The garage door thread

I am sending the following email to as many marketers of garage door openers as I can find. If Chamberlain will not make its customers happy, it’s time to prompt their competitors to do so:

Alexa & Smartthings compatibility??

Hi, I’m looking to replace my Chamberlain system because that company refuses to make its systems compatible with the emerging automated & voice controlled home.

If your company would build native Alexa interoperability (“Alexa, open the garage door”) and SmartThings (Z-wave) programmability into your products, I would seriously consider purchasing your system. Do you have such interoperability and programmability? Which products?

If not, be aware that incorporating these features into your products would give you a massive competitive edge over Chamberlain/Liftmaster.

Thank you in advance for your attention.

Please send this over to Ryobi. They have a pretty cool Garage Door Opener that is WiFi enabled with an App. Really it just needs IFTTT integration with the following Triggers and Actions:
Trigger:
Garage Door Opened
Garage Door Closed

Actions:
Open Garage Door
Close Garage Door
Turn on Light
Turn Off Light

It could then be integrated into SmartThings and Echo pretty easily.

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I just use a Wemo maker and Alexa opens my garage door through IFTTT. The Wemo Maker should work with nearly any garage door opener

Am I paranoid? I don’t like the idea of unlocking doors, or opening garage doors by any means connected to the internet.

On that note, I DO have door/contact sensors on my garage doors to verify they’re closed.

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Unfortunately this doesn’t work with mine. It’s a Chamberlain from a few years ago. Has rolling codes, and even the hardware button sends codes rather than a simple momentary switch. Annoying to say the least, especially since my garage has no entry to the house.

I removed the maker from my Alexa after realising that anyone could say “Alexa, open the garage” as there’s no security at all. Someone suggested I call the garage “sesame” to be less obvious. I now just use the app and push the button

While most openers these days tend to be set up where the button on the wall is just another RF remote with rolling code, I believe most still have the terminals on the back for a wired button if you wanted to go to the trouble on installing one. So, instead of wiring up a wall button, you could wire up the wemo maker. What model opener have you got?

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You can’t with the newer Chamberlains - though might be able to solder to the main opener. There are some “smarts” in the switch.

While not ideal (because you have to add tilt sensors), I use MyQ Lite app in conjunction with Alexa Helper App and mine work great now. Again, not native to the Echo and an extra $40 for the sensors but it work!

I have a Chamberlain GDO with MyQ and have been using SmartThings and Alexa to open and close it for at least 9 months… have you used the MyQ or MyQLite connector?

As I stated elsewhere, I’m reluctant to give Chamberlain any more of my money. They might close down this functionality at any time, so the idea of spending more for the MyQ network add-on just seems bad to me.

My unit is the HD520EV. And I’m already using the ST multisensor on the garage door to report open/active/closed status (as well as temperature) via Smarttiles.

And for myself, I’ll likely just stay with what I have because it works. I use a Chamberlain car remote inside the house; the ‘smart’ wired controller is in the garage where the dumb button used to be for the old unit.

I’m just seeing the wave that is building and cresting. Do you know that the Echo line is completely sold out until after Xmas? Amazon is out of them. They shipped Dots by the hundreds of thousands to chains such as BestBuy, walmart and BedBathBeyond, and those are also now all gone. My local bestbuy had these cubic-yard display cages full, and they were replenishing those cages every few hours. They ran out two days ago. It is virtually guaranteed that tens or hundreds of thousands of recipients and purchasers will want to open and close their garages by voice using these devices. And it’s virtually guaranteed that as friends and family see what these Dots can do, they will also want them… and will want to activate their garages with them!

Amazon has let loose a monster. If Nest was the item that took smart homes out of the hobbyist category and began to make the concept mainstream, Echo (especially the current Dot) is making home smarts available to almost everyone for what amounts to pocket change… and people are responding in massive numbers. Companies just need to get their heads out of their butts, and see what’s happening.

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Not attempting to change your mind… but the logic of replacing your GDO for ~$200+ vs. a ~$50 gateway seems odd.

Any company can stop any particular service at any given time. While you are waiting for the perfect product with a lifetime service guarantee you can get the same functionality today, cheaper.

Just my 2 cents.

Except of course that Chamberlain has already shown a propensity to do exactly that, as many on this forum can attest. And their web forum shows a company that has zero care for what its customers think, say or do. Integration with ST was promised but never delivered, integration with IFTTT was promised but never delivered. Integration with Wink was promised… you get the picture. And during that span, the one integration that occurred - not their doing, of course - with their proclaimed partner ST was crushed!

That garage opener was actually the first gadget I bought anticipating an eventual smart home. It said it had connectivity, and would have integrations. Yet the connectivity requires I spend YET MORE money above and beyond the unit itself… in order to get zero official integration! Nope… I do not trust that company at all at this point.

So like I said, I’ll likely stay where I am. Meanwhile, the letters go out on behalf of all those who just got a Dot, as well as on behalf of my perhaps future self. I do encourage any who wish to copy the letter, amend it as you see fit, and send it along also.

No need to justify your emotions or cause. I am not trying to change your mind.

Just pointing out that the integrations you speak of ie… IFTTT and SmartThings are possible and they work today. Regardless of the failed promises and perceived propensities you will need a gateway to use them.

I have not paid much attention to all the noise on this subject but I really enjoy watching my Garage Door open as I pull into my driveway and enjoying the convenience as I close my GDO via echo (or 4 dots).

Ignorance is bliss. Keep fighting for us Dot owners.

You forgot:
Turn on Fan
Turn on BT
:wink:

Ryobi needs to improve their app, though — it sucks for trying to add the GDO to your WLAN. I have three of these and I could get only one to connect :unamused:

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Just installed the Ryobi, no issues there. I’m guessing the ST integration never happened since I can’t find anything else in it. Guess I may have to finishem the photon project…