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[LUG] Home Automation

 

Always keen to have a geeky project, I've been dabbling a bit with Home Automation lately. I've had a 1wire system measuring temps and CCTV IP cameras for many years, and two years ago got a Nest thermostat - but recently I've added some more things. A few remote control sockets, a CurrentCost power meter, a lot of thermometer/humidistats and door switches (Using the cheap Xiaomi hub)

Like everyone else, you get fed up with all the different apps. Alexa helps but I wanted something to tie it all together.

There are two main choices - Home Assistant and OpenHAB. Neither of which I liked, both have steep learning curves and require extensive twiddling to get working. It was actually quite disappointing to find this out.Â

After a while, I stumbled upon Domoticz which does most of the setup through a web interface. I run this on my home server and it's compatible with all my equipment.Â

Due to our dogs and lifestyle, we have a specific problem with high humidity in the house, so a while ago I installed a MVHR home ventilation system. This has been awesome, but it tended to need being left on all the time, which in very cold weather reduced the temp inside a fair bit - or manually control it. With the addition of a simple IP controllable plug adapter and a humidistat in a few key rooms, it's now nicely automated. When someone draws a bath, the humidity rises in the bathroom and within 30 seconds the fan kicks in and stays on until the humidity drops down again. This is just one example and genuinely makes life a little easier and will prolong the life of the fan, save power and keep the house warmer and more comfortable. I have other little things that make life a little nicer as well as satisfy my inner geek. (It's just told me that the kitchen door opened as the wife comes home, for example)

Below is a screenshot of a new interface I knocked up last night using Dashticz. This will be displayed on a tablet in the hall. The CCTV and Rain Radar updates every second too. This is just the key info - in total I have around 20 temperature sensors around the house and garage, 4 cctv cameras. Some of it exists just because I like data but also for house-health reasons.Â

Has anyone in here done something similar with home automation?

https://i.imgur.com/wM2CdVX.jpg
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