dutsnekcirf Posted February 20, 2017 Share Posted February 20, 2017 Just moved into a new house that comes with a preexisting Control4 installation AND Vivint Smart Home setup. This house is awesome, but kind of weird. It's a rambler and one the main floor there is zero Control4 gear; no light switches or anything. On the main floor it appears to be all Vivint stuff. It's got security cameras that are apparently sending their feed into the Vivint main controller. I'm assuming all the sensors and contacts are feeding into the Vivint system. Then in the basement it's all Control4. It looks like it was being used for the main theater control and lighting in the basement. There's an HC300 and several dimmers and 2 button keypads. So this brings up a couple questions. Is it possible that the Vivint system was integrated into the Control4 project? I know many other security systems integrate well with Control4 but does anyone know if Vivint integrates well? If so, can you provide any details as to how? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyknight Posted February 20, 2017 Share Posted February 20, 2017 It sounds like Vivint was added afterwards, overtop and/or replacing Control4. Vivint CANNOT me integrated into C4 as such. That said, it'll depend on what panel is there - in some Vivint installs I've seen them use existing panels that could be wired into C4 (Concord4 for example). Doing both however isn't usually an option (uses the same module or a mutually exclusive module) Simply put, you cannot merge C4 and Vivint. You can certainly run them next to each other, but you cannot expect one to control/incorporate the other. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dutsnekcirf Posted February 21, 2017 Author Share Posted February 21, 2017 That makes me sad. So the house does also have another security system panel for some reason. I don't know the make or model of it off the top of my head. Is it possible that that panel was integrated as some sort of proxy into the security system ecosystem (contact sensors, motion sensors, etc)? I'm really stretching here. In one of my previous homes from a few years back I had integrated the security system into our automation system using some device called a Vista...something. It basically provided a web interface to the security system panel that was already in the home. It be nice if there was something like that for this Vivint system. I'm not really planning to setup the Vivint security monitoring service...but was just hoping to gain access to the contact sensors and such that come with it. Oh well. Thanks for your comment Cyknight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
d1amund Posted February 21, 2017 Share Posted February 21, 2017 Sounds like a hodgepodge. I would suggest getting a c4 dealer out to the site so they can make sense of it all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VINCELdUB Posted February 21, 2017 Share Posted February 21, 2017 +1 on the dealer. Recommend calling control4 and having them recommend a local dealer if there are lots to choose from. Happy Automating! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dutsnekcirf Posted February 22, 2017 Author Share Posted February 22, 2017 So there's a Honeywell panel in the house but it's not hooked up; wires are disconnected behind the panel. I'm thinking about getting the Vivint system removed and get the Honeywell hooked up and see if I can find that that Vista module again. I'm guessing that the motion and contact sensors that already exist in the house will still work with the Honeywell panel. I'm also hoping I can redirect the video feeds from the security cameras into a different DVR system that'll integrate. The mere fact that Vivint doesn't integrate with Control4 just completely turns me off about the whole thing. I'd rather not have Vivint at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
msgreenf Posted February 22, 2017 Share Posted February 22, 2017 1 hour ago, dutsnekcirf said: I'd rather not have Vivint at all. i don't think you'll find anyone here that disagrees! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eddy.trochez Posted February 22, 2017 Share Posted February 22, 2017 36 minutes ago, msgreenf said: i don't think you'll find anyone here that disagrees! Didn't want to say anything about that... but yes, it needs to go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dutsnekcirf Posted February 23, 2017 Author Share Posted February 23, 2017 I just discovered another reason to be disappointed in this house; or maybe I should blame this one on Control4. The house has Kwikset 910 deadbolts (5 of them) throughout the house. I was so excited when I saw them because I was sure that they were or could be integrated into the Control4 system. Turns out they aren't. This thread confirms it: Why does Control4 have to have their own flavor of ZigBee module? How much is Control4's markup for providing their own version of the same thing? This house has/had so much potential. The previous owners really screwed themselves with their decision to install some weird mixture of Control4 and Vivint stuff. What are the chances I could sell the existing Kwikset 910 deadbolts and offset the cost of the Control4 "approved" Kwikset 910 deadbolts? Anybody want to trade? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dutsnekcirf Posted February 23, 2017 Author Share Posted February 23, 2017 Couldn't there be some sort of z-wave to zigbee proxy module? Just some box that'll translate z-wave signals to zigbee to allow integration of z-wave products into Control4's ecosystem? Just googled. Looks like there's stuff out there that might do it. Anyone have any recommendations for one that'd work with my "non-Control4-approved" Kwikset 910 deadbolts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eddy.trochez Posted February 23, 2017 Share Posted February 23, 2017 You're offering Control4 users a product that doesn't work with Control4? