Increase RF range (for remotes)

[clint]

Is there anything out there that will relay
RF signals from a remote?  My bedroom seems
to be a black hole sometimes, and my remote
that sits by my bed that I use to shut
everything down at  night (or to dim the
lights in our bedroom or hallway) seems to
work only if I tilt it slightly and point it
toward the floor and hold one arm up facing
west while chewing gum - it's really
ridiculous...  i've tried new batteries,
different remotes, all to no avail.  is there
anything out there that will rebroadcast the
signal or am I just SOL?

[billy]

Clint,

What model remote are you using?

[clint]

sorry, that would be important, huh?

I'm using the HR12A (two of them), as well as
the KR22A.  My CM15A is in the middle of my
house on the middle floor, and the remote is
never more than about 30 feet from it.  It
seems to work pretty much perfectly from
anywhere except my bedroom, which is
apparently an RF-signal black hole.  Was just
wondering if I added an RF-receiver (like a
TM751) to my system somewhere would help or
interfere, or if there was some other option
I hadn't thought of.

[dave w]

Clint

Try this

http://www.x10.com/automation/x10_sr731.htm

It will at least eliminate the gum
requirement.

[clint]

Holy crap, $65?  anyone have an old one they
want to get rid of!?!

Seriously, X10 does a wonderful job of
hooking you with the starter kit (mine was
$100 for "home automation with a camera")...
and since, I've put in probably $400 more
and it still basically sucks...

[X10 Pro]

Clint: Just adding a TM751 in your bedroom
might be your best bet. The repeater will
work, but is more expensive. If you just want
to be able to turn modules on and off (or
trigger a macro), the transceiver will do
just fine.

[clint]

that's good news, thanks.  So the transceiver
won't interfere with my existing system?  if
that's the case I may add one on every floor.

[X10 Pro]

If the RF doesn't transmit outside the
bedroom, then the single transceiver
shouldn't hurt anything. You can start to run
into trouble if you have multiple
transceivers that all receive the command --
then you can end up with multiple signals on
the powerline. That can mean either
collisions, or repeated commands. Repeated
commands can really mess up your dimming, or
can cause multiple triggers of macros.

[roger1818]

Clint:  The best bet for using the TM751
would be to put it on a house code not
transceived by the CM15A.  Remotes that are
in your bedroom should then be set to that
house code, and all other remotes set to
house codes used by the CM15A (macros can
be written to operate modules a different
housecode).  This will ensure that you will
never receive double commands if both the
TM751 and CM15A receive the RF command (not
a problem for turning modules on and off
but can cause problems when running macros
and pressing bright and dim buttons).

[clint]

Roger,

Good thinking..

one thing I did notice this weekend that
could have been a contributing factor is that
the laptop that runs my AHP was turned off
(power outage I believe), and I've read that
when the AHP USB module is disconnected for a
length of time the remote signal
effectiveness is greatly reduced, so I'm
checking that out now.. so far, it's working
better except for a single module in our
bedroom..  if all else fails, I'll get a TM751.

thanks!