Which Zigbee Device to put in Garage for Extended Range

Devices & Integrations Connected Things
1

I am going to attempt to start using my arrival sensor to open the garage door when I arrive and wanted to find out what device would be best to put in the garage to extend my Hubs range. Like should I just get a SmartThings motion sensor or an older SmartThings USB Wired Motion Sensor? Right now when I pull into the garage it takes about 60 seconds to recognize that I am home and it currently turns on my game room and pc.
Another idea would be on the side of the house I have an exterior wall outlet with one of those big plastic water proof covers that I could maybe fit something into. I haven’t looked to see how much room there is in it though.
Any thoughts?

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To extend your Zigbee mesh, you will need something that plugs in for power. My suggestion is to get one of these pocket sockets from Lowes. The bonus is that they also extend the Z-Wave mesh as well:
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Iris-120-Volt-White-Smart-Plug/999925330

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OK Thanks for the info. Non available at any of my nearby Lowes so I had to order.

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Additional info on the Iris smart plug can be found in this thread

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Thanks for that info. Gonna need it.

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I second the recommendation for the Iris zigbee plug which has both a Zigbee switch and a z-wave repeater. I was able to reach my shed from the main house using one and it’s been working reliably for several months. Using a zigbee door sensor to enable an automatic light.

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Thanks for the info guys. I got the plug today and got both the Zigbee and Z Wave devices installed. I am using the Zigbee locally. I will let you know about my results after a couple of trys with it. @Jimxenus

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Last night I set up my CoRE piston for when I arrive my garage door opens. Today when I got home from work was the first test. It worked. When I got into the driveway it seemed like my arrival sensor was picked up a little sooner since I put the Iris plug in the garage. Only issue is it still took about 45 seconds for it to realize I had arrived. Is there anyway to speed that process up? Or does anyone else have any suggestions?
Its cool and all, just pulling into the driveway and not having to do anything and have the garage door just open. But it is kind of pointless if I have to sit there for 30-45 seconds.