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dutsnekcirf Posted February 23, 2017 Author Share Posted February 23, 2017 No Eddy, I'm the Control4 User in this case. I'm not a dealer. I just bought this house and thought it came with a fully integrated Control4 solution. I'm finding out it's not. Buyer's remorse is setting in. lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eddy.trochez Posted February 23, 2017 Share Posted February 23, 2017 I don't think there's a module available for those locks, at least not from Control4 (Somebody correct me if I'm wrong). You might have to replace them, eBay them to subsidize the new ones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyknight Posted February 23, 2017 Share Posted February 23, 2017 Kwikset doesn't sell the C4 modules separately, though it's sometimes possible to find them on ebay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dutsnekcirf Posted February 23, 2017 Author Share Posted February 23, 2017 If I were to look for them on ebay, how would I know they're the correct ones? Is there a specific part number I should look for? They all look the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyknight Posted February 23, 2017 Share Posted February 23, 2017 If it doesn't specifically tell you it's for Control4 - you don't want it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
msgreenf Posted February 23, 2017 Share Posted February 23, 2017 1 hour ago, dutsnekcirf said: Why does Control4 have to have their own flavor of ZigBee module? How much is Control4's markup for providing their own version of the same thing? This house has/had so much potential. The previous owners really screwed themselves with their decision to install some weird mixture of Control4 and Vivint stuff. What are the chances I could sell the existing Kwikset 910 deadbolts and offset the cost of the Control4 "approved" Kwikset 910 deadbolts? Anybody want to trade? control4 has their own module/zigbee clusters to add more security to zigbee. They don't do this to sell a different product. The added security comes with how items join the mesh and ensure your network is secure. To me this is very important Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyknight Posted February 23, 2017 Share Posted February 23, 2017 11 minutes ago, msgreenf said: control4 has their own module/zigbee clusters to add more security to zigbee. They don't do this to sell a different product. The added security comes with how items join the mesh and ensure your network is secure. To me this is very important To add, when it comes to 3rd party devices - it isn't control4 that sells the module. Kwikset makes their own module (or sources it somewhere, but not Control4) - so does Yale, so does Axxess Industries, Nyce, Qmotion......note that Kwikset and so on that sell through Control4 set the price themselves, not Control4. It's not an (direct) economic advantage to Control4 as such. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dutsnekcirf Posted February 23, 2017 Author Share Posted February 23, 2017 Okay, I'll quit blaming Control4 then. I'm still a fan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
msgreenf Posted February 23, 2017 Share Posted February 23, 2017 26 minutes ago, dutsnekcirf said: Okay, I'll quit blaming Control4 then. I'm still a fan. Just my .02. Take an inventory of all systems, what they do, what they are tied to. Then decide what you would like to do next Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyknight Posted February 23, 2017 Share Posted February 23, 2017 45 minutes ago, dutsnekcirf said: Okay, I'll quit blaming Control4 then. I'm still a fan. You can blame them for any number of things if you want - you can still blame them for requiring a 'special' stack/cluster - it's their choice and you can agree or disagree all you want. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
d1amund Posted February 24, 2017 Share Posted February 24, 2017 You need to blame the previous installer(s) for installing this mess...and the prior homeowner/builder for paying for it and then selling you a crappy bill of goods packaged as a "smart home", not Control4. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dutsnekcirf Posted June 13, 2017 Author Share Posted June 13, 2017 Here's a way out there question: could the Amazon Echo be used as a proxy between Control4 and Vivint? I've discovered that the Amazon Echo is compatible with Vivint. See here: https://support.vivint.com/product/amazon-echo I also know that the Amazon Echo is compatible with Control4. So...What do ya'll think it'd take to use the Amazon Echo as a go-between for the two systems? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
msgreenf Posted June 13, 2017 Share Posted June 13, 2017 17 minutes ago, dutsnekcirf said: Here's a way out there question: could the Amazon Echo be used as a proxy between Control4 and Vivint? I've discovered that the Amazon Echo is compatible with Vivint. See here: https://support.vivint.com/product/amazon-echo I also know that the Amazon Echo is compatible with Control4. So...What do ya'll think it'd take to use the Amazon Echo as a go-between for the two systems? i don't think that would work. You are creating a control mess. Finger pointing and nothing is going to work. One house, one control system Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Lowe Posted June 13, 2017 Share Posted June 13, 2017 alexa is technically only an input device for control4. So there would be no way that i know of for control4 to output commands to her for her to input into the alarm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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