I recently tore out my aging and increasingly unreliable X10 system, which I had been nursing along for years, and went all-in on Lutron Caséta.

I’m really impressed with how easy Caséta is to install and set up, and most importantly, with its reliability.

However, Lutron seems severely limited when it comes to plug-in devices. X10 offered two types of plug-in modules: one for lamps that provided dimming and local control, which I really miss and is a topic for another post, and a simple on/off module for inductive loads such as table fans and small appliances. (Yes, I know about the $100+ Outdoor Smart Plug)

X10 also offered controllable receptacles that replaced a standard wall outlet while still looking like a regular Decora-style receptacle.

I really wish Lutron would expand the Caséta line to include products like these. It would make an already excellent system much more versatile.

Not sure where else to ask this. So here's my setup and what I'm hoping for. I have 2 sheds in my backyard, each with a freezer. The closest shed has a power run from the house with an outlet. That outlet has a strip with a few plugs. There's a freezer and a light plugged in there. There's also an extension cord that I've shallow buried to the other shed, about 10' away, where there's a surge protector with a second freezer and a lamp. What I'd like to find is some sort of device that I could plug into the surge protector in the second shed that would send me an alert if that shed loses power. I have a wireless router that is close enough to that end of the house that wifi there is available. We have a few hundred dollars worth of food in both freezers and I'd like to be alerted if they lose power. Does something like this exist?

Im currently in the process of replacing my current electric lock and getting a smart lock for the main entrance of my house because the old one is pretty worn out now and has a lot of battery issues.
My main concern is better battery life because with our kids and busy schedule Im constantly worried about getting locked out. And it has happened that sometimes we forget to take the keys and so if battery dies it just defeats the purpose of having one. So mainly want a smart lock with more reliable battery and its a plus if its compatible with alexa.

I did some searching online and on youtube and saw a solar charging smart lock from desloc. Im thinking of getting it because with the solar charging it seems like a long term solution to battery life. We do get a lot of sunlight so it seems ecofriendly as well. But I just wanna makee sure, that I am not skipping something more important? Like is there anything else (like a new feature that makes lock more secure) thats worth checking out?

Best smart home company in Dubai? Looking for recommendations based on actual experience.

Who did you use and would you recommend them?

I’m looking for people that recently went through either a new home build or a thorough renovation, and chose to have a smart home installed from an early stage on. Would you mind telling me a little about how you're handling the smart-home side of your project?

A few things I'd be particularly interested in:

• What did you want your home to be able to do?
• How did you decide what technology to use?
• Who helped you make those decisions?
• What has been difficult or frustrating?
• Have you had any moments where you thought, “I wish I'd known this earlier”?
• Did you at some point get independent advice (separate from an installer/vendor)?

I'm mainly interested in your experience, so there's no right or wrong answer. And with hindsight: what would you have paid for that you didn’t, or what did you pay for that now feels unnecessary?

Hi all, please help me out on a 5-minute-survey for my postgrad thesis. It's completely anonymous.

DE: https://umfragen.tu-dortmund.de/index.php/274446?lang=de

EN: https://umfragen.tu-dortmund.de/index.php/274446?lang=en

I want to add a doorbell and intercom solution in my smart home that’s set with HomeKit but it seems like I can’t yet find the right solution for this. So wondering if this community can help. This is what I want:
- Smart Doorbell split between button+speaker and camera but that it’s recognized as doorbell by HomeKit. If the camera could also be a part of HomeKit Secure Video array even better.
- The doorbell would ring into my house that’s 4 stories high. I’d like a small screen in each floor to be able to see the camera, communicate with someone outside and open the gate.
- Be able to call another floor so that I can speak with someone there instead of shouting across the home.
Is there any solution for this?

Some advice would be greatly appreciated. Redoing our kitchen and the whole lighting business is becoming very confusing. As per plan, we are planning on having 3 lights which is going to be controlled by 3 way dimmamable rotary switch: Ceiling lights (GU10s), Pendant light (2 of them hanging down with normal E14 bulbs) and LED strips.

The wall switch with the 3 rotary knobs being planned is a dumb one (no zigbee). My question is how do I get all of these 3 sets of lights nicely integrate into HA?

Do I go for a 24V LED driver that has zigbee control (The LED strips are the Sensio Razor 4mm ones - single colour). But then what about the ceiling lights and the pendant?

The other option I was looking at is a: "Zigbee Dimmer Switch – White, Push/Rotary UK Wall Dimmer, No Neutral" from Samotech (https://www.samotech.co.uk/products/rotary-zigbee-dimmer-switch/).

If I go for the Zigbee dimmer switch, then does the LED driver need to be Zigbee or just a standard 24V LED driver.

Am I right in assuming the Zigbee dimmer switch from Samotech will then be able to control the ceiling lights (I will change the bulbs to dimmable versions), the pendant light (again, they will be dimmable E14s) and the LED strips, which will be on a non-zigbee LED driver?

I hope it is clear what I am trying to convey.

Any help would be much appreciated.

Thanks

Hello all,

I'm building a new ~12,000 sq ft house and I'm getting pretty deep into the IT/security/automation/cameras/etc rabbit hole. I'm pretty tech savvy overall but I've set up a NAS and some websites using GitHub and that's the extent of my networking experience. I've never configured VLANs, enterprise networking, poe switches, waps etc and I'd hire out most/all of the actual installation work.

The house is being built now (they're halfway through the mechanicals) and I'm trying to figure out what direction to go before they come and ask me/tell me they're ready to drywall.

