New to Vera....confused??

I have dug into the forum for several days and just confuse myself more.
My goal is to use my Vera 3 with Aeon motion and door sensors in conjunction with Foscam cam motion detectors to trigger a z-wave alarm/strobe.

What would I use as a “keypad” or some device mounted on wall that my kids could “disarm” the sensors upon entering the door?

I keep trying to research this as a “vera compatible alarm panel” but I believe the panel refers to an alarm system panel.
Thanks in advance…

As it stands right now there is no z-wave alarm keypad. Like you observed in your searches there are z-wave compatible alarm panels (with the proper hardware added on) that you can use with Vera instead of z-wave alarm components.

Like you have have alarm/security scenes (like "Away - Armed) just like those you would set on an alarm keypad but the only way to activate/deactivate them thus far in the world of z-wave is to use my cell phone with an app after I leave my house to activate the scenes and deactivate the scene before I enter. I’d love a z-wave alarm keypad/alarm panel but so far I haven’t heard of any being developed.

Thanks for the help.

I was thinking of buying a $70 android tablet and mounting that to the wall with an app running to turn off the alarm upon entering.
As i am still waiting for the components to arrive, I have not set anyhting up yet.

Do you think that the tablet is a feasible option?

It is one feasible option. However, do not set your expectations high. Zwave is not a reliable replacement for creating an alarm system. One of many reasons we suggest a compatible alarm system that can be integrated with Vera. In the end it will be much cheaper and add additional functionality.

  • Garrett

Also there is no “Keypad” app for Vera.
So you would have to do this … or it could just be the screen saver lock on your android tablet … Then they could just turn off the the Vera implemented alarm.

Also Z-Wave motion sensors are not that good … The Foscam is OK if indoors …
I would recommend a DSC alarm system with “Wired” motion sensors … Integrated with Vera … this will make a nice Security and Home Automation configuration.

I’ve toyed with these ideas. The only reliable way to do this is as follows;

-Get a conventional alarm system. DSC is the best for Vera integration.

-Wired security grade contacts, or DSC wireless contacts work much better than consumer level Z-Wave stuff. Should be cheaper, too.

-Envisalink 3DS is an after market 2 in one DSC module. It does IP alarm transmission to a monitoring company if you so choose. Also, it will handle Vera integration.

-Proper scenes set up in Vera, to allow arming and disarming of the alarm in it’s multiple modes.

-An always on Tablet, with the security set to always require a a code / pattern or something to get into it. Widgets using Tasker or Home Buddy on the main screen to allow easy access to turn off the alarm during entry delay. There ought to be more viable ways of having the Alarm trigger the Vera, and the Vera triggering action on the Android. Tasker is the main app to look into, and then look at AutoVera plugin for Tasker. It’s beta, and brand new, but may allow some interesting ways of getting the Android to react. I am fairly confident that the only “Keypad” style app that exists for Android is one called “DSC Security Keypad” The problem with it though, is it uses the same API to talk to the Envisalink and DSC system that the Vera would. As such, you can not use this app in conjunction with a Vera, currently.

Be careful here!! An Android tablet can only be made reliable enough as a secondary security interface if you lock it down. Don’t allow lots of apps on it. Use it sparingly. Tablets have Lithium Ion batteries in them, but if they are never discharged, I can’t comment on whether or not they will be any good after years of non-use. The better way to do this is to snip the AC adapter cord, splice a wire, and fish it within the wall to the basement and power it down there. Also, don’t go stupid cheap on the tablet either. You will want something that can run the full gamut of Tasker implementation. Hence the newest Jelly Bean, baby! I’d suggest the Nexus7 because it will always be up to date.

-A real alarm keypad nearby. You can hide the ugly thing in a closet or something, as your tablet is so much nicer. Do have it nearby though! Don’t rely on an Android as a keypad during entry delay or an alarm situation. Always have the real security keypad available as a backup in case the tablet is having a nap or a temper tantrum. Remember that security vs consumer grade considerations actually matter when it comes to reliability.

