Link2O being replaced by Pentair Home

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H

hum2

0
Aug 23, 2018
17
Surprise/AZ
Pool Size
14000
Surface
Fiberglass
Chlorine
Salt Water Generator
SWG Type
Pentair Intellichlor IC-30
Anyone who uses/used Link2O, have you switched over to Pentair Home app? If so, what do you think of the new app?

I have a pretty simple setup using IntelliConnect with the Link2O app to control my Pentair Pump and Ichlor SWG. This is the 3rd winter I've had the system and the previous 2 years the Freeze Protection worked great. This year my system hasn't been getting the current temperature in a timely manner from Accuweather and freeze protection isn't turning on and off at the specified temperatures like it did in the past. I submitted a ticket via the Link2O app and after some trouble shooting they sent out a firmware update. That didn't resolve the issue and now they are recommending that I switch over to the Pentair Home app. Doing so will mean that Link2O will no longer work.

I use the web interface as well as the iOS app for Link2O. Does Pentair Home have a web interface, if so could someone please share the URL? I cannot find it. I'll admit my Goggle Fu sucks, but it doesn't help that the app name is Pentair Home!
 
No. that doesn't help but thanks for the link. I understand how Freeze Protection works and I know why mine isn't working. I'm looking for information on the new Pentair Home app vs the Link2O app.
 
hum2 said:
Anyone who uses/used Link2O, have you switched over to Pentair Home app? If so, what do you think of the new app?

I have a pretty simple setup using IntelliConnect with the Link2O app to control my Pentair Pump and Ichlor SWG. This is the 3rd winter I've had the system and the previous 2 years the Freeze Protection worked great. This year my system hasn't been getting the current temperature in a timely manner from Accuweather and freeze protection isn't turning on and off at the specified temperatures like it did in the past. I submitted a ticket via the Link2O app and after some trouble shooting they sent out a firmware update. That didn't resolve the issue and now they are recommending that I switch over to the Pentair Home app. Doing so will mean that Link2O will no longer work.

I use the web interface as well as the iOS app for Link2O. Does Pentair Home have a web interface, if so could someone please share the URL? I cannot find it. I'll admit my Goggle Fu sucks, but it doesn't help that the app name is Pentair Home!
Click to expand...
@hum2
As far as I can tell, the Pentair Home App is only available via the iOS app and the Android app from the Google Play Store.

If you're looking for something for your computer, the only thing I can recommend is using the Blue Stacks Android Emulator for your computer and running the Pentair Home App on top of that. The Blue Stacks Android Emulator actually works pretty well.

Hope that is helpful to you...
r.
 
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I'm a little late to the game, but just yesterday I got an email from Pentair with the heading, "It's time to move to the Pentair Home app!" Like Hum2, I have Intelliconnect and use Link20. It controls the variable speed filter pump (4 programs and schedules), the water feature pump, and it used to run the booster pump for a pressure side cleaner. Freeze Protection seems to work, and I've altered the preset temps--not that it matters much here. Link20 is running on my iPhone and iPad, but I mostly use the web page via my desktop PC, as it is simply easier and faster, especially making changes to pump speeds and schedules.

I sent an inquiry about Pentair Home about a web version of Home, or if Link20 could still be run on the PC after converting to Home on the phone/ipad. Reply? No web version. And after "migrating" to Pentair Home, Link20 can no longer be run. There are a couple dozen (maybe more) iOS and iPhone emulators, but I've not seen what I would call glowing reviews of any, and I'm of the impression that they work best for games. Blue Stacks Android Emulator may be worth a shot. Android devices in general seem more windows-like than iOS.

I'd be interested to hear if anyone has used BlueStacks to run Pentair Home, as well as anyone who has done the migration and would like to share their experience. In any case, I think I'll wait until I must migrate. Maybe version 1.2 will be out be then fixing some of the initial bugs.

Thanks, and good luck to us surviving the whims of software developers who believe in change for the sake of change.
 
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@MyAZPool Thanks for your response back in Dec. I haven't had a chance to get back to this issue but do appreciate your input.

