Your drawings are correct. If I understand what you have here The float is not shorting it is turning on a power source, +12VDC. That 12VDC is energizing you buzzer. In your parallel drawing, the +12VDC now energizes your buzzer and the relay. The coil resistance of the relay across the buzzer should have no effect.
Unless something else is going here that you’re not explaining, that should work.
Yeah, I’m a little confused which is why I asked for pictures of the panel. I was under the impression that the panel was pushing out +12 and looking for the return (first post mentions this) so if put in parallel you just be completing the circuit regardless of the float which is why it would need to be in series.
Or if the buzzer is coming off of the panel when the float triggers then you could put the relay across the buzzer parallel so it activates both the relay and the buzzer at the same time and effectively do the same thing. Think we need more info…
here are pictures. The panel sends power to float switch which is open when not “floated”. When float switch “floats” it closes circuit and sets off alarm. When I connect relay as shown in drawinh, it sets off alarm (at a lower volume) and trips zwave. I figured this would happen. As vseven said, you basically bypassing the float switch and just energizing the relay (path of least resistance). I think I may have to choose if I want just a zwave alert or the buzzer. I’m not sure if I can do both unless I do something fancier or buy different panel with outputs or something. I could probably open the panel and tap off of something too
Below should represent what you have. Unless I am missing something. Whether the float is completing the positive or negative side of circuit should not matter.
OK the power is on the buzzer and the float completes to ground. So you need to get the relay coil as shown which you probably don’t have access to, unless you can open the box.
You could just tie the float to the Ecolink and then have ST turn on a buzzer or somehow power your current buzzer with a smart plug, that would turn on when the float closes.
This is what you have now, I take it
Yeah, I would think it could power it in series. The part about the buzzer not being as loud kinda gives it away though…that RIB is pretty low power draw and still affecting it.
Can you possible open up the box and see how the buzzer is wired in and parallel the buzzer? So when the buzzer goes off so does the relay?
Otherwise as Mike said maybe just use the EcoLink as a dry contact on the float and get yourself a alarm that can be triggered when the EcoLink closes.
I got it working. I just opened up the box, cut the wires to the buzzer and wired the relay in parallel with the buzzer. It works now. Tested it by shorting the terminals going to float switch. Volume of buzzer loud and sends alert to phone. Just need to find or write a device handler. Shoews it open or active when idle and closed or inactive when buzzer is going off.
I like this way because I can also trigger the zwave sensor when I press “test” on the alarm box
Awesome! Glad you got it working. For the device handler do you mean you just want to update the screen to say “Alarm” and “Normal” instead of open/closed?
Yes! Know one I can use? Or even active or inactive but like the alarm and normal better.
I was going to see if I could find the generic zwave open/close DH and just modify it to say alarm and normal
I’m assuming the EcoLink is using the default “Z-Wave Door/Window Sensor” (https://github.com/SmartThingsCommunity/SmartThingsPublic/blob/master/devicetypes/smartthings/zwave-door-window-sensor.src/zwave-door-window-sensor.groovy). Easiest thing to do would be to copy that code into your IDE (Device Handlers -> New Device -> From Code and change the name on line 20 so you know its customized). Once its there change lines 56 and 57, remove the ‘${name}’ part and put in what you want like “Alarm” and “Normal”. Leave the icons but you probably want to reverse the background colors too so closed will show in orange and open (normal for you) will show in blue. Save it, publish it for you, and under My Devices switch the device to using your new one.
PM me if you need help.
Sweet! Done and thank you for all this!
Thanks for the info here! I just added two handlers from this. One for my Septic alarm, and the other for my wired smoke alarms in my house. Couldn’t have been easier!!!
