Your Blinds Smart NOW | SmartThings, Amazon Alexa, iBlinds (2021)

[@dankelley9361]

Justin, excellent demonstration on setting up iblinds with SmartThings & Alexa. Now if it could raise & lower the blinds, I’d be in heaven. I have panels that I close & open over a sliding glass door that uses a similar shaft arrangement as your blinds. I wonder if I run the motor longer so that it would open & close them, that would be very cool!

[@SimplySmart123]

Thank you! It would have to be a very strong motor to lift the blinds. I have never seen one but like you said it would be very cool.

[@beatlesunderwoood]

Can you raise the blinds, or does it only adjust the slats?

[@SimplySmart123]

No it will just adjust the tilt. I have not seen any that actually can raise the blinds because it could get very heavy and it would be quite a strong motor.

[@BudsSmartHome]

Nice job Justin. These look very cool. I may need to invest in one of these for my kitchen sink window. Look like the housing channel that holds the battery and motor is fairly large. With which brand of louvered blinds is iBlinds compatible?

[@SimplySmart123]

They should be compatible with most blinds. Mine are 2 inch blinds. So I would think that you would need at least 2 inches because the motor fits very tight in the 2-inch headrail.

[@matthewcialdella1734]

I agree. Awesome demo and instruction. Anyone should be able to figure this out with your video. Good on you sir. But I also agree that for the product itself. I wouldn’t want to spend the time installing or the money for only tilting option. But great video and explanation for all experience levels of homeowners

[@SimplySmart123]

Thank you, Matthew! My family loves them. We only tilt in this 🏠 😆

[@matthewcialdella1734]

@@SimplySmart123 rock on 🤙

[@Wildersport]

Will these work with Hubitat? I'd rather not use abandware automation systems...

[@SimplySmart123]

I don’t have a Hubitat hub although it should work without issue because these are Zwave-based. Pretty much anything that can work with SmartThings can work with Hubitat.

[@jannmyers8360]

I installed 11 iblinds and they have been great and well worth the effort. Within the last few months I have been having issues with some of them. First they drop out of the Alexa routine. I can still control them in SmartThings or they will respond to a verbal percentage request (in Alexa) but not to a simple open or close command. Sometimes they say they are closed (in the apps) when I can see they are open. Then finally, they stop responding all together. This is happening with 4 blinds so far and the situation seems to be progressive with only one at the “no response” stage which I am about to replace. Can you think of anything that can be causing this? I don’t want to replace all of them.

[@SimplySmart123]

are you using the correct smart things driver?

[@jannmyers8360]

How do I check that? When I click on “select different driver” it shows nothing. Also, in all but 1 of my iblinds, when I click on “settings” it only gives me the option to reverse the direction. No way to change speed, intervals etc. is there an update I am missing? They are all the same iblinds version .

[@SimplySmart123]

@@jannmyers8360 you will need to add the iblinds z-wave edge driver and the associate your blinds with the driver. support.myiblinds.com/knowledge-base/device-drivers-hubitat-smartthings/

[@jannmyers8360]

You are a genius! Edge drivers installed and all controls are available. One last question, I have 1 blind that will not take a charge. Do I need to replace the entire unit or just the battery?

[@SimplySmart123]

@@jannmyers8360 not sure about that one. All of mine are good so far. Be sure you are using the provided wire to charge as the connection is longer than a traditional wire. Probably best to contact the company directly to see what they suggest in your specific case.

[@JonMThorpe]

How do you get them connected to Alexa?

[@SimplySmart123]

First you connect them to your SmartThings Hub. Then connect your SmartThings to Alexa. All devices will then be voice controlled.

[@SimplySmart123]

These will need a hub because they are not wifi. Wifi requires a lot of energy. Many wifi smart products may an Alexa skill that will connect the two through your home network.

[@JonMThorpe]

Do your solar panels keep the battery at 100%?

[@SimplySmart123]

Mostly. I do have one that is under a covered porch and need to charge every 6 months.

[@wogfun]

My blinds have a rod that control the tilt, but your video shows the tilt controlled by strings. Will this still work? Any links to the companies official install vids? Can't seem to find them, thanks!

[@SimplySmart123]

it should still work because if you look inside of your blinds, there should be a metal shaft and that is what it turns

[@malibération]

How long does the battery last?

[@SimplySmart123]

With the solar panel I have only had to charge one of my blinds so far since making the video. The reason for that is because it’s under a covered porch and doesn’t get much sunlight. But they do not need to be charged very often even if you don’t have solar panels they should last many months between charges.

[@LiveLaughLaBiche]

Hey man, is there any way you could tell me what Brand blinds you went with?

[@SimplySmart123]

These blinds I ordered from the website called Just Blinds. You can order them custom for your windows and they come right to your door and all you need to do is put in the brackets and pop them in. Super easy and they also have a lot of different options.

[@LiveLaughLaBiche]

@@SimplySmart123 alright brother thank you so much.

[@AbeTheRock]

That sounds pretty loud on video is it as loud in person?

[@AbeTheRock]

Nvm i just saw your reply on another comment

[@SimplySmart123]

Yeah, it's not bad but the microphone is pointed directly at it which intensifies the sound 📢

[@JaimeLAlmirall]

Hi! The discount code not working. Is there other?

[@SimplySmart123]

That is strange. I will reach out to them and see why the code is not working.

[@jannmyers8360]

OK, I am stuck right at the beginning. I am retrofitting into existing 2" header rail. Trying to fit the charge adapter and clip together. You say press as hard as you can. No matter what, I can't get them to snap together. Any work around or tool I can use without breaking the clip??

[@SimplySmart123]

Is it fitting in your existing hole? It should easily fit and then you slide the other part on from the inside it doesn’t have to be fully tight but it is a better install if it doesn’t move after you are done.

[@jannmyers8360]

​@@SimplySmart123 Yes, it fits perfectly. The parts line up but there does not seem to be enough length to the pins for it to snap together. If I hold the individual parts at the end of the bracket the button extends about 1/8" beyond the opposite edge and the prongs from the clip seem to extend about 1/8" as well. They must be EXTREMELY close to snapping together but when lined up the charger is flush and so is the clip. They just don't snap together. I have also tried another clip and no dice.

[@jannmyers8360]

@@SimplySmart123 When the two parts are together the button is just slightly above the surface of the clip while the charger is recessed inside. Should more botton show that this? I'm think I might need to glue it but that does not seem like it would hold when the charging wire is inserted. Besides cosmetic, it would seem I can get along without this and just set the charging unit inside the blind bracket. I have the solar panel for continuous charging. It seems kinf of cheap to be geri rigging this early in the install.

[@SimplySmart123]

I might contact the manufacturer and see if they can solve that issue for you. Do you want to have that button available in case you need to reprogram or do other things in the future.

[@jannmyers8360]

@@SimplySmart123 Thank you for your ideas and quick response. I did write to iBlinds support to see if they have any suggestions. Should hear from them tomorrow. In the meantime I am going through the rest of the installation video and complete the installation and programming. I may be able to mount the charger to the back (window) side of the blind. To your point, I only need access to the button. The solar panels should eliminate the need for the charging.

[@nairreDDerrian]

The motor seems loud. Is it overbearing?

[@SimplySmart123]

No, it's just how the microphone picks it up. You can hear it but it's no loud. You can also slow the process down but I like a fast open and close