@BowserB I haven't changed over to the Pentair Home app yet because I've just been burned too many time by being an early adopter. The only problem I was having with the Link2O app was freeze protection and since it hasn't been really cold here this winter I'm just monitoring things manually. I expect they will have to kick me off of Link2O before I change to it since it's not and 'upgrade' for me but rather a 'downgrade' since I love the browser interface.

And as @BowserB noted, if anyone has migrated to Pentair Home and can share their experience, please do so (or if there's another post on here somewhere talking about the migration, please share the link here.)
 
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Just discovered that Link2O no longer works--at least for me it doesn't. It seems my logon was no longer valid on the iPhone or the PC, so I am installing Pentair Home on the iPhone now...
After setting up an email and pw for Pentair home, setting up a Home account (name, addr, phone, agreeing to notifications, entering PIF number from Intelliconnect), a message comes up that the Intelliconnect is being updated and it could take up to five minutes. Guessing that everyone's Link2O stopped working today, their servers may be busy. Got a message "could not connect to your Intelliconnect. Try again. 3 times failed. Tapped Contact Pentair and was taken to their standard contact form. Asked for help. Will report back. In the meantime, no Link2O and no Pentair Home. No automation. It's 1970 again.
 
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I think pool automation where all connection between the device and the pool needs to go through the cloud and some 3rd party servers is fatally flawed. You should be able to locally connect to your pool through your home network without going through a 3rd party server.

Either the pool companies need to greatly improve their technology or they will have lots of unhappy customers.
 
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Update. I've now learned that the IO server for Pentair Home is down, and that is why the installation of Pentair Home and update of my IntelliConnect failed. However, the Link2O server is working again. The Pentair tech support rep says they have no ETA for when the Pentair Home servers will be up and running again. Yes, Allen, it is a drawback when you must have access to a cloud-based system to control your hardware. I went through that during the Texas Freeze. Our standby generator provided power for the 48-50 hours of power outage, but apparently Comcast Xfinity does not have standby generators, so while I had power, I did not have Internet. Compounding the problem here is that we're in an AT&T Wireless dead zone, so we only have at best "1 bar" and no data service without our MicroCell and land-based Internet.

So, I couldn't get Freeze protection to turn on for the Whisperflo pump and couldn't even manually turn it on. The Intelliflo filter pump had freeze protection turned on, saving it, the filter, the UV-C appliance, and the heater from freeze damage. The Whisperflo is split open like a dropped watermelon. Luckily that's just the water feature pump, so I can wait (and apparently have to wait) for parts to be available again. My pool repair guy estimates mid April, but he admits he's not a big customer for Pentair and so may be low on the priority list for parts.

As to Pentair Home. This is not an encouraging start to the new service. Tech guy says, re local connection to automation without Internet, "that is being looked into for future implementation of these types of systems." Sounds a bit like when something below freezes over!
 
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@BowserB
Bill, sorry to hear about the connectivity issues with your Link2O. I believe that @ajw22 couldn't be more correct in his assessment regarding how Pentair has moved their interfacing to the cloud/3rd Party servers (which btw are rumored to be in Malaysia).

I think you are tracking the Pentair business model correctly. You just got another one of their "canned" party line responses that they tell everyone and I have not found any truth to any of those type of responses yet.

I have heard them all regarding the IntelliCenter web-client, Alexa Skill, Apple Watch app, IntelliCenter Servers, iOS and Android User Interfaces, Google Assistant/Google Home, Apple HomeKit/Siri HomePod etc. But there are several more that I can pull from my back pocket.
Here is just a sample, so you can be prepared for them in the future. ;)

1. "It's on our radar and personnel in our software development and engineering department are in ongoing discussions to determine the best way-ahead to manage and correct the issue."
2. "We are diligently working on the best course of action to resolve the issue."
3. "We are looking into that issue and hope to have a resolution sometime in the future." NOTE: Notice not the "NEAR" future.
4. "Addressing that issue is our number one priority just as soon as our engineering department resolves the current issues".

