Designing and Installing Devicebook Appliances

Introduction

This section is about designing Devicebook Appliances for a smart home, and subsequently installing devices. 

To learn about using Devicebook Appliances, see Using Devicebook Appliances

Designing Appliances

Appliances can make use of any number and combination of Switches, Outlets, and Plugs. A variety of all of these types of devices are available in the Showroom.

Use smart Switches to replace existing switches to connect built-in fixture appliances to the smart home, such as ceiling fans.

Use smart Outlets and/or Plugs to replace existing outlets (or install new ones) to connect plug-in appliances such as space heaters, portable fans, toaster ovens, etc. to Devicebook.

Device Choices

The difference in usage between Switches, Plugs and Outlets is already explained above.

Special consideration should be taken into account when installing devices for outdoor or high-load use. The environmental rating, maximum current, and maximum load for all devices are listed in the detail page for all devices in Showroom.

In general, we recommend using Wi-Fi Switches, Plugs and Outlets (as hard-wired and PoE devices are not currently available). Z-Wave in particular is not recommended because the number of Z-Wave devices that are required for a typical home for this application will result in frequent Z-wave network bandwidth issues.

See the Device Selection Guide for more information about the different communication protocols and recommendations on specific device models. 

Other Design Considerations

Devicebook Appliances is open-ended. Talk to your client about appliances and traditional (non-smart) devices around their home that they power on and off to use regularly -- those are the kinds of devices that work best with Devicebook. Consider the following example use cases:

- Automatically turning off space heaters, toaster ovens, or blow driers automatically to save energy and avoid dangerous situations

- Automatically turning off bathroom fans after a set period of time.

- Remotely turn on electric fireplaces or pool pumps.

Installing Devicebook Appliances

Install smart Switches and Outlets following the manufacturer's instructions. Plugs can be plugged in to any existing outlet in the home. All such devices are generally wireless, so take care to reduce the number of obstacles between the devices and the Devicebook Hub (or the nearest repeater, in the case of Z-Wave). Metal enclosures and objects in particular can significantly reduce wireless communication quality.

Setting Up & Testing Appliances

Use House Check to set up all the devices in the home.

To verify that the appliances solution has been installed properly, use the Devicebook App to control each included device in the home individually. See the Using Appliances article to learn more about using the Appliances Solution.