I'm putting this out there for the benefit of the knowledgebase. Long story short:
Longer version:
I just got done installing all of my automation equipment. The final step was adding the ScreenLogic Protocol adapter (which I did in my garage), and the wireless connection kit to send signal to my automation panel which is on the other side of the wall and about 15 feet further down the side of the garage. I plan on hard wiring the link between the protocol adapter and the panel later (probably this weekend), but I wanted everything online for when my equipment was started up.
I have an elaborate network of devices connected to my home network. Shortly after doing adding the Pentair equipment to my network, my Russound MCA-C5's started acting up. The first gremlin was all of the keypads locking up and the clocks would no longer advance (the first time it happened they were all stuck at 4:30am, the second time 9:15pm, etc). The next gremlin was my Dell network printer sporadically disappearing from the network. Both of these devices are connected to the network with physical cables.
To fix the Russound issue, I tried rebooting all of my Russound equipment. While the equipment in the rack would reboot, the keypads would never come back online (they're hardwired as well for anyone that doesn't know the layout of russound equipment). Through process of elimination, I found that if I removed the network connection from the Russound equipment, it would boot normally and the keypads would function. As soon as I plugged in the network cable and attempted to reboot, it would go back to a non-working state. If I plugged the cable in after things came online, things would work for 1-2 days, and then everything would freeze up again. This system has been up and running for 4+ years without issues...so I started focusing on what had changed before I started replacing equipment.
Thinking back to what had changed, the only thing that had been added to the network was the protocol adapter, so I started going down this route. If I remove the protocol adapter from my network (disconnect the network cable connecting it to my main switch), I could turn off the Russound equipment, connect the network cable, and it would boot normally. The printer would now stay online as well.
Thinking how I could go about addressing it, I tried using Ferrite cores - I had a few extras laying around and it's a quick test as they simply snap over the wire. As soon as I put one on the cable coming out of the Pentair ScreenLogic Protocol adapter, I could power-cycle my Russound equipment with the network cable connected, and it would work. Since doing this, I haven't had any issues with the Russound system locking up, and my printer is back to it's normal ways of staying online.
I haven't done enough testing to know if the protocol adapter itself is causing the issue, or if the Pentair wireless link connected to the Pentair protocol adapter with the 4 wire Pentair data bus, but either way, I thought this was worth sharing...hopefully may prevent someone else from going through this frustration.
- The Pentair ScreenLogic Protocol Adapter introduces interference into my wired network
- A ferrite core over the network cable coming out of the protocol adapter was enough to suppress the interference and get everything working again. I have the 5mm size, and they can be purchased from amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stardrift-10-Pack-Diameter-Ferrite-Filter/dp/B015RDVGDE/
Longer version:
I just got done installing all of my automation equipment. The final step was adding the ScreenLogic Protocol adapter (which I did in my garage), and the wireless connection kit to send signal to my automation panel which is on the other side of the wall and about 15 feet further down the side of the garage. I plan on hard wiring the link between the protocol adapter and the panel later (probably this weekend), but I wanted everything online for when my equipment was started up.
I have an elaborate network of devices connected to my home network. Shortly after doing adding the Pentair equipment to my network, my Russound MCA-C5's started acting up. The first gremlin was all of the keypads locking up and the clocks would no longer advance (the first time it happened they were all stuck at 4:30am, the second time 9:15pm, etc). The next gremlin was my Dell network printer sporadically disappearing from the network. Both of these devices are connected to the network with physical cables.
To fix the Russound issue, I tried rebooting all of my Russound equipment. While the equipment in the rack would reboot, the keypads would never come back online (they're hardwired as well for anyone that doesn't know the layout of russound equipment). Through process of elimination, I found that if I removed the network connection from the Russound equipment, it would boot normally and the keypads would function. As soon as I plugged in the network cable and attempted to reboot, it would go back to a non-working state. If I plugged the cable in after things came online, things would work for 1-2 days, and then everything would freeze up again. This system has been up and running for 4+ years without issues...so I started focusing on what had changed before I started replacing equipment.
Thinking back to what had changed, the only thing that had been added to the network was the protocol adapter, so I started going down this route. If I remove the protocol adapter from my network (disconnect the network cable connecting it to my main switch), I could turn off the Russound equipment, connect the network cable, and it would boot normally. The printer would now stay online as well.
Thinking how I could go about addressing it, I tried using Ferrite cores - I had a few extras laying around and it's a quick test as they simply snap over the wire. As soon as I put one on the cable coming out of the Pentair ScreenLogic Protocol adapter, I could power-cycle my Russound equipment with the network cable connected, and it would work. Since doing this, I haven't had any issues with the Russound system locking up, and my printer is back to it's normal ways of staying online.
I haven't done enough testing to know if the protocol adapter itself is causing the issue, or if the Pentair wireless link connected to the Pentair protocol adapter with the 4 wire Pentair data bus, but either way, I thought this was worth sharing...hopefully may prevent someone else from going through this frustration.
