Long time ST customer, First time forum user

General Discussion
1

I have been using ST for over three years. It’s been a love-hate relationship at times. I understood that it was a new product when I first purchased the hub. I usually watch YouTube or search the support faq when I have issues. However, I have the same issues occurring repeatedly. The support information isn’t cutting it. I’m hoping someone can give me insight on a few things:

  1. All of my ST motion sensors and Ecobee 3 thermostats regularly drop off of the system. The only fix is to remove and re-add each device. I have a large house with three thermostats and multiple motion sensors. It becomes tedious to repeat this about every two weeks when they all drop off. Is there something I’m missing? Why do they fail so frequently and nearly in unison?

  2. I bought a Kwikset (Smart Code 916) keyless door lock for my front door about two years ago. In two years, it has probably worked reliably for a total of 4-6 weeks. I continually change batteries and reconnect it to the hub. Even when doing everything the faq says, it still won’t work. For most of two years, it’s just a dumb door lock. Do I need to start over and buy a new door lock? Or, is there something I can do to get this one to work?

  3. I bought a Flic controller hoping to set up a smart button on my nightstand that would shut off my Philips Hue lights and turn on my ‘Goodnight’ feature when I click it. Then, do the opposite (turn on lights and ‘Good Morning’) when I double click. The Hue lights work flawlessly. I can’t find an IFTTT recipe or anything on ST support that will allow something other than the phone app to set the Goodnight/Good Morning functions. Any ideas?

With all of these, I have begun to research other hubs. Reviews still rate ST highly. However, I am tired of continual flaws in my home security and frustrations with automation. Isn’t that why we all bought ST? If it won’t do the simple things, what’s the point? I’d appreciate any help. Thank you!

2

As far as number three, assuming you got the regular flic buttons and not the singles, see the following FAQ. (This is a clickable link). It will explain how you can use IFTTT so that it thinks it is turning on a single switch, but you will actually activate a SmartThings routine.

3

For number two, the lock, we need a little more information. Do you have the Z wave or the zigbee module for this lock?

4

Have you talked to SmartThings support about these issues? There are some tools that they have that we as regular customers don’t have that would let them look at your network.

In particular, I wonder how many zwave repeaters you have. This is what we refer to as the “strength of the mesh.”

Read post 11 in the following FAQ, and then back up and read the whole thread and it should explain this issue.

That doesn’t explain the ecobees, though. Do they respond to their own app on your phone?

5

Kwikset SmartCode 916 Touchscreen Electronic Deadbolt with Z-Wave Wireless Remote Home Automation Compatibility and SmartKey Re-key Technology

6

Sorry for the delay… It wouldn’t allow me to reply.

I have contacted ST support. They told me that I needed to buy more smart outlets to repeat the signal. I spent about $200 doing that. As suspected, it didn’t do anything to help. Now, I have a bunch of useless smart outlets that I don’t need. After several days, the support person stated he was in my hub resetting my Ecobee. Instead, he crashed my hub and quit talking to me. I rebooted the hub and have spent about four frustrating hours re-installing everything.

I got on a chat with ST support tonight. The only thing he offered was that the equipment was sensitive to interference. But, he offered no useful help.

This is very, very frustrating. I’ve had ST for close to three years. How does this stuff work fine one day and just stop working the next? Now, I can’t get my GE smart switch re-connected for my front porch light. And, the door lock still doesn’t work. It won’t reconnect, either. The hub is line-of-site 25 feet from the front door. I have installed a smart plug halfway between the front door and the hub. The door lock is a Z-Wave Kwikset 916. The light switch is next to the door. It worked fine before the crash of my hub. Now, it doesn’t connect. I’ve followed every instruction offered on the ST support site.

At this point, I don’t care about Flic. I just want my system up and running. I’d like to get the light switch and door lock back online and working. I’d like to figure out why my Ecobee and motion sensor all frequently become unavailable at the same time. The Ecobee thermostats always work fine with the Ecobee app on my phone. That’s never been a problem.

7

I’m sure that’s very frustrating. :disappointed_relieved: What’s the brand and model of the outlets that you are using? And how far is it from the lock to the nearest repeater outlet?

8

The outlets are Smartthings outlets from their website. The door lock is line-of-site, 20-25 feet from the hub. Tonight, I added one of the outlets halfway between the hub and door lock. The door lock is next to the GE light switch and ST multi-sensor. The multi-sensor is working fine with no problems. The other two items won’t work at all.

9

The smartthings hub allows for direct connection with devices using two different communication protocols: zigbee and Z wave. Zigbee repeats only for zigbee and Zwave repeats only zwave.

All of the SmartThings – branded devices other than the hub are zigbee, so unfortunately, they cannot help with your Z wave lock at all. They are literally speaking a different language.

At this point, I’m not sure why support was not more helpful: normally that’s exactly the kind of issue they would be investigating. It does sound like somebody dropped the ball on their side.

10

Is there a zigbee repeater that you recommend? Though, I’m confused that
the light switch worked for two years seldom missing a beat. Today, the
hub can’t find it at all.

11

It sounds like you need a zwave repeater, not a zigbee repeater. Certainly that’s what you would need for your lock.

What’s the model number for your GE switch? (They make both Z wave and zigbee models which look identical, but have a different radio inside.)

The usual source of interference for zigbee is Wi-Fi.

The usual source of interference for Z wave is an old style cordless phone or an old style baby monitor, operating near the 900 MHz band.

12

Sorry… I thought about that after I wrote it. Yes, I need a zwave
repeater. My GE switch is 12727 (zwave). I was told that it would work as
a repeater when I bought it two years ago. It is inches from the door
lock. It has always worked until now. So, should I find a zwave repeater?

I have my wireless router in a different room from my hub. They are
probably at least 30 feet apart with two walls between them. I don’t have
any cordless phones or baby monitors. So, I’m not sure about the
interference. Aside from wifi and cell, I’ve tried to cut down on using
radio in the house. My house is wired with Cat6 for all of the larger
things such as computers, televisions, etc.

13

I finally got it to work… Except for the front door lock. I added two Z-wave light switches and got the front porch switch to work. I had to exclude each device and connect them, even the brand new ones. All is working well. I’ll tackle the door lock tomorrow. I have a pretty good idea what needs done. I apprciate your help JD!

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