My sensor ran out of battery after 30 days. Is that normal?
No
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According to the manual, these parameters in particular can have a major impact on battery consumption:
-
Parameter 2 (Blind time)
Set to default
-
Parameter 62 (Temperatur measuring interval) *!
You changed it from default 900 s to 60 s❗️ -
Parameter 42 (Light sensor report interval) *1
You changed it from default 3600 s to 60 s❗️ -
Wake -Up-Intervall *2
You changed it from default 7200 s to 200 s❗️
*1 Meaning of these parameter: In the selected interval, the current data are sent to Homey, even if there was no change in the values.
And of course, the smaller the reporting threshold settings are for temperature and brightness measurement, the more frequently data will be sent to Homey if the temperature and brightness in the room change frequently.
Another factor that can increase battery consumption is a poor Z-Wave network connectivity.
So my first recommendation is, to set parameter 42 + 62 and also the WUI to default.
In addition, according to the manual it*s not recommended to change the parameter 3 (Pulse counter). You changed it from 2 pulses to 1 pulse.
When I first started using Homey, I deployed 5-6 units of Fibaro motion sensors. Some of these units are quite old, while others were bought at different years, so I assume that their hardware version and firmware differ as well.
I also noticed that specific hardware versions consume higher energy, causing their batteries to last at most 2 months before dying. This issue is not unique to me, as you can find similar topics on other community forums via Google search.
Since I do not have a Fibaro hub, I cannot perform any updates. All of my Fibaro motion sensor settings are the same, and I have tried rotating their locations to monitor usage. Therefore, I concluded that specific hardware versions and firmware make a difference in battery consumption.
Of course, if you only care about motion detection, you can further reduce the reporting for temperature and Lux changes as recommended by others.
Genuine Panasonic CR123A batteries are expensive and rare, so eventually, I converted all of my sensors to AC to USB 5V to 3.3V connections. This helped me save on costs and reduced hassle in the long run.
Afaik there are at least 2 different hardware types on the market, a Z-Wave and a Z-Wave+ Motion Sensor. Z-Wave+ devices have among other better properties a higher battery life (approx. 50%).
In Developer Tools → Devices or in the advanced settings of the devices you can check, if it’s a sensor with Z-Wave or Z-Wave+. These are the info of mine Motion Sensor:
| Z-Wave | Z-Wave+ | |
|---|---|---|
| Driver | FGMS-001 | FGMS-001-PLUS |
| zw_product_type_id | 2048 | 2049 |
| zw_product_id | 4097 | 4097 |
| zw_firmware_id | n/s | 2065 |
| zw_application_version | 2 | n/s |
| zw_application_sub_version | 8 | n/s |
| zw_hardware_version | 1 | n/s |
| zw_application_version_1 | 2 | n/s |
| zw_application_sub_version_1 | 7 | n/s |
n/s = Not specified
Afaik it depends on which Homey firmware version and Homey Fibaro app version the devices were included with whether all information is available or not.
As mentioned I also have both versions in use, but more Z-Wave version (FGMS-001) than Z-Wave+ version and the batteries last at least a year. However, I also have a good Z-Wave mesh. When I started with Z-Wave (= bad Z-Wave mesh) the batteries drained faster.
I have also tried different battery manufacturers again and again. I was able to detect differences there as well.
My summary
Battery consumption depends on the following factors:
– Z-Wave chip
– Firmware version (personal assumption!)
– Z-Wave connection
– Device parameters
– Battery
@Shiki, I own a Fibaro Home Center 2 and I’m able to do firmware updates. So if you’re interested you can PM me, however I live in Germany.
@DirkG Thanks in advance for offering the update but, not possible as I live 6000 miles away from Germany 
I just pull out a random FGMS-001 from my drawer, included and it and shows this info below for sharing , not really sure what the differences as I don’t have developer knowledge.
| Z-Wave+ | ||
|---|---|---|
| Driver | FGMS-001-PLUS | |
| zw_product_type_id | 2049 | |
| zw_product_id | 4098 | |
| zw_firmware_id | 2065 | |
| zw_application_version | 3 | |
| zw_application_sub_version | 3 | |
| zw_hardware_version | 1 | |
| zw_application_version_1 | 3 | |
| zw_application_sub_version_1 | 3 |
I don’t have any programming skills either. These data only provides information about the (hardware) type and the firmware version.
So it’s a Z-Wave+ device with the latest firmware version 3.3 afaik. The different zw_product_id between your (4098) and my MS (4097) is probably be related to the fact that you live in a different Z-Wave area with a different Z-Wave frequency.
Such a small change is a firmware update, different Z-Wave frequentie (/area) for Fibaro is a way bigger difference (if I’m correct: 2xxx USA, 4xxx Europe, 8xxx Australia, 16xxx Russia).
You’re right regarding the Z-Wave area. Just checked it on Z-Wave Alliance.
But why do devices with the same firmware have different product IDs?
Fibaro Motions Sensor - Product Version HW: 1 FW: 3.03:03.03 - Product ID: 4097
Fibaro Motions Sensor - Product Version HW: 1 FW: 3.03:03.03 - Product ID: 4098
The “only” difference I found is a different Z-Wave certification date and no. So is there seems to be also a dependence too?
who knows, Fibaro is 1 of the few brands that consistently update the ID if anything changes in their device, so even though it does say the hardware version is the same, perhaps they changed something, like a different part number for 1 of the chips inside that wasn’t available anymore.
