home automation Thread Matter range 10cm AAC block walls

[gamb00ler]

I've been reading as much as I can about the new home automation connectivity standards of Thread and Matter.

 

Anyone have first hand experience using a Thread network in a house with 10cm AAC block walls?

I'm afraid I would need several Thread routers to cover the entire single storey house, garage and potentially to the front gate as well.

 

I would like to see some of the switches/plugs so I can really get a good idea how much effort will be required to fit them into the small electrical boxes used in our house.

I don't see any Sonoff vendor in CM only in BKK.  Any other manufacturers have a presence in Thailand?

[sirineou]

Not sure what the size off the AAC has to do with anything .I have a cavity wall with double 7.5cm AAC block , A single WiFi router upstairs covers both the upstairs , downstairs and most of the outside to the gate.

In fact my wife's sister uses our internet in her house next door. 

My Sonoff smart switches fit the standard boxes  and I have smart plugs in my koi pond to operate filters , water fountain echo dots upstairs and downstairs  etc.

You can also get smart plugs that plug right into your existing outlets. All Alexa and voice command enabled. 

I brought many of my stuff from the US,  but you can get everything you need at Lazada  or Shopee. 

 

[gamb00ler]

@sirineou, you have 2 7.5cm AAC layers for your internal walls?

Our house's internal walls are a single layer 10cm thick plus render and our WiFi is rather weak after passing through 2 walls.

 

A Thread network uses the same frequency of 2.4Ghz as normal LAN but is described as a low power mesh network.  Thread devices don't use the normal 2.4Ghz network, only the Thread network.  A Thread router is required to function as a bridge between the Thread mesh network and the normal WiFi or ethernet LAN.

 

Initially I won't have so many Thread devices on my mesh so range between devices may be an issue.

[sirineou]

2 minutes ago, gamb00ler said:

sirineou, you have 2 7.5cm AAC layers for your internal walls?

No external , internal are single 7.5 

worst case if you have issues you use some repeaters. 

As I said , Double 7.5 on external walls, concrete floor between upstairs and downstairs and I have no issue. Ofthe I walk around  downstairs making a WiFi  video FB call  and have walked outside in the street to show things to family back home with no loss of signal. My internet provider is 3bb.

I don't know about all these technical terms, I simply hooked everything up, pair them with my wifi and was good to go. 

 

[recom273]

Why would you move to Matter or Thread at this early stage, I dont think there is the hardware support at the moment. I think there are some stand alone relays - but haven't seen light switches.

 

Retrofitting a Thai house is a nightmare, boxes don't follow the sizes of the smart devices but its possible with collars or surrounds.

 

I have used and will continue to use zigbee in my house without any major issues, you just need a device that has constant power to extend the range, like a wifi plug. I'm thinking this will have a similar range to the new arrivals, I will use wifi for longer reaches.

 

Why not try sonoff devices first? work out if they achieve the goals. The first issue I faced was overloading my ISP supplied router.

[gamb00ler]

3 hours ago, recom273 said:

Why would you move to Matter or Thread at this early stage, I dont think there is the hardware support at the moment. I think there are some stand alone relays - but haven't seen light switches.

 

Retrofitting a Thai house is a nightmare, boxes don't follow the sizes of the smart devices but its possible with collars or surrounds.

 

I have used and will continue to use zigbee in my house without any major issues, you just need a device that has constant power to extend the range, like a wifi plug. I'm thinking this will have a similar range to the new arrivals, I will use wifi for longer reaches.

 

Why not try sonoff devices first? work out if they achieve the goals. The first issue I faced was overloading my ISP supplied router.

Matter is preferred because it hopefully makes it easier to integrate devices from different manufacturers.  Thread has the advantage of using IPV6 so that communication is more direct and less complicated than other methods.

 

I know at this point there is less selection of devices supporting those new standards, but I am patient.  It shouldn't be too long before more manufacturers get on board.

 

I'm willing to go through the hassle of retrofitting a few switches/plugs.  Our house is new and has neutral available at every switch/plug.

 

My first actual device will probably be a Sonoff MINIR4M to convert existing switch from dumb to smart.

 

https://sonoff.tech/product/diy-smart-switches/minir4m/