About four years ago, I began upgrading the KTracy Manor and KTracy.com HQ to make our official home and business a "smart home." Using some WiFi switches, Amazon Alexa devices, and an Ecobee smart thermostat along with a few sensors, we slowly began the process of eliminating "dumb" electronic components out of the KTracy Manor.

Z-Wave Is Coming

About two years ago, I began running into problems with the WiFi network. First, when my ex-wife left, we needed an immediate security overhaul. This meant changing the WiFi password, among other things. However, this completely disconnected every single device in the smart home. The entire Smart Home needed to be re-created and problems that I solved months and years earlier now needed to be figured out again, and of course I didn't document any of it.

As annoying as this was, I soon began running into another problem as the KTracy Manor security system was upgraded to include additional cameras on the property and a few more WiFi switches. The 2.4GHz wireless network was becoming overwhelmed. Suddenly, adding a new device would cause another device to randomly drop its connection. After playing wack-a-mole for a few weeks, I realized my mistake: WiFi switches.

After further investigation, I announced my intention to the staff at the KTracy.com to upgrade everything to either Z-Wave or Zigbee. After much debate, and realizing the device limitation of 256 Z-Wave devices, we decided to reserve the 2.4GHz band frequency for WiFi devices and switch everything else possible to Z-Wave. With all of the computers, phones, and other WiFi-only devices we run, there was some mind concern over overcrowding the 2.4GHz frequency in our area, so running switches at 908MHz. We also feel safer using lower frequencies whenever possible.

Admittedly, the limitation of devices to just a bit over 230 after reserved nodes are taken into account is a bit frightening. However, the likelihood of us needing more than 150 devices is pretty slim, and it's still an enormous improvement over the roughly 20 WiFi devices that are working on the KTracy network at any given time.

MyCroft AI to replace Amazon Alexa

Having a voice assistant AI has been a central component to the KTracy.com HQ and KTracy Manor since the very beginning. Just about everything is voice controllable. However, over the past two years, Alexa has been getting increasingly annoying by recommending skills, products to order, and speaking when not spoken to. Plus, we are all aware of Amazon contractors listening in on Alexa devices and recording audio for "R&D" purposes.

Truthfully, I trust Amazon in my bed chamber more than Google because Amazon is just looking to sell me junk. Google is looking to sell me. However, Alexa makes a lot of people uncomfortable and, while I'm not one of them, I do believe Alexa has outstayed its welcome by becoming a truly obnoxious house guest in almost every room.

I planned on replacing Alexa with a few tablets placed strategically around the home that would work as control panels for the entire smart home; which I wasn't excited about at all and largely resulted in me delaying this upgrade project.

However, I recently received an e-mail from a fan in the tiny state of Rhode Island telling me about MyCroft.

MyCroft does not appear to support OpenHAB (our smart home hub for all the Z-Wave devices), but we're betting that support will be added very soon and we're going to proceed accordingly.

Ring Doorbell is Probably Going

We're constantly evaluating the security situation at KTracy.com HQ and the KTracy Manor where I live my day-to-day life. I've had a Ring video doorbell for quite some time and I'm not terribly impressed. It's ungodly slow to answer on a smart phone, the resolution is terrible, and the subscription plan for the entire feature set is too expensive for what it delivers.

Although the passwords have been changed and my ex-wife has been removed from the account, I also don't like that she had access to it and don't completely trust that she hasn't found some way back on. My goal is to tie the new video doorbell into an overall home security package and suite; but the vendor we use is going to depend on a great number of factors and I'm still discussing this with our security consultants.

What I do know is that we're not doing business with anyone that has cloud storage in China or any other communist country. Preferably, we're going to be able to run this from our own KTracy.com cloud, but we're trying to figure all of this out still.

Mechanized Smart Devices

Finally, we're looking to add smart mechanical devices to the KTracy.com HQ and KTracy Manor, to include smart curtains, blinds, and more. Our goal is to minimize our energy usage by manipulating how much solar radiation makes it into our facilities.

Future Additions

While not part of the 2023 upgrade plans, KTracy Manor is actively looking for ways to end our reliability on grid electricity. This means adding solar panels, a battery wall, and a gas generator. Additionally, the KTracy Mobile is currently a bit dated and will need an electric update. Right now, we're eyeing the Tesla Cybertruck.