Archive for the 'Climate Control' Category

DIY: Let your plants talk via Twitter

Botanicalls Twitter

If you continuously forget to watering your plants Botanicalls Twitter is what you actually need. Using a simple electric parts and a bit knack you’ll get an intelligent system which will measure moisture level and notify you via Twitter (in case of connecting the system to the Internet) about necessity of watering. That’s really cool, it’s it? But maybe that irrigation system would be more useful because you need just put the water into tank time by time. The rest will be done automatically.

Automated Bath Filling System

Automated Bath Filling System

Unique Automation announced its new product - automated bath filling system Bath-O-Matic. It automatically lowers the motorized plug, fills up the bathtub to a predetermined temperature and depth, and can even add bubble bath and fragrances to the water. Additionally, the Bath-O-Matic auto adjusts depending on pressure, temperature, and never overflows. It can be integrated with AMX, Crestron or any other home automation system via RS232 or Ethernet(?) port.

Unique Automation offers two models of Bath-O-Matic: Basic - with a controller, motorized waste kit and basic UI and Eco Ultimate - with an eco controller, motorized waste kit with filler, basic UI, in-line heater and eight-way oil dispenser.

People who likes taking a bath can get Bath-O-Matic for around £4000.

[via CePro and AutomatedHome]

A New Generation of Energy Efficient Thermostats

HAI Thermostat

HAI (Home Automation, Inc.) has been introduced its new energy efficient line of its thermostats - Omnistat2 at the CES2008 last January. It was named an Innovations 2008 Design and Engineering Award honoree in the Home Appliances product category by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA). The Omnistat RC-1000 supports conventional and heat pump systems, and dual fuel with 2nd stage auxiliary heat. The Omnistat RC-2000 has all of the features of the 1000 but adds humidity control and supports 2 stage conventional and 2 stage heat pump with 3rd stage auxiliary heat systems.

The Omnistat2 is a 7-day programmable communicating thermostat designed to precisely control the temperature and humidity within the home. It can “learns” a home’s heating and cooling patterns and adjusts control to maximize both the HVAC system’s efficiency and the occupants’ comfort.

The Omnistat2 is able to communicate with HAI and most home control systems (it’s good if you prefer different smarthome software) for coordination of energy savings with daily activities, such as “Home”, “Away”, or “Vacation”. It can be controlled from within the house or remotely through the telephone or Internet through HAI’s control systems and accessories. Additionally it can communicate with utility metering systems to allow for real time energy cost and usage to be displayed directly on the thermostat. So, homeowners can visualize and understand their consumption, and to be able to reduce it whenever possible.

The first two models in the Omnistat2 line, the RC-1000 and RC-2000 will be shipping in the second quarter of 2008. The price is not tagged yet.

[via Electronic House]

Add INSTEON compatibility to your thermostat

INSTEON Thermostat Adapter

INSTEON Thermostat Adapter offers a simple and efficient way to add your Totaline / Venstar thermostat into your INSTEON network. It’s plugged into the jack on the bottom the thermostat and should be linked to the INSTEON controller, using INSTEON’s simple Plug-n-Tap setup. After that you’ll able to control the temperature from the controller and receive back its current value.

The INSTEON Thermostat Adapter doesn’t require battery. It’s powered by the thermostat. Just note that the INSTEON Thermostat Adapter is not compatible with X10.

The INSTEON Thermostat Adapter is expected to be available from 15/02/2008 at price $99.99.

Control Your Water Heater or A/C with INSTEON/X10

EZSwitch30 30A INSTEON X10 Controller

EZSwitch30 30A INSTEON X10 Controller allows to control your air conditions or water heater using X10 or INSTEON commands. The module has built-in memory to trigger events on the outputs to last for 1 to 255 minutes. But the most interesting way is to control the EZSwitch30 using special software such LinuxMCE (currently for X10 only). In case of fault the control system it’s possible to operate with device by pressing the set button on the side of the EZSwitch30.

The EZSwitch30 is available at price $114.99.

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