TIL a $40 signal booster saved a whole home automation integration

I was setting up a smart lock and lights for a customer, and the Z-Wave hub in the basement kept dropping the lock signal from the front door. Almost called it and told them it wouldn't work. Grabbed a basic Aeotec repeater on a whim, plugged it in halfway up the stairs, and bam, instant solid connection. Felt like a genius for such a cheap fix. Anyone else have a go-to piece of cheap gear that's saved your butt?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_kevin1mo ago

Ever have those days where a simple plug just saves the whole job? I had a similar thing with a wifi extender for a smart thermostat install. The old house had plaster walls that killed the signal between the thermostat and the router. Was ready to start running cables, but a $30 extender plugged into an outlet in the hallway made the connection rock solid. It's crazy how often the cheapest part of the kit is the one that makes everything else work.

violatorres1mo ago

What brand extender worked for you?

the_evan27d ago

oh man, real quick though - that's not exactly a repeater, it's more of a signal extender or range extender lol. I mean yeah it does the same job of boosting the signal but they're technically different things. A repeater actually retransmits the signal while an extender just boosts what's already there. Not trying to be that guy but it tripped me up when I first started messing with Z-Wave gear. Either way though, for forty bucks that thing probably saved you from having to run a bunch of ugly cable or move the whole hub setup.