And More Upgrades

Video Doorbell Inside Monitor

Last week I installed the video intercom doorbell I purchased in 2013.  Back in November or so I asked  electricians how much it would cost for them to install the outdoor part.  After they estimated $180, I decided to do it myself.  This turned out to be a lot of work, despite only requiring 4 holes in the exterior Hardie Panel wall.  I started working on it during the week, doing a little bit each day before going to work.  On the first day, I figured out the drill bits required for pilot holes and drilled a set of holes.  But when I tried to install the video module, it wouldn't fit in the space available between trim pieces.  So I had to patch the first two holes, and then I was confronted with the issue of finding suitable caulk.  Most of the large number of tubes of caulk (case and a half) have actually been used by now.  The tube of caulk in the gun was useless.  Finally I found the very first tube of caulk I bought in 2011 which had never been used because of the almond color.  But that was better than white for patching holes in my taupe siding.  I also decided on a slightly lower height.  The specifications called for 61 inches high, but I couldn't figure whether that meant 61 inches from the threshold or 61 inches from outside the door, which is 5 inches lower.  The final position splits the difference.

I finished the outdoor installation, and then did the indoor unit installation too, on Friday afternoon, which was a holiday at work.  For now I've chosen the "Meet the Jetsons" ring tone, which rings outdoors and inside.  Everyone who rings it loves it.  I added a label to the doorbell button "Door Bell" so people know at once what it is.

On Friday evening I reworked a pile of audio components in the living room so as to include the new digital converter (now on the bottom) and a new tuner (on the top) so I have two FM tuners accessible through my whole house audio system.  The large digital converter had been patiently waiting in the living room for installation for almost 4 weeks.  I moved the new 20 port ethernet switch into it's permanent location under the kitchen table, and plugged it into AC power, but have not started transferring ethernet connections to it yet.  (The new ethernet cables I needed for that just arrived on Tuesday.)

New equipment pile with two tuners

On Saturday I mowed the entire back yard, unstaked the oak tree, and a helped a friend re-install the solar lights on the trees by the back fence.  She had broken the light cord last October, and I repaired the cord a few weeks later, but it took months to get together to re-install the lights.  Meanwhile the lights had been sitting patiently on the patio, actually working fine in that location.

Before Mowing

On Sunday I had a wonderful party and showed off the back yard to some new guests.

[pictures not taken after mowing yet]

On Tudsday electricians John Jones and TJ installed a new motion detector light on the north side of the house.  The solar powered motion light I installed there a few years ago has stopped working (possible dead bulb or dead battery) and I could have fixed it, but it never had as much light or as much persistence as I would have liked, and when John Jones gave me a surprisingly reasonable estimate for a new AC powered light there last year, I decided I would eventually do that.

The metal cased Heath/Zenith motion light was on solid all Tuesday night, possibly set off by moving trees (it was very windy) or heat from the AC compressor.  I checked the switches and they had been set correctly.  On Wednesday afternoon I readjusted the motion sensor downward (for smaller range) and turned sensitivity to minimum.  I figured I would first try the opposite extreme from the maximum sensitivity the electricians had set.  I worried that because of the AC it would never work right, so I might have to make it an all night light instead of a motion light, and then also get expensive LED bulbs because otherwise the 200W power consumption (from halogen bulbs) would be excessive.  I started looking at the possible Philips and Sylvania bulbs I might use.   Well it seems that minimum sensitivity works just as I would like it to do, from testing on Wednesday night.  No matter how I approach the side of the house from the front, the light turns on.  And yet, tonight anyway, it does not seem to be triggered by AC or moving trees (though it isn't windy and the AC hasn't been running much).

The electricians also installed two new Insteon wall switches, first for the kitchen light dimmer (which had been an X10 controlled dimmer, but because of location it cannot be controlled from my ISY controller which nominally does X10, but X10 can't cross circuits very well in a modern home).  I haven't programmed the new switch yet, but it linked perfectly to my ISY controller.

I also replaced the X10 Keypad in the computer room with an Insteon equivalent.  So now everything in my home has been changed from X10 control to Insteon, which works much better and has better features too.