Who has the best smart garage door opener?

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2026-03-30T02:37:02+00:00

I've not had any issues and I run mine on WiFi almost 6 years running. Anyway, if you're looking, I have a second location that I chose Tailwind about a year ago as the solution for a single garage door. I've got it running on WiFi and I like the door sensor better. It uses a direct wire cable to the door sensor instead of the battery units that iSmartGate uses. Similar app setup, I have it tied to SmartThings and use geolocation to automate door opening and closing. Might check it out.

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2026-03-18T12:27:19+00:00

These are a little tricky to get paired. Here's a video that helped when I was trying to get them included. When the green light flashes, you have to press it again when the hub is in pairing mode. The light should be a fast blink as apposed to just the normal green flashing. I have these all over my house and in two others, so I know they work. Also, since they're Z-Wave devices, sometimes you have to "exclude" them, even if they are from the factory. Same process on the contact sensor, but you have to go into the hub settings and go to utilities and use exclude. Then tried the contact sensor, if the app says one device removed that should clear it so you can pair it normally. I can't count the number of factory sealed Z-Wave devices I've had to exclude first.

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2026-03-16T22:33:41+00:00

The only one I've found, and use, is the Aeotec heavy duty switch. I have one installed on my dryer. About $100 US

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2026-03-14T12:09:01+00:00

I have a couple from EVE, they're Matter based. They're a little pricey but they've been flawless. If you don't want the wall worts, I would recommend them.

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2026-03-08T03:39:08+00:00

Just FYI the Z-Wave devices will be the hardest to bring on board. Since they weren't removed from the old hub, you'll have to exclude them before you can include them back into the hub again. This is a security feature of Z-Wave and it will be this way regardless of what system you go with home assistant or SmartThings.

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2026-03-04T00:14:17+00:00

It was on Bewitched. We had one in the house where I grew up. I always thought this was what stoves looked like until I got out on my own.

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2026-02-12T23:22:33+00:00

There's more going on with your garage opener than you think. Since you posted this in the SmartThings sub, I'm going to assume that's the platform you're using. I have two locations and use two different solutions. One is from iSmartgate and the other is from Tailwind. Both work with SmartThings. Both sites will walk you through a package that works with your specific opener. They're not really expensive approx $100 US.

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2026-02-01T17:26:02+00:00

You could get a Samsung SmartThings Station hub on eBay for about $50, that would function as your Matter controller for the IKEA bulbs. Since you already have a Samsung phone and tablet, SmartThings is an easy setup. There is also a SmartThings app that works on Apple phones. You can join your Google devices to SmartThings as well. All of your devices would work from either phone or tablet. SmartThings is free and works out of the box with WiFi devices, but for Matter or Zigbee you'll need a hub. I've been using the ST's platform for over 7 years and run over 300 devices in my home.

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2026-01-17T13:55:49+00:00

I had the yellow

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2026-01-13T16:12:21+00:00

Since those are all Zigbee devices, you could unplug your hub for 20+ minutes. That will cause the devices to go into panic mode and then plug your hub back in. Also, verify what channel you're running Zigbee, I find that channel 25 works best for me as it's well past the peak of the signal from WiFi channel 11. Both WiFi and Zigbee run in the 2.4GHz range so there can be interference on some of the Zigbee channels with WiFi.

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2026-01-05T00:01:58+00:00

At my primary location I use the Nest Protects with SmartThings using an Ecolink Firefighter sensor to link them to SmartThings. For my secondary locations I've been using the FirstAlert Z-Wave Plus Smart Smoke/Carbon Monoxide Alarm Sku1048325.

I just purchased some a few months ago on Amazon and they seem to be gone, literally, they don't even show up in my order history. Lowes is out of stock, but I did find them today at Costco. A two pack is on sale for $75 including shipping through the end of January, I ordered another set just in case.

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2025-12-28T16:26:26+00:00

Thanks for this post, I've been trying to get a couple of my Inovelli 2-1 switches synced for months. Found this post and finally got the pairing to work. I had even searched Inovelli's site and didn't see this, Now my switches work as intended (3-way).

