon monoxide detector issues a warning,” water leak, humidity, or a sensor that detects movement and triggers something or starts a script (SMS, email, or push notification, depending on what is easiest or possible to implement).
I was thinking whether it makes sense to start with an open-source tool like iobroker or FHEM to learn the ropes and then integrate the first actuator, sensor, or switch? This would already raise questions about what the wired setup would look like (hardware and cabling). Especially if you later realize you want to use a different system. Are the cabling systems (referring to the cable itself) not largely the same, especially if you install more conductor wires than necessary? For example: network cable with 4 x 2 x 0.25mm² (AWG size).
Best regards
Good day 🙂
Planning for whatever you might need in the future is always a very good idea, and it is something I always recommend to my clients.
For wired systems, it’s quite simple. At every switch location, at every spot where you can imagine thinking “I might need something here,” run a bus cable. Very important: bus cable, not network cable. The difference lies in the shielding. For wired systems like KNX, you only need 2 conductors, red and black, positive and negative. Once the cables are installed on-site, the rest can be easily retrofitted. Standard NYM cables can also be installed alongside the bus cables, but please use separate conduits for each. This way, you are definitely prepared for any eventuality.
VERY IMPORTANT: Label the cables properly and have an electrician inspect and approve the wiring before the walls are closed up to ensure nothing is forgotten.
It may require more effort upfront, but this ensures at least 20 years of preparedness. Opinions, financial resources, and needs can always change.
If you have any further questions, feel free to contact me—I’m happy to help.
Best regards,
Ricco Neugebauer
Planning for whatever you might need in the future is always a very good idea, and it is something I always recommend to my clients.
For wired systems, it’s quite simple. At every switch location, at every spot where you can imagine thinking “I might need something here,” run a bus cable. Very important: bus cable, not network cable. The difference lies in the shielding. For wired systems like KNX, you only need 2 conductors, red and black, positive and negative. Once the cables are installed on-site, the rest can be easily retrofitted. Standard NYM cables can also be installed alongside the bus cables, but please use separate conduits for each. This way, you are definitely prepared for any eventuality.
VERY IMPORTANT: Label the cables properly and have an electrician inspect and approve the wiring before the walls are closed up to ensure nothing is forgotten.
It may require more effort upfront, but this ensures at least 20 years of preparedness. Opinions, financial resources, and needs can always change.
If you have any further questions, feel free to contact me—I’m happy to help.
Best regards,
Ricco Neugebauer
Thank you, that’s very kind. I will plan for a bus cable. However, when I look at such a bus cable (for example, green KNX EIB Y-(ST)-Y 2x2x0.8), it appears less shielded in the photos compared to a CAT7 cable.
1: Question: Is the outer PVC sheath thicker, or how else do these cables differ? With CAT7, the individual twisted pairs are additionally shielded.
All the bus cables could then probably be routed in a star topology to the main distribution board or the technical room, even if initially more cable has to be installed (and thus not fully utilizing the advantage of some bus systems like a ring topology). The distribution board there should definitely be sized somewhat larger than usual (unless the smart home system gets its own cabinet). In a two- or three-family house, the layout should be carefully considered anyway, as each apartment is supposed to have its own sub-distribution board / fuse box within the apartment.
2 To do: My next step is to create a floor plan with the desired components and control requirements. This will probably lead to more questions or tips from you.
What I also need to understand regarding architecture and topology is the following: In conventional electrical wiring, each room usually has its own fuse. In the KNX example installations I have seen, each actuator is assigned a fuse.
3: Question: Should multi-channel actuators have multiple fuses? For example, kitchen outlets. Or a multi-channel actuator controlling all ceiling lights in an apartment.
4: Question: Do heating valve actuators have only a bus cable or also NYM cables? (They usually don’t require much voltage.) The same question applies to roller shutter motors.
Furthermore, I found the following advantages of presence detectors (PDs) compared to standard motion sensors (which can only switch ON/OFF) in another thread:
5: Question: I can understand b and c as advantages. For d, e, and f I am still unsure. Shouldn’t a central device handle the control where the overall behavior is programmed when a specific event occurs?
1: Question: Is the outer PVC sheath thicker, or how else do these cables differ? With CAT7, the individual twisted pairs are additionally shielded.
All the bus cables could then probably be routed in a star topology to the main distribution board or the technical room, even if initially more cable has to be installed (and thus not fully utilizing the advantage of some bus systems like a ring topology). The distribution board there should definitely be sized somewhat larger than usual (unless the smart home system gets its own cabinet). In a two- or three-family house, the layout should be carefully considered anyway, as each apartment is supposed to have its own sub-distribution board / fuse box within the apartment.
2 To do: My next step is to create a floor plan with the desired components and control requirements. This will probably lead to more questions or tips from you.
What I also need to understand regarding architecture and topology is the following: In conventional electrical wiring, each room usually has its own fuse. In the KNX example installations I have seen, each actuator is assigned a fuse.
3: Question: Should multi-channel actuators have multiple fuses? For example, kitchen outlets. Or a multi-channel actuator controlling all ceiling lights in an apartment.
4: Question: Do heating valve actuators have only a bus cable or also NYM cables? (They usually don’t require much voltage.) The same question applies to roller shutter motors.
Furthermore, I found the following advantages of presence detectors (PDs) compared to standard motion sensors (which can only switch ON/OFF) in another thread:
a. Dimming lights up/down
b. Measuring and transmitting temperatures
c. Measuring and transmitting brightness values
d. Controlling multiple light sources
e. Controlling additional PDs
f. Forwarding presence information to heating/ventilation/cooling/shading/alarm systems and thus controlling them
g. Constant light control (always maintaining the set light level in the rooms at any time)
5: Question: I can understand b and c as advantages. For d, e, and f I am still unsure. Shouldn’t a central device handle the control where the overall behavior is programmed when a specific event occurs?