Could Someone Give me Advice on Expanding My C-Bus System for Smart Home Integration

Hello there,

I am new to the C-Bus system and would appreciate some guidance from more experienced users. Currently; I have got a basic setup with a few lighting circuits and a couple of sensors running smoothly. Although; I am looking to expand my system to integrate more smart home features; particularly focusing on energy efficiency and automation.

I have read that C-Bus can integrate with other smart home platforms like Google Home; Alexa; and even some energy monitoring systems. What is the best way to approach this? Are there any specific interfaces or bridges I need to invest in for a smooth integration?

I am interested in automating more than just lighting. I have seen people integrate blinds; HVAC systems; and even security cameras. Is there a recommended approach for expanding into these areas? I would like to know which modules or devices work best with C-Bus for this type of setup.

Also; I have gone through this post; https://www.cbusforums.com/threads/new-home-with-cbus-soc-analyst-and-need-advice-pls.11182/ which definitely helped me out a lot.

Has anyone had experience incorporating energy monitoring into their C-Bus system? I am particularly keen on tracking real-time energy usage and possibly setting up automated responses to reduce power consumption. Any suggestions on hardware or software for this purpose?

Thanks in advance for your help and assistance.

 

You will need a method of connecting to your C-Bus system and some form of Automation controller, the 5500AC2 will achieve this.
A means of measuring the current flow 5504CMU would give you 4 channels of current measurement, you will need 4 CT coils which SE also sell suitable for use with this product.
Your big challenge is programming the 5500AC2, I suggest you do some investigating into learning LUA before spending your money or reaching out to an integrator who can help.

 

The 5500AC2 would be your best bet, it’s practically a small scale BMS device with native CBUS. In saying this, for a house setup you’ll have to think about return on investment.

for example getting a solar system with CT’s monitoring usages and production with a pre built GUI you’ll get the best of both worlds but yes 2 separate apps

 

search the forums for connections to home assistant (free less your time investment) - as if you connect the cbus to this you basically can connect and talk to heaps of other stuff. there are modules for heaps of things for instance you talk about measuring energy etc. if you have solar and battery there is probably a plugin to get the data from the invertor or solar data manager with this data in which you could trigger cbus actions? there are other softwares that you can import toolkit file into and use it data points and other sytem drivers to do these functions aswell. 5500AC is a good start as it will give you IP access to the cbus system and be able to expose Cbus as Mqtt plus use it as logic engine and user interface?