Linking FirstAlert COMBO Smoke Detectors

Configuration Z-Wave
1

I have included several of the above smoke detectors in my home and would like to set them up such that detection of smoke in one will set off the alarm in all.

Any suggestions on how to do this?

2

It’s not possible to do so.

  1. They are battery devices so they sleep most of the time, unable to receive commands. They only wake up to receive commands every 70 minutes.
  2. They don’t implement any command you could send that would trigger the alarm
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3

@freshcoast that title still makes me laugh

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4

So then what’s the point of having Z-Wave Smoke Detectors?

Can I at least have it send a notification to an Echo device or my phone? Our house is a spread out single story ranch style and a smoke detector in the laundry room won’t be heard in a bedroom.

5

They are sensors, not sirens. They send notifications to HA. You can do anything you want with those in HA, just like with any other sensor.

Replace them with hard-wired interconnected models if that’s functionality you want.

6

Okay. I have a Z-Wave siren that is not yet hooked up so I could use that to sound an alarm on detection of smoke?

7

Yep, that would work. And/or send alerts as notifications using your favorite notification service, etc.

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8

Now that the method is apparent, how about some help with the logic implementation? Sorta a noob to HA still. I think the easiest way is to have separate automations or scenes for each detector but the more efficient way is one automation or scene with several “or” triggers but I only see “and” triggers.

9

Triggers are only ever ‘or’ not ‘and’.

conditions can be ‘or’ or ‘and’ as needed.

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10

Wait - if there is detection of smoke, wouldn’t you already got the (super loud) alarm from the COMBO Smoke Detectors themselves already?

Or, are you trying to sound an alarm on a siren that is in… another building?

As freshcoast explained, you will get sensors via z-wave into HA, and that’s about it. You can use those sensors to do things: what kind of alarm from which detector, bettery level of each detector, etc.
Sending notifications to your phone via automations, is probably the best I can think of.

11

As others have noted, if you want to guarantee that all detectors alarm at the same time then you need to install hardwired ones. That being said, I own a few Zcombo detectors and they are very loud so you won’t need to alarm them all if you are in the same building/house. I have two in my house and one in my detached garage.
My suggested automations:

  • If either of the house detectors alert, send notifications via your choice (email, sms, pushover, etc) indicating which detector triggered. Do a voice announcement if you’re setup for smart speakers/multi-room sound.
  • Turn on all lights in the house so that occupants can make a safe exit or first responders safe entry.
  • If your presence detection routines indicates you or a family member is in the house, unlock the doors so that first responders can have easy entry.
  • Blink a front porch light so that first responders can easily identify your house as they approach.

If my outbuilding detector triggers:

  • Send notifications via your choice (email, sms, pushover, etc) indicating which detector triggered. Do a voice announcement in the house if you’re setup for smart speakers/multi-room sound.
  • Blink a light or group of lights inside your house to indicate the outbuilding detector triggered.
  • Blink a front porch light so that first responders can easily identify your house as they approach.
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12

I assume there are good reasons that “the National Fire Alarm and Signaling Code (NFPA 72) has required smoke alarms in new homes to be interconnected since 1989” (according to https://www.kidde.com/home-safety/en/us/products/fire-safety/interconnected-alarms/). Depending on home layout and the person, not everyone is going to hear a smoke alarm several rooms away, even as loud as the ZCOMBO ones are. My wife and son sleep like a dead person, they won’t hear an alarm while they’re sleeping if it’s from another room.

If I had to do it again, I’d go all interconnected alarms and get something like a Zooz ZEN55 (didn’t exist at the time) to integrate with HA.

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13

:+1: those are very good ideas.

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14

This is what I see in YMAL as I edit in the visual editor. It is not clear if it is Boolean “AND” or Boolean “OR” but thanks for the clarification.

description: ""
mode: single
triggers:
  - type: smoke
    device_id: 84f4959b44987a81fcaaf4de3b669bd9
    entity_id: 0fc1ea19159725b0bb7abd7b919668b8
    domain: binary_sensor
    trigger: device
    for:
      hours: 0
      minutes: 0
      seconds: 0
  - type: smoke
    device_id: cc96cde41aac07cd3c94228ce7607d21
    entity_id: 227498081042cd9878f6c8142d0f9c6b
    domain: binary_sensor
    trigger: device
    for:
      hours: 0
      minutes: 0
      seconds: 0
conditions: []
actions: []
15

Exactly. Our home is a single story and is spread out. I’m not going to hear an alarm in the laundry room or family room most likely since they are many rooms and doors away. The garage, a source for a lot of house fires, is out of the question on hearing the alarm at all. Since our house was built in 1960 it didn’t even have smoke detectors at all, let alone interlocked ones. Using Z-Wave will have to suffice in this case because even though I’ve pulled ethernet to Ubiquiti AC Pros throughout the house it doesn’t go to a few of these places.

16

I don’t have nearly that many things set up yet. I did in my previous home but not this one as It’s been quite the project over the last three years to modernize yet preserve its Mid Century Modern Ranch architecture. Eventually, though!