Automating
your Garage Door
I recently
moved out into the country and am having to learn a whole new way of
life. For instance, I'm learning an entirely new sense of
dread when it comes to garbage night since I now have a 400' long
driveway.
I'm also
discovering what it's like to have numerous critters making themselves
at home in my backyard -
- and in
my garage.
One
morning I woke up especially early to hear something (correction
- I mean some THING) clawing at the door which leads to my
garage. To make a long story short, I had left the garage
door open overnight and a racoon was all over my stuff. It
even pottied on top of my 2002 Trans Am.
Here's how
to make sure that doesn't happen to you (or me - again)!
Have that
garage door close by itself at night. At least have it give
you some kind of reminder that it's open. Let me give you a
couple of ways to deal with this problem:
The
simplest way is to install a wireless
garage door sensor . At about 30 bucks,
it's quick
and easy. This little thingie beeps anytime the garage door
is left open; and it also flashes a light to notify you. It
won't automatically close
the door for you, but it will at least give you some kind of alert.
The
second way is a little more involved, but will give you
significantly more control. You'll need an X10
Universal Module , an X10
Powerflash Module , and some kind of intelligent
X10
controller (i.e. PC based software such as Homeseer
or Stargate
Lite).
First, you
need to understand that when you press the button to open or close your
garage door, you're simply operating a momentary contact-closure
that completes a circuit. The voltage triggers your opener to
do its thing. The Universal Module does the same thing, but
is based on X10 signals rather than your finger presses.
You'll
need to connect a 2-conductor wire in parallel
with your garage door opener button. Probably the neatest
place to splice into the existing wiring is right at the opener (I'd
suggest you unplug your opener first).
The other end of the 2-conductor connects to the terminals
on the Universal Module. Set the X10 address on the module
(for this illustration B-1) and you can
open/close the garage door via X10!
Oh - and
make sure you set the Powerflash for MOMENTARY
contact-closure!
Now you
need a way to know whether your door is open or closed.
Here's where the Powerflash Module comes into play. You first
of all need a normally-closed security sensor on your garage
door (this isn't shown
in the diagram above).
If you already have a security system that monitors
your garage door, you're set. Just connect the Powerflash to
the sensor wiring (in series).
Otherwise,
you'll need to install the sensor and run the wiring to the terminals
on the Powerflash. Put the Powerflash in mode 3, input B, and
set its address to something other than the Universal Module (let's say
D-1).
Now you
need to program your controller (it needs to be capable of IF/THEN
logic). Let's say you want your garage door to automatically
close at dark. It would read something like this:
IF it's dark
AND
IF D-1 OFF (garage door open)
THEN B-1 ON (momentary
contact-closure to garage door)
Now
your garage door is set to automatically close every night.
No more racoon messes on your car!
IMPORTANT!
Most newer garage doors have built-in
safety features like IR beams to prevent closing doors on
people/objects. Please make sure you use common sense in this
application. Garage doors that automatically close have the
potential of doing property damage or bodily harm.
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