home automation... any experiences?

[VJ]

Hello,

I need to do some renovation at my apartment, and one if them is quite mandatory and brings me closer to the realm of home automation.
The issue is that the radiators are encased in a cabinet but have thermostatic knobs. Obviously the thermostat will switch of far too quickly. The solution the previous people had was to just remove the thermostats and open the window if it gets too hot.

The simple solution would be some thermostat that is disconnected from the radiator (but has cable connection, I know Honeywell has such systems). I stumbled across Homematic, and they have a wireless system (with valve actuator and a programmable thermostat), but there are others. And it got me thinking: I'm repainting and even modifying some walls, so maybe I should consider other components (light control) as well (it would also solve the issue that the apartment is lacking lightswitches on strategic places)?
The Homematic system is not expensive and does offer a lot of options. But it is a proprietary standard. Alternatives I found were XComfort (slightly more expensive) and Enocean. The latter seems to be a common standard, but it seems more difficult to get the components...

Anyone here have experience with such things?
For me, it would only be for heating and lights...

Thanks!

Jörg

[Fat Tone]

My only comment would be flippant. Oh well...

"Kids, change the thermostat"
"Kids, close the curtains"
"Kids, turn on the light".

Works for me. Probably more expensive in the long run though!

[VJ]

I'm currently making a list of pros and cons and necessary requirements...

Necessary for me is the heating solution; with Homematic I would need 4 valve actuators to put on the radiators and 3 thermostats as a minimal configuration.
With the XComfort, it are 4 valve drives, 4 actuators (that command the valve drives), 3 thermostats and a central room manager unit.

That basic Homematic configuration requires no changes (just screw the valve actuators on the radiators), but all components work on batteries. The XComfort system only uses batteries for the thermostats; but I will need to get electricity to the actuators (however, I'll be repainting and other things, and sockets are not far, so this is not a big deal).
In the basic Homematic all rooms are independent (so I have to program each one if I go on holiday for instance), whereas the XComfort allows me to program everything at the central point (still allowing different programs for different rooms).
But the XComfort is more expensive (not only because I need more components, but just because the components are more expensive).

Adding light control however would be quite similar in price, and for convenience it would require me to also get a central control unit in the Homematic system. It would still make the XComfort more expensive though, but less so than in the basic configuration.
But installation would be easier with XComfort: as their components are more easily integrated (better form factors that make an installation easier: the Homematic dimmers don't fit in the space of a lightswitch: it would require me to open up the ceiling void and hoping that the cables I need are accessible there - this is by no means sure - whereas the ones from XComfort can be flushmounted where the current lightswitch is; furthermore you can program the XComfort actuators from a computer without requiring physical access). The Homematic system does have these cool oled switches...

So I am thinking about the XComfort:
- the system would be more expensive, but seems to have better quality
- installation is sure to be possible (due to uncertainty of cabling in ceiling void when choosing Homematic)
- no "hidden" batteries (only in thermostats and light switches - not in valve actuators)
- central control panel is much richer in functionality (large screen, ipod like scrollwheel - the Homematic unit has a small display and a few pushbuttons)

I should decide soon, as I will have some fake walls replaced and have everything repainted, so now there is no problem if the installation is a bit messy. After that renovation, I should not have to do any invasive things...

[VJ]

Forgot to add.. the thing that is holding me back is that they use a proprietary RF standard. There is a universal standard EIB/KNX, but I can't seem to find what I'm looking for with their many partners...

Well, I can find it, but it would be far more complicated (e.g. thermostats by Honeywell, light switches by another, ...) and more complex to configure. The system I'm looking for is simple (adjusting the thermostats for radiators and adjusting lights), so maybe the proprietary system is sufficient.

[VJ]

I found an installer here in Warsaw... I'll go there and ask for advice...
As far as I can tell, installing everything would get more expensive then I anticipated (the installer shows a case example, quite similar to mine). I'm currently thinking of just installing the necessary things (radiator valves, central uni) and the things for which "dirty" work is involved (light control in living room). As far as I can tell, these are the only things that involve dirty work, and any future additions can be done in the current flush mount boxes.