CBUS Honeywell Vaillant

[ARNiTECT]

Hi all,

I am an architect currently working on a complete house refurbishment and extension, we don't have a building services consultant, but we do have good electrical contractors and mechanical contractors.

The electrical contractors have proposed smart lighting with the CBUS system. I had originally proposed Lutron, but I am not familiar with either.

The mechanical contractors have proposed 8 heating zones with a Honeywell system with a Vaillant Boiler and Megaflow cylinder. I had originally proposed Vaillant's eBus, but again I have no experience with either.

Basically, I'm looking for comments on these proposals for me to discuss with the contractors.

Any help is much appreciate!

[chris_j_hunter]

Hi -

Maybe your question is a bit too open to generate much of a response, but there's plenty of info' in the various forums here - but you'll need to invest some time !

This might get you started (including its links) :

http://www.wordpress-1219309-4387497.cloudwaysapps.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2885

http://www.wordpress-1219309-4387497.cloudwaysapps.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2885&page=2

be sure to take a look at the installation gallery !

and maybe these, too (ditto) :

http://www.wordpress-1219309-4387497.cloudwaysapps.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2866

http://www.wordpress-1219309-4387497.cloudwaysapps.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=3045

[JonS]

TBH I'd start with asking your client what they want, technology is always the wrong place to start.
There are great individual heating, lighting, security etc solutions but things get more interesting if you want these to be integrated and controlable via a secure common interface. It gets more interesting when streaming media around the home gets factored in.
Currently there are no international standards for lighting/heating control, no de facto standards, mainly islands of propriatory solutions, although Idratek and KNX cover more than most. Hence there are rich pickings for smart-home integrators who play in the foot-ballers homes market where amazing levels of "smarts" are possible. Much is doable with compromise and effort, I've written a few posts on design on my blog.

[chris_j_hunter]

asking what they want could be fine ...

OTOH they might not know what's possible, and/or might limit what they ask-for in the light of what they imagine ...

hmm, not easy ...

[ARNiTECT]

Thanks for your responses, I have done a lot more research and there are many ways of achieving similar results.

Fortunately we are the client, architect and the main contractor. Our development company refurbishes existing properties and builds new. This is a speculative house under construction with first-fix end of October.

Our primary needs for the lighting:
- Dimable ceiling lights and table lamps, with preset moods, control lights elsewhere in house etc (reading about DALI)
- Balance with ambient light to reduce usage
- possible cost saving over multiple dimmer switches
- monitor usage

Heating:
- Control 9 zones including underfloor heating and radiators
- Balance with external temperature to reduce usage
- monitor usage

Audio:
- Im not a fan of built in audio, we will setup simple Squeezebox devices

Alarm:
- Externally monitored ADT/Banhams wired system for security & fire

Other:
- Aerial/Cable/CAT-6/telephone/speakercable/hdmi built-in around the house
- central services cupboard for electrical equipment
- central utility room for boiler, cylinder, manifold etc.
- possibly remotely controlled power sockets

We are comparing costs to standard mechanical and electrical and looking at the value of spending on centrally controlled services. Value in terms of improving the building's effeciency and flexibility in use.

I would like to keep to CBUS as that is what our electrician knows. But as my original post, it needs to work well with our boiler, if not I stick to our mechanical contractor's proposals of a second Honeywell (or ebus) system.

I'll carry on my research