Hello everyone,
I am finally planning to build our own house with my family. I don’t want to do without a smart system and have already done some research.
Loxone is basically off the table for me because it mainly relies on its proprietary system and products.
Of course, I have repeatedly come back to KNX (as here in the forum as well). However, I am not entirely happy with it because I don’t want to have to call a programmer every time I want to make a change; I also don’t really want to buy the ETS license. Additionally, I want to integrate and network fingerprint scanners, Sonos, and a heat pump, but I haven’t fully figured out how to do this with KNX.
The house basically has two floors with an open-plan kitchen/living area, entrance hall, utility room, bathrooms, children’s rooms, bedroom, garden, and so on.
The following systems should be connected:
- Lighting (some dimmable)
- External blinds / weather station
- Underfloor heating
- Heat pump
- Music system (Sonos)
- Fingerprint access
- Video intercom
- Some switched power outlets
- Photovoltaic system
Since I am technically fairly knowledgeable, I want to be able to manage, adjust, and optimize my system myself in the end.
Does anyone have good input here? Or already experience with Loxone, KNX, or others?
Thanks and best regards,
Stefan
I am finally planning to build our own house with my family. I don’t want to do without a smart system and have already done some research.
Loxone is basically off the table for me because it mainly relies on its proprietary system and products.
Of course, I have repeatedly come back to KNX (as here in the forum as well). However, I am not entirely happy with it because I don’t want to have to call a programmer every time I want to make a change; I also don’t really want to buy the ETS license. Additionally, I want to integrate and network fingerprint scanners, Sonos, and a heat pump, but I haven’t fully figured out how to do this with KNX.
The house basically has two floors with an open-plan kitchen/living area, entrance hall, utility room, bathrooms, children’s rooms, bedroom, garden, and so on.
The following systems should be connected:
- Lighting (some dimmable)
- External blinds / weather station
- Underfloor heating
- Heat pump
- Music system (Sonos)
- Fingerprint access
- Video intercom
- Some switched power outlets
- Photovoltaic system
Since I am technically fairly knowledgeable, I want to be able to manage, adjust, and optimize my system myself in the end.
Does anyone have good input here? Or already experience with Loxone, KNX, or others?
Thanks and best regards,
Stefan
@bonkers223 KNX is quite easy to understand. mycraft has already explained how to get the ETS software.
What I find missing in your list are all the sensors. You need them for smart functions and for the logic.
Don’t be worried about the fingerprint system. It is (with the right scanners and setup) more secure than RFID and most standard lock cylinders.
If you want everything in one system with visualization, easy expandability, etc., I would go with KNX. You are then not tied to just one or a few manufacturers. Planning and having enough wiring are the most important things.
Alternatively, you can combine different systems like Lumpi does. That works too. Possibly several bridges or apps are needed, and no central programming… but it works.
What I find missing in your list are all the sensors. You need them for smart functions and for the logic.
Don’t be worried about the fingerprint system. It is (with the right scanners and setup) more secure than RFID and most standard lock cylinders.
If you want everything in one system with visualization, easy expandability, etc., I would go with KNX. You are then not tied to just one or a few manufacturers. Planning and having enough wiring are the most important things.
Alternatively, you can combine different systems like Lumpi does. That works too. Possibly several bridges or apps are needed, and no central programming… but it works.
@bonkers223
I don’t have personal experience yet, but according to an electrician we know well—who is also knowledgeable about KNX—free@Home is user-friendly for the end user.
We didn’t choose KNX because we didn’t want to spend a long time learning how to use it, and then have to spend even more time a year later trying to figure out how to make changes.
I don’t have personal experience yet, but according to an electrician we know well—who is also knowledgeable about KNX—free@Home is user-friendly for the end user.
We didn’t choose KNX because we didn’t want to spend a long time learning how to use it, and then have to spend even more time a year later trying to figure out how to make changes.
Katdreas schrieb:
Is free@Home intuitive for the end user? Unfortunately, that’s where the advantages end.
Katdreas schrieb:
We didn’t want KNX because we didn’t want to spend ages learning it, and then have to spend ages again a year later if we want to make changes, since we would forget how it works. KNX configuration is actually more or less intuitive once you understand the terminology because it was specifically designed so that an average electrician with no IT skills can manage it. In other words, anyone who can operate a smartwatch or even create an Excel spreadsheet with formulas is more than capable.
H
hampshire14 Feb 2020 18:56KNX is an excellent, future-proof, and manufacturer-independent standard. What does “simple” really mean? I just came from my parents’ house; my father, a former engineer who has Alzheimer’s, constantly changes settings by mistake, and at least once a week an electrician is called to get the conservatory controls, heating, or outdoor lighting working again. If you want to grow old in that house, it’s better not to use it. Turning the lights on and off with a simple switch is something you don’t forget. Even push-button dimmers eventually become a challenge,
Mycraft schrieb:
Well, you don’t really need to, for minor changes the ETS demo is sufficient and it’s free. After commissioning, you can use it to fix small issues that don’t fit.Oh really? I’ve never intentionally tried it, but I did once forget to plug in the dongle (=demo), and if I remember correctly, ETS wouldn’t even let me import a project. You can open, edit, and update devices in projects with more than 5 devices using the demo?!
Yes, that’s correct—of course, they don’t want to import anything. You have to find workarounds. It’s not immediately obvious how, but it’s possible. The point is that you can still accomplish quite a lot with the free or lite version if you want to spend little or no money.
For large and complex systems, this naturally involves a lot more effort and can sometimes be impractical. However, for a typical single-family house, everything remains fairly manageable. As always, those who try to save in the wrong places end up paying the price.
For large and complex systems, this naturally involves a lot more effort and can sometimes be impractical. However, for a typical single-family house, everything remains fairly manageable. As always, those who try to save in the wrong places end up paying the price.