Re: Web Enabled Time/Temp/Humidity and I/O Controller

[RickH <passport@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Oct 30, 4:34=A0am, "Robert Green" <robert_green1...@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> There no doubt that houses are getting "smarter" all the time. =A0More an=
d
> more new homes are coming with goodies like alarm systems, intelligent
> controls for HVAC, pools and sprinklers and even devices to monitor power
> consumption in real time.
>
> I've seen a lot of very expensive and complex systems to manage the
> functions of "smart homes" but I've never come across something as small,
> powerful and inexpensive as this unit:
>
> http://www.cainetworks.com/products/webcontrol/
>
> I've cross-posted this in comp.home.automation and alt.home.repair becaus=
e
> I've seen a lot of posts about monitoring house conditions like temperatu=
re
> remotely in both groups. =A0I was first alerted to the product in a =A0th=
read
> about USB home control in CHA. =A0In that thread:
>
> _USB module for monitoring multiple on/off switches_
>
> http://groups.google.com/group/comp.home.automation/browse_thread/thr...
>
> Marc Hult recommended this device instead as a much more practical way to
> "communicate" with your house remotely than USB devices connected to a PC=
.
>
> It took me a while to find the secret URL and I don't give cainetworks an=
 A+
> for website design - this product doesn't even show up on their "Product
> List." =A0They seem to be a server load balancing company and I would gue=
ss
> they built this thing for themselves as a service tool and then began to
> realize it had other applications.
>
> I have no interest in the company, other than as a customer and it's too
> early to tell whether I am a happy customer or not!
>
> WebControl interests me for a number of reasons: =A0it can automagically =
send
> emails to a PC or a cell phone when a looked-for condition occurs, assumi=
ng
> you've got a constant internet connection. =A0This condition could be a
> furnace failure, an out-of-bounds temperature, water on the floor or any
> number of other events that can sensed electronically.
>
> It's got plenty of inputs - it can accommodate a Honeywell humidity senso=
r,
> up to eight Maxim DS1822 /DS18B20 12bit 1 wire temperature sensors, eight
> digital inputs, three analog inputs and 20 different timers. =A0It seems =
from
> my Google searches that these are popular with cigar lovers (to keep thei=
r
> treasures at constant temps and humidity) and in-home horticulturists
> growing various "herbs."
>
> My first project will be a sensing project, too: =A0I'm hoping to use it =
to
> continually monitor how much power the whole house uses in real-time. =A0=
I've
> read about a number of test projects using "smart meters" and they all
> pretty much say the same thing: =A0People who know how much power they ar=
e
> using at any one moment will end up reducing their average monthly
> consumption.
>
> I've got some tiny current sensors that I will attach to the main power
> feeds to the circuit panel, hopefully so artfully that an inspector might
> never notice they're there. =A0(Yes, I know the evils of mixing high and =
low
> voltage gear and I don't recommend anyone but an insane person with total
> contempt for life and the law even contemplate copying my actions!)
>
> These tiny (1/4" sq.) Hall-Effect (HE) sensors generate a small electric
> current proportional (well, proportional enough for me) to the current
> flowing into the house from the main feeders. =A0This unit should enable =
me to
> see the current current use from any PC on the home network. =A0I should =
even
> be able to rig up an LED bargraph display that shows the real-time power
> consumption of the house with another $2 worth of parts.
>
> The unit has three 3 1023 bit analog inputs (0-10v) that should be able t=
o
> accurately measure the HE sensor voltage level and take an action (light =
a
> bargraph LED, ring a chime, etc) when the voltage becomes greater than a
> pre-determined level. =A0Perhaps the hardest part is going to be accurate=
ly
> matching the output level of the sensor to the actual home electrical pow=
er
> consumed. =A0If I can't get a helper with a walkie talkie, =A0I can tempo=
rarily
> mount a wireless CCTV cam outside pointing at the electric meter so I can
> tabulate meter readings and how they correspond to the sensor output as I
> add more and more loads. =A0I will start with all the breakers off, but w=
ith
> lights, etc. left on so that as I flip each breaker on, the load increase=
s.
> That way I should have a scale that gives me a pretty good idea of the ju=
ice
> flowing through the circuit panel.
>
> I'm going to make notes as I go along, paying particular attention to the
> level of technical skill required to implement it. =A0I'm afraid it's goi=
ng to
> be high enough to make it a techie-only solution. =A0But looking through =
the
> manual
>
> http://www.cainetworks.com/manuals/webcontrol/WebControlUserGuide2-03...
>
> gives me at least a little hope that this unit may be simple enough that
> with a little advice, a fairly low-tech user could implement a simple sys=
tem
> that could, for example, send them an email if their freezer or refrigera=
tor
> temperature rises out of the food safety zone. =A0Ironically, that's why =
I
> ordered the board (my fridge tripped the GFCI) but once I read the manual
> and the specs, I realized it would probably make a good and cheap whole
> house power monitor.
>
> Previously, devices like this cost close to $200, so to my mind it's a gr=
eat
> bargain.
>
> The part that I haven't quite figured out about whole house power monitor=
ing
> is this: =A0What's the best way to notify residents that the house is bur=
ning
> kilowatts without being so =A0intrusive that they'll just shut it off? =
=A0There
> has to be some sort of override, too, because there will be some days in =
the
> dead of a very cold winter that the consumption will peak.
>
> --
> Bobby G.


I ordered one to do remote power-up / boot-up of other computers in
the home.  Computers that I occasionally need to get to over the
Internet (to copy files from work etc) but dont want to leave running
all day (for network and power reasons).

Still unsure about how to do this, will probably have to wire a relay
to the actual on/off switch on the computer and have this little guy
trigger a remote boot by paralleling said relay across the existing
power button.  Once the remoter computer is powered and booted, I can
use Windows remote desktop services to do a normal shutown when I'm
done.

I dont mind leaving this little guy "online" all the time but dont
want to leave my large home computers online all the time.

Keyboard/Video/Mouse (KVM) switches with built in remote IP boot
capabilities run about $2000, so this might be a great solution if it
works.

Might also use it to remotely power up/down a NAS hard drive array I
have plugged into my net switch at home.