Based on some modest research it looks like the most flexible option for integrating an alarm with my hassio setup would be to use alarm decoder with a honeywell or dsc station.
I cannot find mention of using the ad2phat (http://www.alarmdecoder.com/catalog/product_info.php/cPath/1/products_id/48) the forumns. Are you using it? Can anyone share their opinion on difficulty level for setup from scratch and stability? I built my own nodemcu based multisensor and wled controllers as well as integrated aqara xaiomi zigbee buttons to control them. Plenty of soldering and flashing experience at this point so not a concern.
Which is better, dcs powerline or honeywell vista flavor of alarm decoder?
Money is a consideration, but is there a better setup for hassio with similar flexibility? If you have an alarm integration now, but decided to start from scratch, what is your ideal configuration?
Holy crap I had no idea this was a thing. I’m currently using a few esp8266’s, esphome, and a dsc 8ch output expansion board to get zone status into HA. That and a key switch give me pretty good control over everything. But it’s a tad hacky.
My wife is going to kill me when I tell her I need to rewire the alarm panel again.
@Dilbert66 so you did this with just an esp8266? No alarm decodrr for $100 plus a rp3b+? You just saved me a couple hundred bucks. I will explore this as the first option since I have a spare nodemcu’s laying around. Thank you for enlightening me.
Yes, just an esp8266. Should work with most DSC systems. Basically $10 dollars in parts :slight_smile
NOTE: I used a clone wemos D1 so I also needed a 12volt to 3.3 volt regulator and fed directly to the 3.3 volt input. I do NOT recommend using the 5volt regulator on the wemos d1 as most have an underpowered 5volt regulator that will fry itself and take the esp8266 with it.
If you use the nodemcu , you should be fine as it uses the AMS1117 regulator that can handle 12 volt but it will get hot .
The first link I posted is for the original libraries which also includes MQTT client examples for home assistant. The second link is my own customization of it to work with ESPHOME . I include all files needed (including the customized dsckeybus library).
What do you have to lose. Flash a nodemcu, connect 4 wires and you are good to go. No major rewriring needed. Your spouse won’t even notice
Edit: I do suggest if you use the original library, that you use the “develop” branch as it has the most updated fixes and changes. That’s the one I based my customization on.
I’ve already got the 4 dsc keypad bus wires in my aux panel as that’s where I put the 8 zone output expander. I’ve got two nodemcus in there already on those nice little breakout boards that have a built in 12v converter. The only thing that will keep me from doing it is that I just rewired the whole thing!!
Well I’m using the L7805CV right now for anything 5v under .75 amps. Gets hot but stable. It burned out one of my nodemcu’s when i pushed it higher.
Original library makes sense but i saw 40 forks so it makes me wonder whats missing.
Anyway, reading through, i guess I’ve settled on the dsc pc 1864, once my security monitoring company gives the ok. I may get the rest of the gear from them… I would ask for recommendations on external motion detectors but that would be off topic.
Good to know. Definently if this doesn’t work out I’ll go back to my original plan to use AD.
It is sensible to use a $5 part over the $100 for my case. All my sensors and controllers are based on the same chip for example.
I want to have backups for everything on hand so buying two puts me at $200. They don’t ship directly to Europe so some costs and time. I can avoid the additional integrations in hassio in favor of mqtt which is already my primary automation bus. I dont have to get another raspberry pi either so my backup stays on the self.
Now that I list all that out, it seems clear which way to try first.
I landed on a middle ground. I have a dsc pc1616 system that’s monitored through a cellular BAT. I wanted to keep that all in intact but still monitor zones in HA (like using door contacts for smart lock automation). I also wanted to automate a key switch so that I could arm and disarm.
I originally planned on the konnected interface modules, but the most important piece of information was missing (is the alarm armed or not). Googling around led me to the dsc pc5208 expansion board. I snagged one for like $20 on eBay and it added 8 programmable outputs to the panel. That coupled with the one still available on the main panel meant I had access to 9 pieces of information. If you look at the dsc documentation, you can essentially program the outputs to respond to almost any event. You can also assign multiple zones to one output and create groups (so all my window zones are grouped into one output). I’ve got another set up as armed status, one for burglar event, and the rest doors and windows.
All that pumped into a couple esp8266’s running esphome to bring it into home assistant. An extra gpio controls a relay that I ran to a spare zone on the panel and programmed as a key switch.
The hardest part was the three days I spent diving into the dsc documentation. Programming the outputs was a total bitch as it all had to be done through the keypad and I had no idea what I was doing. I got it figured out eventually though.
I called my alarm guy and was like heeeeeey can i get that installer’s code? I have an idea. And he was like what are you doing exactly? And I told him and he was like uhhhhhhhhhhh Wtf is wrong with you?
Not sure if its middle ground, but definitely a successful outcome. Good job.
In my case, I would like to fully automate arming and disarming so I dont ever have to notice the alarm system unless it’s triggered. Also a panic button to start. I will post my results when I get everything together.
As of now, I’m arming and disarming automatically at night and in the morning, after checking for the usual conditions to be true (is someone home, are all the doors and windows closed, etc).
The other big one I love is disarming automatically upon arrival. As of now, I trigger a 5min timer when either me or my wife return home. If the timer is running and the entryway door is unlocked with a code, then the alarm disarms. We very rarely touch the key pad anymore. When I first automated it, my wife was skeptical, but it has since become one of the best things I’ve added to the mix.
Well, the library I posted setup with either mqtt or my esphome version will allow full control of all aspects of the system since it gives you full virtual keypad control as well as text descriptions of all system statuses so lots of choice.
I too have the Alarm Decoder but have a challenge. When one or more sensors are open (patio door on nice day) the and motion zones go on door sensor sometimes (fairly often) goes off and then when the motion sensor goes off that door sensor goes back on. I should add the two doors we leave open are rf sensors and everything else is wired.
I am trying simulate the door chime and not able to formulate a way around this. Any suggestions or similar experience would be good to know.
Hmm. I don’t have a direct answer as I don’t use any RF zones however one thing you can try is to connect the Alarm Decoder to via USB to a computer, and load the client software provided by AD. It will show you the data it is receiving represented by a virtual panel, and also allow you to see the raw stream. From there you can determine if the issue is the data stream coming from the panel, or the AD doing something weird. I’d have to go back to my Vista manual to see how RF zones are handled. I’d assume the panel only updates them when they change state, as the panel cannot continuously scan due to battery life issues.
OK I’m ignorant about assembling electronic components. Any advise on where to start to get the components, I halready have a bunch of generic esp8266’s. Is there a place to get all the components without ordering a ton of extra? Would you just assemble on a breadboard? Thanks for the work though. I currently have a alarm decoder, which gives me trouble time to time. I think using the esp would dumb it down since I’m just using it through home assistant.
