IKEA Trådfri Gateway-Homey integration

Devices
, ,
1

I have a couple of questions:

  1. does Homey-IKEA trådfri Gateway integration work locally or is internet connection required?

  2. I have recurring probs with a few of my 25+ IKEA trådfri devices and would like to try migrating them to an IKEA trådfri Gateway. I will though keep my built-in Sunrcher switches, dimmers and a couple of INNR lamps on Homey Zigbee mesh. - Will that cause any problems according to any experience? -Like for adding things from two meshes (one of them in IKEA gateway) to flows in Homey…or like 2 separate meshes in same room interfereing with eachother?

Thankful for any advise here!

1 Like
2

  1. The gateway works locally, but Homey itself requires an internet connection.

  2. If you remove 25 devices from your Homey mesh, your mesh stability may suffer. It entirely depends on how much if your network is routed through any of those 25 devices (for example, if you have an IKEA device that acts as a router for devices that are out of range for Homey, removing that IKEA device may cause those devices to drop out of the network because suddenly they are too far away).

    Two Zigbee networks next to each other can co-exist, but it would be best if they aren’t using the same Zigbee channel. I think the IKEA gateway uses channel 11, and Homey does too unless you have changed it (or done a Zigbee reset which caused it to change).

3

First, thank you for your kind response.

You mention Homey requires an internet connection…is that due to some IKEA sign-in stuff?
For now my Homey works well without internet connection, with all devices and flows and I would prefer to keep it that way. (That was one main reason for me migrating from Smartthings).

Point taken in regards to unintentionally ruin the Zigbee mesh. -Thank you for that info!

Is there any way to determine which channel is used for Homey and IKEA trådfri…? Any preference page?

Thanks!

4

For Homey can you find the channel it’s using on Homey Developer, under System Information. I don’t think it’s possible to check which channel the IKEA gateway is using, but I think it’s always 11.

Homey requires an internet connection to be able to update its access tokens, which are used by the app and the website (https://my.homey.app) to log in on your Homey. When those tokens expire and you don’t have an internet connection, you’ll get an error message saying that Homey is offline (although most flows will still work, you just won’t be able to control Homey).

1 Like
5

Can it be changed ‘on the fly’? Meaning I just change it in Homey Developer to another channel and after that all works fine again as if nothing happened?
Or will that reset my complete zigbee network?

6

In theory it shouldn’t reset your network, your devices should be able to find the new channel. But no guarantees (perhaps search around a bit on the forum to see if anyone has experience with it).

7

Brilliant! Thank you @robertklep !

@Frank_van_de_Schuur - I just changed channel for my Homey Zigbee mesh to ch 17, it all works well now except all 3 of my two-button dimmers and both 2 motion sensors from IKEA - may they be hard-coded to ch 11?

Well, I will try to remove/add them later on today. (All lamps and 5-buttom controls from IKEA works fine though!).

Thank you again!

8

Not likely, but those devices are battery-powered so it may take them a while to try and find the new channel. You can just leave them for a couple of hours to see if they find their way back to the network.

1 Like
9

Willdo, thank you!

10

@Robert_Eneslatt Thanks for trying out. Please let us know if it works again after a few hrs. After that I will try it as well

11

I now waited almost 4 hrs, but no change. The mentioned 2-way dimmerbuttons from IKEA and the IKEA motion sensors did not wake up…they just remained zombies. It was eventually solved by deleting them from the mesh ans re-pairing them. Mentioned IKEA-stuff were the only devices that caused any problems for me…I do though only own 3 brands for Zigbee protocol today; INNR lamps, IKEA Trådfri stuff and my built-in Sunricher 240 V dimmers & relays (all in all 50+ devices). It is mentioned in the Homey Developer that ‘some devices, which do not follow the Zigbee specification (e.g. Xiaomi), might not switch at all, requiring a re-pair.’ …i wonder whether that might be the case with IKEAS small dimmer switches and motion sensors as well? -The big IKEA switches, the 5-button ones (and lamps) switched channel OK and everything works like a dance now (knock on wood)!

12

@robertklep @Frank_van_de_Schuur
Update:
I have now migrated half of my (20+) IKEA devices from Homey’s Zigbee mesh to be controlled by an IKEA TRÅDFRI gateway. I can now confirm my Homey mesh seemingly being responding faster and being more stable than before and IKEA TRÅDFRI gateway connected lamps responding directly and simultaneoulsly when triggered. I can also confirm what @robertklep suggested that IKEA TRÅDFRI gateway runs on channel 11 and that internet connection is only needed by IKEA gateway for updating firmware and for phone app interface. -All physical switches, IKEA scenes and Homey flows works perfectly without Internet access. The latter (Homey flows) in perfect harmony with IKEA TRÅDFRI Gateway scenes.

I earlier changed my Homey mesh to run on ch 17 instead of ch 11 and my Internet/Wifi router’s 2,4Ghz Wifi now runs on Ch 1. -I don’t know if the latter makes any difference for network stability but I thought, ‘hey why not do it as precaution’.

-All networks seem to run really smooth and stable…also my Z-wave and 433Mhz interfaces. -The world seems perfect for now…well except the bloody IR thing Athom claims supporting with Homey. :wink:

2 Likes