Home Automation

EA2BA · 08-05-2006, 09:20 AM

Does anyone have home automation, either running on Cat5 and installed at time of building your house, added afterwards in the from of x10 or other.

I like to make things easy, and the ability to turn lights on and off without getting up and just about any device in the house sounds exciting.

So who has researched and who has done it.

trick_xd · 08-05-2006, 04:39 PM

Hahaha get a good missers

:
nope i have heard of it .. I see that you program it to play music that you like so in every room you go into it will play music and turn on the lights when you enter and 5 /10 sec after you leave it turns them off.. stuff like that .
I remember reading a long time ago that bill gates built his house around this same idea from a phone he can ring his house and program his v.c.r. to tape a movie turn on the heater stuff like that ..

at my bossers place he has door looks that are magnetic.. No key required . Would be a pain if the power went out..

EA2BA · 08-05-2006, 04:43 PM

I am looking at getting the lockwood nexion door lock for our place, so i can press a button and unlock the door, no key needed, but can be used as backup.

XRated · 08-05-2006, 06:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EA2BA

I am looking at getting the lockwood nexion door lock for our place, so i can press a button and unlock the door, no key needed, but can be used as backup.

Jason, you lazy, lazy man hahah!

I'd love something like this too. My brothers' house uses only digits to open the front door, no key, nothing.

nobbystang · 09-05-2006, 01:35 PM

I think google might be your friend here. I found these guys in Melbourne there

http://www.cleverhome.com.au/

Mack 6 · 09-05-2006, 02:02 PM

I did engineering work experience at Clipsal working with the C-Bus system of home automation. The supplied all the automation systems for the majority of new buildings at the sydney 2000 olympics and it worked really well. If you research it and plan ahead, there isn't anything you can't make it do.

Problem is if you make it to open your curtains etc, you'll fork out a fortune on little motors.

That or similar systems can be excellent additions if properly planned

AC/DC · 09-05-2006, 02:11 PM

I use some weird and wonderful WiFi gear for my 3 Xbox's, , they are all modded with 200Gb HDD and MEdia Centre, , so we can dial up wirelessly nearly any movie we want , , and it uses the pc to play them ! This works a treat... great for the theatre room, bedroom and lounge room..

I am a sparky by trade, , and would love to install the Clipsal cbus system, , but our house in brick internal, and I am lazy, , so If we build one day, it will be full on...

( Oh, , I am just about to get a front fence, with a motorised sliding front gate )

Ac/DC

opto · 10-05-2006, 01:44 AM

Im a sparky with data/phone license and experience along with security.
I spent a year and a half doing home automation installs and home theatre installs.
The most versatile/flexible system is thinkbox which can also do monitored security, and was born from the ask jeeves system.

troppo · 10-05-2006, 06:46 AM

I've had a play with clipsal's C-bus. Were I to do in my own home, I think I'd build a custom system. I've mostly played with Allen Bradley PLC systems so I'd be more comfortable starting with that.
Edit: FWIW I spent the last few days fault finding on a C-bus system installed 12 months ago. The problem is in the original installation (or lack of it) but the c-bus network does make fault finding difficult (particularly if not installed correctly) and afterthought additions can be a PITA (means breaking the network to add in any new components.