Smart Shades Recommendation

[tmc1284]

I am looking for a recommendation for Smart Shades.

I am going to be renting my home out as a Vacation Rental often and will need to be able to remotely control them when I am not home. I have a SmartThings Hub, Nest Thermostat and Android Phone. I would not be opposed to purchasing a Bridge that is designed for the Smart Shades if needed.

I will be living in the home for at least half of the year so would like to be able to set up Schedules for when they open and close. Then remotely disable/enable the Schedules from my phone so that the schedules would be disabled when the home is being rented and I could enable them while it is vacant while I am travelling so the plants in my home would receive light.

I am just starting to look into Smart Shades and would assume that all of them can be manually opened/closed often which my guests would of course need to be able to do.

[ZebraBlinds (Neal (www.zebrablinds.com / www.zebrablinds.ca))]

Check these out, no additional hub needed (self promotion):

Z-Wave + integrated blinds/shades: Custom Graber Virtual Cord Shades

Cick the blue link: March 8, 2017 - New Product Announcement I have been a part of the smartthings community for only about three months, and I’ve seen a lot of interesting ideas and devices. I would like to introduce one that we have been working on and seems to fill in a need for some people: Full Disclaimer: We are dealers of Graber products, all our products are made to order at custom sizes and options. Video with SmartThings v2 hub: Controlling Multiple Shades (Solar Shade on the left and Cellular Shade on the right) Graber’s virtual cord shades utilize Z-Wave+ to operate. This means it can be directly integrated with Samsung’s SmartThings and other home automation systems. In SmartThings, it works as a dimmer switch so using Smart Lighting it should be able to run locally…

[JDRoberts]

Yep, the two simplest choices are the Zebra blinds already mentioned ( no extra bridge needed, those are Z wave devices) or the Lutron Serena shades, which will require the Lutron SmartBridge as well.

There are also some do it yourself projects using Dooya motors from China, but those are quite a bit of work to get set up.

Best Blinds, Curtains, curtain rollers,... anything that works with Smartthings

Different people have different needs and requirements (and budgets!), So there’s no one “best” answer. There are a number of choices. Zebra blinds has a Z wave line which works well with SmartThings and is a popular choice. The distributor is active in this community so you can ask any questions you have before purchase, which is also helpful. And the Lutron Serena line works with SmartThings through IFTTT or Harmony or through the official SmartThings/Lutron integration. In all three cases you will need the Lutron SmartBridge as well (one Bridge for up to 40 Lutron Devices). https://www.serenashades.com/ . . https://support.smartthings.com/hc/en-us/articles/115000864766-How-to-connect-Lutron-Caséta-devices Those are probably the two simplest “out-of-the-box” i…

[tmc1284]

For the Lutron Serena shades, can they be manually opened?

The FAQ says that they can be manually closed, but does not mention if they can be manually opened:

Serena_Technical_FAQ.pdf

[JDRoberts]

@tmc1284

For the Lutron Serena shades, can they be manually opened?

Good question, but I’m sorry I don’t know the answer. Lutron has an 800 number that’s open 24 hours a day, they should be able to tell you:

If you have any questions regarding installing your Serena Shades please call Serena support at 1.888.445.8063. Our support staff is available to help you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.