Hub Placement Tips v1

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Proper planning in the placement of your hub can pay big performance dividends. Here are some tips one where to place your beautiful new Hubitat Elevation™ Hub.

  • Hubitat Elevation™ requires a constant wired connection to your network. This could limit your locations, but it may be worth relocating your router or switch to a more ideal location.
  • Maintain at last one foot of separation between your router and hub to prevent potential interference. Do not place your hub directly on your router.
  • Metal is not your friend. Z-wave and Zigbee use radio frequencies that do not pass through metal. Avoid metal shelves, large metal appliances and vehicles.
  • Try to place your hub in a central location if possible. While Zigbee and Z-Wave both claim to have enough range to cover most houses, the reality is that every wall, floor, piece of furniture and other electronic interference will reduce their effective range. The more central you locate your hub, the more you can limit your need for repeaters. This range extends vertically, too, so if you place your hub in the basement you may have a harder time reaching the upper floors.
  • Radio signals can have trouble passing through cement and stucco so you may need to rethink your hub placement or have strategically located repeaters to get past cement floors and walls.
  • Setting up your mesh network properly is as important as your hub placement. Repeaters (non-battery powered devices) are necessary for most homes work effectively. Read more on that here.