I recently purchased (May 2020) some Somfy Window Shades and embarked on integrating them with SmartThings. There is a bunch of information online about integrating Somfy with ST but the information is of varying vintage and scattered all over the place. This integration guide is an attempt to consolidate this content in a centralized spot to make easier on community members setting up this same integration. I found success with imnotbob’s somfy-shades community device handler but that’s not to say the other community device handler is not an option. A bunch of this information was gleamed from my own testing (trial & error) so your mileage might vary. Please note that this guide pertains to Somfy ZRTSI ( Somfy Z-Wave to Radio Technology Somfy Interface) integration. I only own Somfy Shades and not Somfy Blinds so I can’t comment on the window blind/ST experience.
Please note that this guide does not pertain to the Somfy MyLink RTS Smartphone and Tablet Interface nor Somfy myLink app.
Step-by-step guide
-
In the new ST app, Add your ZRTSI hub in the SmartThings new app by clicking the + > Devices > then ‘Scan nearby’. It will add it as a generic “Z-Wave Controller” which is okay and desired.
-
On the physical ZRTSI device, program the virtual nodes and conduct the RTS programming. It’s all described here but if programming is failing make sure you’re holding down the stupid select/OK which is not described well in the guide: https://service.somfy.com/downloads/nam_v4/zwaveto_rts_instructions.pdf
-
After programming your virtual nodes (Vnodes), add them to the new ST app, by using ‘scan nearby’ (as described in step 1)
-
Each Window Shade will appears as a generic “Dimmer Switch” in ST which is functional but not desirable as it only provides Open/Close functionally. (without the “Pause” function
). -
If you don’t care about Window Shade “presets” and can’t be bothered to install a community Device Handler, then I would recommend that you login your Smartthings webGUI (https://account.smartthings.com/), navigate to the “Devices” screen > click on one of your Somfy Window Shades > press the Edit button > change the Type* field from “Dimmer Switch” to “Z-Wave Window Shade”. Press the update button and then repeat this step for all Somfy Window Shades. This will give your Open, Close and Pause functionally in the new ST app, Classic ST app and Action Tiles. If that’s your jam, you’re finished with this guide and your Somy Shades will be modeled as Window Shades in ST and not dimmer switches
-
If the notion of window shade presets appeal to you, then skip step 5 (above). A preset is a desired position where you automatically want your shade to physically stop at. For instance, I have a shade installed on a window that opens (from the bottom to the top) so I set the preset just above the window opening so I can physically open the window (to let some air into the room) yet still having the window shade covering the top / fixed portion of the window so the sun or moon is not beaming into the room. No longer do I have to close the blind with the remote and then wait to manually hit the stop button at the desired position.
-
First, you need to program each window preset on your physical Somfy remote control. I have the Telis 4 remote with the “my” button on it. Using the remote, manually move the shade up/down to the desired preset level. Now hold down the “my” button until the shade jobs. You have successfully programmed the preset for this shade. Repeat this preset programming for all of your shades. Please note, presets are re-callable on your physical Somfy remote by selecting the desired shade and then pressing the “my” button twice. It’s not a double-click like on a computer mouse but two distinct presses with a little pause into between. In other words, don’t tap it too fast otherwise it won’t register the double press
-
Install the “I’m not bob Somfy-Shades” community device handler from the following URL: https://github.com/imnotbob/somfy-shades/ . I won’t repeat the installation instructions as not-Bob has already documented them.
-
Once you’ve install the DTH, go back to to SmartThings webGUI (https://account.smartthings.com/), navigate to the “Devices” screen > click on one of your Somfy Window Shades > press the Edit button > change the Type* field from “Dimmer Switch” to “somfy-shades”. Press the update button and then repeat this step for all Somfy Window Shades.
-
Click on one of your Somfy Shades in the Device list. Under the Device screen that lists all the properties, click on the “edit” button under the Preferences section. Type in “shades” (without the double quotes) in the text box and this will set the shadeType enumeration to shades. I don’t own any Somfy blinds so your mileage will vary if you’re reading this guide and programming blinds. I needed to do this step otherwise the preset doesn’t work.
-
Under the Classic ST app, your Somfy shades will register as window shades and you’ll have a beautiful looking “Preset/Stop” button in addition to Open and Close.
-
Under the new ST app, things aren’t looking as pretty, at the time of this writing (May 2020). You get the Open/Close/Pause Control via a gear control which is fine but certainly not ideal. The “Preset” looks like the logical choice for setting your window preset but sadly it throws a “Network or server error occurred. Try again later." Instead you need to use the “Shade Level” slider control which is not intuitive by any stretch of the imagination but it works. Just slide it to any random percentage of your choosing other than the current value and this will trigger the shade to move to the preset that you physically set with your Somfy remote and remembered by your Somfy motor.
-
Under ActionTiles, add them as “Window Shade” instead of “Switch” and they’ll be modeled as Shades in AT. If you click on the name of the tile, you’ll get the details window, where you get the same goofy slider control for navigating to your window preset but it works.
-
Under Alexa, you can now create a new routine like so:
- Name: Bedroom Shades - Open
- When you say: Alexa, open Bedroom Shades
- Add Action: + > Smart Home > All Devices
- Select the desired Window Shade or Shades
- Set the desired percentage:
- 100% == Open
- 0% == Close
- 50% == Preset
-
Under the new ST app, you can create “Scenes” that act as shortcuts for closing / opening / presenting single or multiple shades with a press of a single button. Click on the hamburger button at the top of the new ST app and then select Scenes. It’s the same programming as Alexa: 100% is to open the shades, 50% is to preset your shades and 0% to close your shades.
-
Under the new ST app, you can do some neat programming under “Automation” that is accessible via the hamburger icon too. For instance, before bedtime (say at 9:30pm every night) fully close two of my shades but preset my third shade to my desired level so I can open the window at night without fiddling with the shade position. Additionally, I have the ecobee thermostat with a remote ecobee sensor in our bedroom. I created another automation to fully close all our master bedroom shades if the temperature in our bedroom reaches 27 degC / 80 degF and there has hasn’t been any motion in the room for the last ten minutes (as to not freak out my wife with the shades auto closing if she’s in the bedroom). The idea of this last automation is to prevent our master bedroom from cooking on a hot day if all the window shades were open.
Side note: If your Somfy motors are making a clunking noise when opening the shades, you most likely have the physical top limit of the shade set too high and you should lower it until it stops making this noise. This can be quite jarring on the motor and perhaps affect the longevity of the motor. I have the Somfy Shades with the rechargeable battery packs. To reset the memory on these shades, hold down the physical light/button on the shades for 10 seconds until the shade jogs three times. I point this out because it was difficult for me to find this reset procedure online as it varies depending if you have AC power or battteries. Once resetting the shade, follow Otto’s instructions to re-program the shade including physical stop limits: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jmaGn1vs1I
I hope this helps!
cheers,
Hershey 
