Hi - I’'m considering the purchase of a Vera3 or Veralite controller for my vacation rental property.
I’d like to be able to turn my thermostat up or off when the doors or windows are left open, set door codes, check the status of windows, turn lights on and off when the home is vacant, etc.
I was wondering where others put their Vera so that guests will not tamper with it. They have access to the router – in the event it needs to be reset. Do I set up a second router and hide it with the Vera in a closet?
I will give you a hint … you can get it delivered by UPS
Just make sure if you leave it in a confined space … that it will not over heat.
You need a little air to circulate.
I have mine in the linen closet, which has been repurposed as an owner’s closet. I keep the video equipment in there as well. Also the cable modem and router.
Only had to have the router reset once in 3 years. I have had to have the cable modem reset, but the cable company can do it remotely via phone request. I do have a battery back-up (UPS)
Late reply… haven’t been active on forum for awhile…
My router, dsl modem and such are in a structured wiring enclosure (hinged metal box with key lock). Put a switch on it out of obvious sight for power cycling
router. Went to effort to add some vents , cut a window in it (glued plexiglass in place) so you could see status of dsl modem. That way if someone calls I can
say… look in closet in MBR and see if 3 green leds are lit… if not I can tell them to look around side of box near the closet wall and turn switch off / on.
As for vera… need to get zwave radio waves out of box… cant put it in a metal box… I have it in a little plastic enclosure next to metal cabinet… sorta like this
Just search around for size that suits your needs.
Its all mounted on side of closet wall and painted to match wall… so in many cases you dont see it.
In general my vacation renters are good, I was just paranoid about trying to protect things.
Another option is to put an external antennae on Vera … This also has the added benefit of faster Z-Wave response … Most things would be in direct connection with Vera … so fewer multi-hops. Also better communication reliability (less re-transmits) because higher signal to noise ratio.
Then you can leave Vera in the Same metal box as the router.
[quote=“RichardTSchaefer, post:8, topic:176771”]Another option is to put an external antennae on Vera … This also has the added benefit of faster Z-Wave response … Most things would be in direct connection with Vera … so fewer multi-hops. Also better communication reliability (less re-transmits) because higher signal to noise ratio.
Then you can leave Vera in the Same metal box as the router.[/quote]
Do you have any info on installing an external antennae? I’m using the green vera lite.
I connected my Vera Lite to a NetGear N300 Wifi range extender and put both on top of the kitchen cabinets. I drilled a couple of holes in the kitchen cabinets and ran the power cord for a surge protector down to the outlet behind the fridge. We have an owner’s closet which have been ideal but there is not a power outlet in there.
I used a plastic Pelican case which I can secure with a padlock. Drilled a number of 1/4" holes in in for ventilation and mounted two 12v muffin fans (wired in series for reduced run speed and noise) to pull air into the enclosure. Inside the enclosure I have mounted the Vera2 and Linksys WRT54GL router, and I am also powering everything from a single 12v power supply mounted inside. The wireless router uses DDWRT firmware, and is configured to show as two different networks with different base addresses. The guest network has no access to the Vera2, while the other network does. Since there is only one 120V cord coming out of the enclosure, it has to be plugged in for the guests to have wireless network access, so they have no incentive to unplug.
This has worked well for me. Never had a guest unplug it, and it has been very reliable.
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