X10 vs Insteon or alternatives

Volfandt · Jan 20, 2006

I'd guess these somethng in your house thats interfereing with the X10 cam signal.
The wireless X10 cams operate on "line of site" with there recievers and use the same freq as most cordless phones and other residentual devices and if one of these devices are in the line of site path, they can cause mucho interference. A microwave oven will also. If you have two or more you've got to make sure that they are useing a different channel or they'll nterfere with each other.
Try moveing them around to see if they work better.

I've been useing a couple X10 cams to monitor a couple blind spots outside my home, one points down my driveway and the other out behind my shop. Both are between 75' to 90' away from their recievers and they've been working fine for over 5 yrs.
I patch the audio/video into a 3 channel modulator which is then patched into my cable TV network. I can monitor either cam from any TV by selecting which channel they are modulated on. I use a driveway senor to detect when someone drives down my driveway and when it goes off I simply tune to channel 93 to see who's there.

I also patch the driveway video into my PC via a video capture card and I use the free X10 XRAY software to record 20 sequential snapshots every so often for download to my email and to update my personal website. I use another software app to ftp the snapshots to the website.

All in all the X10 cams have worked fine for me and they've been staying on 24/7 for over 5 continuos yrs now. Only problem I've had with this setup is when the Mrs gets on the PC and she closes one or both apps down /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
My webpage

PineRidge · Jan 20, 2006

Quite frankly I'm surprised. We have a high voltage tower on our property with hundreds of thousands of volts moving across the property and our X-10 system works without a hitch hitch hitch hitch hitch hitch /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

Volfandt · Jan 21, 2006

It's not so much the voltage, it's the frequency that causes the interference. There is a major transmission line running about 1/4 mile from me and there are houses as close to 100' of the outer line and we don't have any problems from it either other than hearing poping and crackling when it's wet /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

I don't know if they maintain 60 cycles all the way through their grid or if'n the substations regulate the AC to 60hz but I could see where there wouldn't be much problem if the high voltage was maintained at 60hz all though the grid.

Back when my daughter was home, I could tell when she was on the cordless phone outside because my driveway cam would distort. She'd go outside to talk to get away from her eavesdropping mammasan. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
The microwave oven just about shuts it down when operating.
On the flip side, the signal travels approx 90' though two walls and the cam sits outside under an eave and it works fine. It's the older X10 cam and it's audio is crystal clear. I purchased a newer cam a couple yrs ago, it has a different part#, and there is a slight hum on it's audio. I had them replace it and the replacement does the same. It has a different part # and it is one of their instant on models. I don't recall the part #'s but I recall isolateing the 60hz hum to the cam and not it's P/S.

You ever though about bending a railroad tie into a horseshoe and wrapping beau-coup copper wireing around it and buring it close to the transmission line? I've heard tell such a setup makes a great inducer of AC electric /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Volfandt

5030tinkerer · Jan 21, 2006

I'm not sure what I am doing wrong, then. I have tried perhaps five different X10 cameras across two different orders at two different sites. In all cases, the video hardly ever there (nothing but a blue screen), and switching between cams didn't work. I tried all of the available channels. No dice. Ideas?

bebster · Jan 21, 2006

Thanks for the tip on the Homeseer forum. Looks like it has some experience and leading edge users. I tried X10 a few years ago, and it worked - sort of. But not always. So I couldn't really trust it, and it became more of a hobby. Not having the time to troubleshoot it like it needed, and then moving, all the components are in a drawer. But with a new house and rough wiring going in soon, I decided to revisit it.

bebster · Jan 21, 2006

The screw in flourescent bulbs have become the standard in our house -- ever since Oprah endorsed them! Now there's no going back. We even have them at the job site on a work light string (and call them "Oprah bulbs"). I assume that the issue is dimming them, but that they can be turned on and off. Is that what you found?

PineRidge · Jan 22, 2006

<font color="blue"> You ever though about bending a railroad tie into a horseshoe and wrapping beau-coup copper wireing around it and buring it close to the transmission line? I've heard tell such a setup makes a great inducer of AC electric

</font>

Don't know about that but can tell you that if I take an 8' fluorescent tube and hold it from one end straight up under the transmission lines it will fluoresce, it really looks a bit intimidating after sunset.

Gadgetnut · Jan 24, 2006

Bebster, I have used X-10 for years and have spent a lot of time chasing the reliability issues. I moved recently and spent some time researching new protocols. I ended up replacing all the swtiches in the house with Insteon switches about two months ago. I like how they work locally, and the remote control functionality seems to work flawlessly-- I haven't had any anomalies or reception problems-- the commands seem to go through perfectly every time. I like Insteon, and with Smarthome's new Icon line, they also became more affordable. --wheeler

MossRoad · Jan 24, 2006

Finally someone with some Insteon products.....

Do they "feel" nicer than the X10 stuff? You know what I mean? Are they a bit more elegant than stamped plastic? While I like the price of the X10 stuff, and I realize that you get what you pay for and am fine with that, I would like some more classy stuff in our next house and re-assign the X10 stuff to the basement, garage and outbuilding duties.

MossRoad · Jan 24, 2006

<font color="blue"> Now we see whose got the $$$$$$$$$!!!!!</font>

Hahahaha!! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

X10 stuff is cheap. Especially if you buy it on sale. I think I got our starter kit for $25.00 that had a wall switch, lamp module, remote control and CM11A controller probably over 10 years ago. Radio Shack used to sell the stuff back before X10 even had a website. So did True Value Hardware under the Stanely brand, I believe.

They frequently run 3 for one sales on modules and switches, so that is when I buy them.

The only thing of theirs that I had trouble with was the VCR commander. It is a pain in the brain to get working until you decipher the directions. Then, even it works as advertisied(hence, my bird pooping on the fence story in the security camers thread). Also, the battery powered eagle eye motion detectors work, but eat batteries every couple months. They can be a pain to change all the time so opt for hardwired motion sensing if possible.