X10 Community Forum

🔌General Home Automation => Automating Your House => Topic started by: tjlwolf on April 17, 2008, 11:36:15 PM

Title: Front door setups?
Post by: tjlwolf on April 17, 2008, 11:36:15 PM
Looking for an idea at the front door. Maybe a sensor that lights a lamp when someone walks on to the front porch? Eliminate the doorbell!
   Anybody have a camera setup so a shot of who is at your front door appears on the TV activated my motion?

  Just lookin for ideas..
Title: Re: Front door setups?
Post by: Puck on April 18, 2008, 12:01:31 AM
I have both, a light comes on (if night) plus a camera gets activated as someone approaches my front door. I modulate & transmit the camera video to all TVs where I can switch to that channel and see who is there. I also use BVC to listen for the camera's address and announce that it just activated.

I wouldn't eliminate my doorbell; I don't feel X10 is 100% reliable enough for that. ;)
Title: Re: Front door setups?
Post by: JimC on April 18, 2008, 06:11:41 AM
I also have a light and camera turn on when there is motion at the front door. I also use the Video commander to record the video. The only problem that I have is that we have a lot of wild life ( Rabbits, chipmunks....) so I get a lot of false trips.  :(
Title: Re: Front door setups?
Post by: Walt2 on April 18, 2008, 07:26:38 AM

I wouldn't eliminate my doorbell; I don't feel X10 is 100% reliable enough for that. ;)


I have found that sidewalks and dark painted front door cause a LOT of false triggers from X10's motion detectors.   If I ran to the front door, expecting a person to actually be there, I would be disappointed quite often.

For me, the door bell confirms that someone is actually there.
Title: Re: Front door setups?
Post by: Bill H on April 18, 2008, 08:13:35 AM
I sense the doorbell to activate lights and camera. Lots more reliable than an outside sensor and, since the visitor is (usually) looking at the doorbell button (or in its direction), I get a good camera shot of his face.
Title: Re: Front door setups?
Post by: Alan V on April 18, 2008, 01:41:32 PM
I sense the doorbell to activate lights and camera. Lots more reliable than an outside sensor and, since the visitor is (usually) looking at the doorbell button (or in its direction), I get a good camera shot of his face.

That's a good idea.  Except that some undesirable people might come up to the door and not ring the doorbell.  Those are the people that I would really like to record a picture of.
Title: Re: Front door setups?
Post by: LittleLarry on August 29, 2008, 04:44:31 AM

That's a good idea.  Except that some undesirable people might come up to the door and not ring the doorbell.  Those are the people that I would really like to record a picture of.


That reminds me of a line from a great funny movie called The Vagrant:

"You know...to keep out any...undesirables."

Also, if you are into home automation, you should see this movie anyway. They have this crazy\funny home automation in the movie where the main character has a huge fence around the entire yard, stadium lighting that is always on, and music that plays all the time in the background to keep out any undesirables. It's pretty funny if you like dark humor.

Here is the clip to my favorite scene. Makes me laugh everytime:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1DoI74Nr46o

He's not....home alone...

http://www.moviegoods.com/movie_poster/vagrant_the_1992.htm