I could go on and on but you get the idea.
Welcome to the Pentair "we are working on it" club.
Hope they get it fixed for you sooner than later and take care....
r.
 
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@BowserB thanks for reporting your experience. I still haven't taken the step to convert over to Pentair Home and the more I read about it the happier I am that I haven't 'updated' yet. Link2O has worked very well for me for a few years until they broke the freeze protection. Fortunately for me (and my equipment) we didn't have a very cold winter this year so it wasn't a huge issue. But it is extremely annoying. I hope Pentair gets their Crud together and fixes the apps. But I'm not very optimistic.
 
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I received an email from Pentair that Link2O would be disabled as of June 30, so I finally bit the bullet and updated to Pentair Home today. The process went smoothly and followed along almost exactly with their instructions. My salt cell didn't show up initially, but it was easy to add. Then had to change the setting as it initially defaulted to 0% generation. Pump schedule looks correct. So keeping my fingers crossed that the pump turns on as it should over night.

Pump isn't running now and I don't want to turn it on as it's high rate time for power here in the Phoenix area. One thing I used the old app for a lot was to stop the pump while it was running so I could backwash the filter, etc. I don't see a 'stop' selection, but maybe it will show up when the pump is actually running?

Anyone found a user's guide for the app? It looks mostly easy to follow, but would be nice to see if there are things I'm missing.
 
Jimrahbe said:
Hum,

If you want to stop the pump you should just put the system in the Service mode at the panel..

Kind of the whole purpose of the Service mode.. :mrgreen:

Thanks,

Jim R.
Click to expand...
Yes, I could walk all the way over to the panel and put the pump in service mode. But part of the convenience of having a phone app is being able to to turn the pump off at any time and from any where that I want to do so. Had this ability with the Link2O app so asking if it's available with the Pentair Home app.

Kind of the whole purpose of an app (for me) is to be able to control equipment remotely. ;)
 
hum2 said:
I received an email from Pentair that Link2O would be disabled as of June 30, so I finally bit the bullet and updated to Pentair Home today. The process went smoothly and followed along almost exactly with their instructions. My salt cell didn't show up initially, but it was easy to add. Then had to change the setting as it initially defaulted to 0% generation. Pump schedule looks correct. So keeping my fingers crossed that the pump turns on as it should over night.

Pump isn't running now and I don't want to turn it on as it's high rate time for power here in the Phoenix area. One thing I used the old app for a lot was to stop the pump while it was running so I could backwash the filter, etc. I don't see a 'stop' selection, but maybe it will show up when the pump is actually running?

Anyone found a user's guide for the app? It looks mostly easy to follow, but would be nice to see if there are things I'm missing.
Click to expand...
There is a disable/enable feature on the app, top left on all my pumps, which is the on/off...
 
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Curious if anyone has tried to switch lately (the last couple weeks)? I've happily been using Link2O and figured I should try to switch since they claim Link2O will be disabled. When I open the app, it asks for an email, etc and then says it's sending a verification link. When I get the link, I click on it and all I get is a spinning working thing that sits there forever. If I try to open the app it just goes to the signup screen again and says it couldn't verify the email, try again in 36 hours. I've tried 3 times since last week. I'm not looking forward to switching since it gets such crappy reviews, and seems like it may or may not control my light correctly.
 
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@CraigW Actually I've been having pretty good luck with the app since I updated on May 4. I loved the Link2O and was worried about the Pentair home, but looks like I got lucky. I did email Pentair about disabling the pump and rather than answering my question they sent me this response on how to contact them. I ended up figuring it out but might be good for you to give them a call.
Hello, For all app related systems that require direct troubleshooting we require someone to be at the residence where the equipment is installed with a computer (preferably a Windows PC) on the same modem/router network. They must contact the Consumer Automation ScreenLogic/IntelliCenter/IntelliConnect call queue while on site via 800 831 7133 to get with our techs who can help locate and diagnose issues with the ScreenLogic Mac Address or help with updates on the local network. Support is open from 8am-8pm EST Monday to Friday for the reps who can support this equipment.
Click to expand...
 
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