Tags
Bali, Home automation, iris system, Lowe's iris, Lowes, Somfy, Window blind, Z-Wave
I need to credit reader fmollenkopf for his comment on 10/7/13 regarding the blind controller is from the company somfysystems.com. I wasn’t able to verify the video which he mention which is why I didn’t provide it on yesterdays post.
I was however able to verify that the information does show on the Bali website where you need to click on the tab for “Home automation” and you’ll notice the line that says “The new Z-Wave to Radio Technology Somfy® Interface (ZRTSI) enables motorized blinds and shades to be compatible with Z-wave based home automation systems“
The odd thing is that I wasn’t able to find this controller (ZRTSI) on the Somfy website, but I did find it at automatedshadestore.com where they state it’s a new product since 9/16/2013 and they even provided a PDF installation instructions from Somfy.
Now I always find the price interesting once Lowe’s list the product for sale and it’s usually much lower then anywhere I’ve seen. So I like to keep track that right now at automatedshadestore they are selling it for $334.
Anybody want to comment to see how much Lowe’s will sell it for?
Any updates on the Bali Blinds? Is there a way to know if Iris supports this now? I am interested in getting a setup for our bedroom.
Sorry I have’t heard much about it.
I ordered the Blinds Controller at my local Lowes for $72. It was a hassle until I found the right person in the window treatment department, because the controller wasn’t in Lowes’ computer system. It arrived at my house by UPS two weeks later. I was able to pair it to my three Somfy window blinds and control each blind from the controller unit easily and reliably. You can actually do this part first, before pairing the controller to Iris, if you wish. Then you pair the controller itself to Iris, and once that is done, pair each blind’s channel (or node, as they call it) to Iris as well, following the YouTube video they provide. You can add all your blinds from the controller one after the other, and they will all appear in the Devices That Have Been Paired window. Click Continue and watch them appear on your list of devices.
There was a stumbling block that took me two days to figure out. I was convinced for a long time that the blinds were not responding to Iris. Finally I realized why they included the Reverse Blinds Direction option: when I clicked and saved that, the blinds started working! Turns out the blinds weren’t going up when I clicked the Up button because I was actually sending a Down command, and the blind was already down… hence, no movement! Once I selected Reverse Blinds Direction, they started working like a champ!
Buy this product without fear.
Dude thanks a lot for the insight. I will definitely be purchasing this piece soon!
@Eric – Would you please let us know the SKU number so we can also purchase the blinds controller? $79 would be an amazing deal compared to the Somfy ZRTSI at other outlets. Thank you!
You need to go the section that sells blinds and ask them about it. Good luck.
https://livingwithiris.com/2014/03/23/some-product-updates-for-iris (Lowe’s in store blind catalog where they show the blind control)
I am going to call my local Lowes to get it. It’s the Palm Springs CA store. I remember they put it into their computer system when I ordered it. I’ll get back to you.
Eric
I called Lowes and they were kind enough to fax me the form they used to order my blinds controller. The Lowes Item Number is 477850 and the Vendor Part Number is 1811265. Other info from the form: Vendor Name: Springs Window Fashions phone 866-735-5414. I hope this info will do the trick. Please let me know…!
@Eric I contacted the Lowes in Palm Springs with the info above, but they’re still scratching their heads and don’t know how to track down the item. I would love to pick one of these up, especially for that price. Please let me know if you have any other suggestions. Thanks again!
They did fax me the internal order form they used. I would be glad to email it to you. It would be hard to imagine you would have a problem if you had a copy of that…
I’m assuming nether of you would share your email online so contact me at hpliao77@livingwithiris.com.
please feel free to email it to my spare account matthewbial@gmail.com thanks!
I ordered mine today. It was 95 shipped to my house. I went in with the lowes item number and the vendor product number, went back to the area where they sell the blinds and it took the about 5 minutes for them to find it.