APNT-51 - Using the Secure 2-Channel Receiver (SSR302) with VERA

This application note shows how to use the Secure SSR302 2-Channel Boiler receiver with VERA to control your heating and hot water systems.

The Secure 2-Channel Boiler Receiver (SSR302) can be used together with the Secure Wall Thermostat (SRT321) to enable you to control your heating and hot water systems via VERA.

Further information for fitting the 2-Channel Receiver and for using the Secure Wall Thermostat are available in these guides:

Note: These devices were previously known as Horstmann HRT4-ZW and ASR2-ZW.

Adding the SSR302 to VERA

Adding the 2-Channel Receiver (SSR302) to VERA is straight forward:

Install the Secure Receiver into the electrical system following the wiring instructions in APNT-39: Installing the Secure Thermostat and Receivers
Switch the power on
The SSR302's LED will flash Red - indicating that it is not included in a Z-Wave network
Move VERA close to the SSR302 and put it into 'Inclusion' mode
Press and hold both of the SSR302s White buttons until the LED starts flashing Green (this should take 2-3 seconds)
The SSR302 will now be part of the VERA Z-Wave network
For further information on adding devices to VERA, take a look at APNT-48: Adding Devices to VERA

SSR302 in VERA

When you have included the SSR302 Receiver in VERA you will see three devices - this is normal for multi-channel devices. One device is the 'Parent' and the other two are 'Child' devices

Secure 2-channel receiver in VERA Figure 1: Secure SSR302 Device Icons in VERA

You will see that VERA uses generic heating icons to represent the the SSR302. The Heat and Off buttons are the only buttons that control the SSR302 and its individual channels, all the other buttons and temperature readings should be ignored as they do not work with the SSR302.

Parent Device (Secure 2-Channel in Figure 1) - Heat and Off buttons can control Channel 1
Channel 1 - Heat and Off buttons control Channel 1 (this device will have 'altid' = e1 and will have an 'id' number 1 higher than the Parent device)
Channel 2 - Heat and Off buttons control Channel 2 (this device will have 'altid'= e2 and will have an 'id' number 2 higher than the Parent device)
You can check the device 'altid' and 'id' numbers by clicking the device's 'Wrench' icon and looking in its 'Advanced' tab

SSR302 Channel Control

If you have wired the SSR302 using the wiring example in APNT-39: Installing the Secure Thermostat and Receivers then the channels will control:

Channel 1 - Heating
Channel 2 - Hot Water

Important Note:

The Secure manual (included with the product) is incorrect. The correct wiring for the SSR302 is shown in Figure 2:

The SSR302's internal wiring is shown in Figure 2 - this shows that the Normally Open (NO) contacts are used to control the heating and hot water, these are On (live) when the channel is turned On. Channel 1 output is on pin 4 and channel 2 output is on pin 3.

Secure Receiver Internal Wiring and switch contacts Figure 2: Secure 2-Channel Receiver Internal Wiring and switch contacts

Association

We recommend that the 'heating' channel should be associated with a Secure Wall Thermostat (or other Z-Wave thermostat). This means that the thermostat can directly control the receiver without having to communicate via the VERA controller. It also means that the Thermostats's TPI control software is used to efficiently control your heating, help to save money and reduce wasted energy.

Full information about configuring the Secure Thermostat and associating it with the Secure receivers is shown in APNT-20: Configuring the Secure Thermostat and Receiver

Fail Safe Mode

The Secure 2-Channel Receiver includes a Fail Safe mode that prevents the receiver staying ON if it loses contact with the Secure Thermostat.

In normal operation the Secure Thermostat sends a signal to the receiver's channel that it is associated with every 45-50 minutes. If the receiver channel does not receive this signal, the receiver will go into Fail Safe mode after 60 minutes.

If you are using the receiver without a thermostat, such as for hot water control, then you need to be aware of this Fail Safe mode.

For instance, if you turn on / off one of the receiver channels via a Scene, the receiver will enter Fail Safe mode after 60 minutes.

Therefore, for these types of scenes, you should have the scene repeat the command every 30-45 minutes to prevent the Fail Safe mode.

If you are using both channels without a thermostat, then you need the scene(s) to do the same for both channels as either one will cause the receiver to enter Fail Safe mode.

One way to do this is to use "Delays" in the scene - configure delays to repeatedly send 'on' throughout the duration of the scene's schedule.

Manual Control

The SSR-302 User Manual is not very clear on how to control it manually.

For manual control you use the Top and Bottom White buttons, and the Green and Red buttons

Turn On Channel 1 - Press and Hold the Top White button and Press the Green button
Turn Off Channel 1 - Press and Hold the Top White button and Press the Red button
Turn On Channel 2 - Press and Hold the Bottom White button and Press the Green button
Turn Off Channel 2 - Press and Hold the Bottom White button and Press the Red button