-A UPS is advisable. Battery backup for your Modem, Router, Vera, and your Android power adapter. Not only does it provide surge protection on the power, but if you get a good one, you can protect the coaxial or phones in, to avoid sideways surges. If you use the Envisalink for monitoring through Eyez-On or another professional company, the UPS will keep the link going during short term power outages. This will keep the whole Rube Goldberg machine working well.

crap… i wish i read this post before buying 7 door sensors and 2 motion sensors (zwave) for the vera 3 ::slight_smile:

These would be perfectly reasonable additions for controlling lights and sending “you left the door open, dummy” messages. Not a replacement for a real security system - there’s far too much instability in the system for that use case.

Spare me the “it works great for me” messages. We’re still early adopters. You can get to a reasonably stable solution that works most of the time with careful configuration, but the product has a long way to go before it’s reliable enough for anything but trivial uses.

[quote=“buzzdavidson, post:8, topic:177378”]These would be perfectly reasonable additions for controlling lights and sending “you left the door open, dummy” messages. Not a replacement for a real security system - there’s far too much instability in the system for that use case.

Spare me the “it works great for me” messages. We’re still early adopters. You can get to a reasonably stable solution that works most of the time with careful configuration, but the product has a long way to go before it’s reliable enough for anything but trivial uses.[/quote]

thanks for the clarification - yeah i figured as much before buying this, reading through the forums i dont expect it to be rock solid just something good enough to scare off intruders. in your opinion how many times must you reset the system ? how does it break down ?

my Vera 3 unit and all the above sensors are stuck in customs so ill have to wait a bit longer to get them cleared. im bound to have some fun then !

This is correct for the older type of batteries like NImh and NIcd, also the memory is in effect here. For Li-xx batteries it is not the case , the more you use them the more they wear.

Cor

I got my Vera in August. To be fair, it’s only completely lost its marbles a couple of times; Most of my resets have been vain attempts to get difficult hardware to properly associate (the Leviton VRCS4-M0Z scene controller has been particularly troublesome.)

The most troubling aspect from my perspective is inconsistent performance. For instance, I have a door sensor on my back door with a simple rule which turns the outside light on when the door opens and turns it off five minutes after the door closes. This sensor is disabled during the day. Most of the time (I’d say 8 times out of 10), it works flawlessly. One time out of 10 it takes five or six seconds to come on, and occasionally it does not come on at all. I’ve also had a few instances of the day/night plugin becoming confused and inverting its state, so the light only turns on during the day. For my uses, this is a minor annoyance - if I open the door and the light doesn’t come on it’s easy enough to reach over and flip the switch on. Don’t know how much I’d trust it to keep my house safe, though.

My advice would be to start really, really small - make sure things are working and incrementally add capabilities. I converted my whole house to Z-Wave and attempted to set things up all at once which was a bit of a disaster - I was fighting the initial learning curve of the product (which is not insignificant) at the same time I was dealing with flaky switches and flaky plugins. I wouldn’t recommend this approach .

[quote=“buzzdavidson, post:11, topic:177378”]I got my Vera in August. To be fair, it’s only completely lost its marbles a couple of times; Most of my resets have been vain attempts to get difficult hardware to properly associate (the Leviton VRCS4-M0Z scene controller has been particularly troublesome.)

The most troubling aspect from my perspective is inconsistent performance. For instance, I have a door sensor on my back door with a simple rule which turns the outside light on when the door opens and turns it off five minutes after the door closes. This sensor is disabled during the day. Most of the time (I’d say 8 times out of 10), it works flawlessly. One time out of 10 it takes five or six seconds to come on, and occasionally it does not come on at all. I’ve also had a few instances of the day/night plugin becoming confused and inverting its state, so the light only turns on during the day. For my uses, this is a minor annoyance - if I open the door and the light doesn’t come on it’s easy enough to reach over and flip the switch on. Don’t know how much I’d trust it to keep my house safe, though.

My advice would be to start really, really small - make sure things are working and incrementally add capabilities. I converted my whole house to Z-Wave and attempted to set things up all at once which was a bit of a disaster - I was fighting the initial learning curve of the product (which is not insignificant) at the same time I was dealing with flaky switches and flaky plugins. I wouldn’t recommend this approach .[/quote]

very helpful. thank you, i will follow your advice of starting small. :slight_smile: