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Updated March 23, 2009 0600am EST

How can I extend the range of my Z-Wave network? I want to put a Z-Wave camera (Hawking HRPC2) on a garage 300 feet from my house where the main controller is located.

First things first, the Hawking camera is not a Z-Wave device. It uses WiFi, IEEE802.11 for its connection. You can find many different WiFi-enabled routers and access points that should easily make a connection over this distance. I recommend you contact Hawking for its recommendation.

Z-Wave uses an RF technology different from WiFi in that it operates at a much lower transmit power level, much lower bandwidth or data rate, and at a lower frequency: 908mHz vs. 2.4gHz. Z-Wave doesn’t have the bandwidth to carry video signals. What Z-Wave does to get range is form a mesh network, where all power-line connected devices act as repeaters and “hop” the message using low power transmissions from device to device to get extended range. The typical range for a Z-Wave device is 20 meters or 60 feet. Z-Wave supports 4 hops in a link so the typical range overall is 4 * 60 or 240 feet.

I am from Colombia, South America. I have my home lighting with X-10 technology; I want to start to install Z-Wave products. Would I have to change all X-10 system, or can I combine X-10 with Z-Wave and how?

If you want to mix your Z-Wave and X-10 products you will need to use a third home control product such as HomeSeer or mControl that has interfaces for both X-10 and Z-Wave. At this time I’m not aware of any good stand-alone X-10 to Z-Wave bridging products.

I have multiple Z-Wave compatible adapters and a Logitech 890 remote. Unlike some controllers that add the adapters to a network the Logitech doesn’t seem to do this. Do Z-Wave adapters automatically act as repeaters even if they are not part of a network?

While I’m not sure what you mean by “adapters” I’m going to assume you mean Z-Wave devices that are connected to line power. That is either a plug-in module or a hard-wired in-wall device. To answer your first question the 890 might add these devices to its network. I say might because Logitech has stopped supporting the Z-Wave direct-to-devices portion of this product and it has never worked correctly in its production version. When it is used it must be used as the Primary Controller.

To answer your second question, no Z-Wave devices must share the same Home ID that is to be added to the network by the same remote, before they will route (hop) messages for each other. It this different from some of the other mesh network technologies out there that will route messages outside of their home network and this prevents unnecessary congestion for devices in high density areas such as apartments and condos.

Lastly, battery operated devices such as remotes and sensors do not act as repeaters in a Z-Wave network. This is because we do not want their batteries to get worn down hopping messages.

Can I install HA-18WD switch second in the series of switches or does it have to be the first from the power source?

I’m not sure why you would want to install two switches in a series with each other. This is a strange concept as the switch in the first position (closest to power) will prevent the second switch and load from doing anything when it is in the open or off position. 

The HA-18WD should always have power applied to its Line side so it would have to the in the first position, the position that will always have power. You should never connect a Z-Wave line powered device to switched power because a Z-Wave line powered device will be added to the Z-Wave networks list of devices that can be used to route or hop messages. If the power is turned off to a routing device then the mesh network is compromised and this may cause latency in response times.

Can I use this system by cell phone? I don’t have an internet connection where I am interested in monitoring.

Sorry, the answer is no. Currently all Z-Wave cell phone monitoring schemes use an Internet gateway to connect the home back to a central server and then the cell phone to contact the central server.

What companies use Z-Wave technology in Germany and Australia?

There are several companies that provide Z-Wave products to the German and Australian markets. The most prominent are Merten, Popp and Danfoss. You will also find products from Duwi, ACT, BeNeXt, Hawking, Beaumotica and several others. For more information and links to these companies web sites please visit the members section of the Z-Wave Alliance.

 

Mark Walters, our resident Z-Wave expert, is a home automation consultant and the former vice president of the Z-Wave Alliance. Mark is well versed in numerous home automation technologies including CE Bus, Insteon, X10, Z-Wave, ZigBee, and KNX.