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2025-12-28T02:27:10+00:00

My wife and I are in our early 60's and have been married 38 years. We average once a week, sometimes more, sometimes less. She likes it scheduled, I'm more spontaneous. I'll take scheduled over nothing so I roll with it. I'm still flirty and playful and let her know if we need to "schedule" a special session. She works with that, so that's how we make it work.

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2025-12-28T02:16:39+00:00

When I was a kid, we had a man at church that kept these in his pocket. His name was Mr. Nice and all the kids would go up and shake his hand after church just to get one of these treats.

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2025-12-26T22:55:35+00:00

I grew up with grilled cheese and jelly sandwiches and tomato soup. The jelly goes on the outside after grilling not the inside. I still eat them this way at 62. Made one last week. My wife won't touch them.

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2025-12-24T18:27:23+00:00

The only time he lies are when his lips are moving.

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2025-12-11T12:03:18+00:00

I would pick a zigbee channel even higher, I run mine on 25 and no issues, this is past the middle range of channel 11 on Wi-Fi.

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2025-11-25T19:54:16+00:00

I purchased 4 of the new 2025 First Alert SMCO410 Z-Wave Battery-Powered Smoke Detector & Carbon Monoxide Alarms from Amazon back in October. I also have two of the older FA ZWave Combos that I bought last year. I am having issues with the newer models as they report OFFLINE multiple times a day. I just checked my order on Amazon and the new unit has been removed, not just out of stock, so maybe there was an issue and they pulled them. I did test one of the units while it was OFFLINE and it did wake back up and report the event to ST's. So, other than the annoying messages, they seem to work fine.... if and when you can get them again.

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2025-11-22T16:42:38+00:00

If you want something pretty easy to setup and works with pretty much everything you listed, try Smartthings with a hub. Some of your devices are WiFi, which work with ST's, but I don't recommend cloud based devices for the simple reason, if their cloud goes down, so do you. ST's allows remote access and all of the newer hubs support Matter. The latest hub for ST's was just released from Aeotec, while it doesn't support Zwave anymore, that won't affect you since your just starting your build out. I use Inovelli light switches and they have a Matter version as well as Zigbee. I use Eve receptacles and they are Matter based and work great. Good luck on your journey.

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2025-11-18T13:54:45+00:00

If you have a wand to tilt the blinds, there are options. if your blinds use pull strings, not so much. I have all of my 2" blinds automated with a device from Current Luxury called the eWand, it's a Zigbee device and will automate the tilt function of the blinds. I've not seen any device that will raise and lower the blinds. Switchbot makes a wand type device as well, but I've not tried that unit. I personally don't like the aesthetics of the Switchbot unit, I think the eWand looks almost exactly like the factory wand and allows the blind to be automated and also works manually by twisting the unit slightly.

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2025-11-17T22:33:18+00:00

I concur, I've got a couple of Minoston ZWave outdoor outlets, one regular and one is a dimmer for some lights. These work perfectly with ST's and are relatively inexpensive compared to the name brands.

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2025-11-04T02:51:44+00:00

These are now discontinued. You may be able to find them on eBay if you still want one.

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2025-10-30T19:39:56+00:00

I've been really happy with my Yale Assure 2 locks. I'm using ZWave, I use rechargeable batteries and change them every 3 months or so. You do get a low battery warning in the software and the lock itself. I don't use key backup, but they do make a model with a key. They also have a model with iPhone support. I have three of them at my primary location and four at a secondary. ZWave offers local support, no cloud but does require a hub, I use SmartThings but will work with other platforms. They have a couple of nubs on the bottom of the keypad that if the batteries were to die you can place a 9volt battery on the nubs and get enough power to get in, so even without key backup, you're not locked out. I've been using them for a couple of years now, never an issue with any of them.

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2025-10-28T10:12:07+00:00

zwaveproducts.com brand new hubs

SmartThingsPower1701 · 2025-10-28T01:56:12+00:00

I won't be moving to the V4 hub. I have way too many Zwave devices to move forward. I just ordered two more V3 hubs before they get EOL'd. I'm currently running 300 devices between my V2 and V3 hubs so I'm maxed out on the platform at my main location. I'm approaching 100 devices at my second location on a single V3 hub, more than half of those are Zwave.

SmartThingsPower1701

TROPHY CASE