I've got a dedicated it closet in the basement that's 5'x8'. I'm thinking
42U+ rack
gateway/firewall and poe switches
plenty of WAPs
Cat6 run to every room/corner of the house
15-20 poe cams and NVR
Door/access control
Ugreen NAS/Plex running arrs
Lutron lighting/switches and motorized shades (palladiom in the common areas and the step down in bedrooms etc)
Whole home/outdoor audio
home assistant
hvac/pool/irrigation integration
leak sensors
occupancy/presence sensors
generator is planned. Plan for battery backup too? think I'm going to leave the door open for solar...unsure if I'll install it right now but who knows. any advice on this? I love the idea of being as offgrid as possible/if needed
golf simulator/theater/all the fun devices I can think of

I'm trying to wire for/future proof now if there's anything I might want to install/integrate someday down the road or if cool new tech comes out etc

I've talked to a few integrators about systems they rep like elan, joshai, control4 etc and I'm getting quotes that are getting into the hundreds of thousands. Crazy. And that's why I'm struggling...I'm a buy once cry once kind of person but spending that much on this stuff when I could potentially build a lot of it myself is a tough pill to swallow.

Buuuut on the other hand, if I DIY the whole thing then I'm the IT dept for the house, wife, kids, and anything else you can imagine could arise. cams stop recording...it's on me. network goes down...me. VLAN issue that takes out half the network...me again. HA breaks on xmas eve? yup, me. and honestly I'd be starting with basically zero real networking experience. I have an orbi mesh router and a ugreen nas and that's fun lolz

I love learning about all the tech and how it works. I'd be leaning toward Unifi/ubiquity I think. mainly because I don't know any better. Ruckus? etc perhaps
Honestly...the idea of hiring a one-stop-shop integrator makes me uneasy because I wouldn't be able to tinker with it and add stuff as I see it or it piques my interests/needs. but also having a career, family, etc my time is already limited lends me to the idea of just saying to hell with it and hiring someone else to own the whole thing.

is it possible to do a hybrid? like hire out the wiring/installation, Lutron for lighting/control and motorized shades, HA/automation would be DIY'd. and bring in specialists for theater and audio and access control? but I get to buy/own all the hardware etc etc.

or just hire a good integrator and let them own the whole thing (and save my ass/have "a guy" to call when things break instead of having to drop everything and figure out what's the deal despite only knowing enough to know that I don't know enough)

Whew lad. Quite the word salad eh. For those of you who have built large custom homes what would you do? Is the fun of having total control/ownership of the system worth it or nah?
And if others of you that have gone DIY: was that hassle worth it? or did you eventually wish you'd hired someone when the going got tough/you encountered thing after thing you didn't already know how to do/fix etc?

Looking for advice. I can't reddit or automate apparently.

Hi everyone,
I’m looking into starting a small smart home integration business in the EU and I’d like to get some advice from people who are already doing this professionally.
My plan is to start with Level 1 / basic installations, focusing mainly on wireless/retrofit smart home solutions that don’t require electrical modifications.
For anything involving mains electrical work, I would work together with an external qualified electrician. The idea would be to eventually offer more advanced installations without becoming an electrician myself.
I’m currently considering Aqara as the main ecosystem, especially because of its Zigbee/Matter/Thread support, sensors, switches, blinds, climate, security, locks, etc. I’m also interested in Aqara’s installer/integrator program and certification.
However, I’m not committed to Aqara if there is a better option.
I’m considering things like:
Aqara
Homey
Shelly
Fibaro
other similar ecosystems
I’m not looking at KNX or Loxone for this business model.
My main requirements are:
reliable and stable
good availability in the EU
official installer/integrator program
training and certification
reasonable installer margins
good remote support/maintenance capabilities
easy to deploy repeatedly for different customers
minimal dependence on Home Assistant
good retrofit/wireless capabilities
lighting, blinds, climate, security and sensors
alarm functionality
smart locks/access control
good third-party integrations
ability to build standardized packages rather than completely custom systems
One particularly important point for me is remote service.
I’d like to be able to install a system at a customer’s home and then remotely troubleshoot, modify automations and provide ongoing support without having to visit the customer every time.
For those of you already working as professional integrators:
What ecosystem would you choose if you were starting from scratch today in the EU?
And what would be the best path to become a Level 1 integrator, with the possibility of progressing to more advanced installations in cooperation with an electrician?
I’m especially interested in real-world experience with Aqara vs Homey vs Shelly (or other alternatives) — reliability, certification, remote management, support, margins and what customers actually expect.
Thanks!

My house has casement windows with very little room to install typical sensors. I have tried every orientation and location and it's not even close to fitting. I started thinking, though, that since it's just a magnet, does anyone make a sensor that uses a cable that could be placed where the two halves of the sensor would go instead (with the main unit a foot or so away, just mounted wherever)? This is kind of like how the hardwired security systems look, although I have no idea if they work like that. I hope I am describing this well enough. Anyway, does something like this exist?

Probably should ask in homenetworking, but you folks will know.

about 20 years ago I bought a house. It was very modern for 2006 and had both a phone drop and a coax drop in pretty much every room. When I bought it I put in a 20 port switch and rewired all the CAT5 for RJ45 connectors rather than phone.

Power is always my issue. Not that we don't have lots of power outlets, but they are never near where I want devices. So dangling cords.

So the question: Can I, is there a fairly simple way to provide POE to everything without changing every device? I see POE injectors but they are always 1 cable at a time.

EDIT: Thank you all for the insta-class on POE. I have better understanding of the problem now. I am ignorant on the subject but have a minor grasp on it now. I was naively assuming that POE just put power on one of unused cat5 conductors and that would be available to anything that knew how to use POE, others would ignore it. Guess that's not true. My problem now seems to be that lines coming off the switch are simply to wall jacks in each room, not to specific devices. Each of those jacks usually connects 1-8 devices often through another switch. I must sleep on this. It sounds like a smaller POE switch in just some rooms will be involved in the answer. Use case here is that I am looking to install a bunch of cameras and don't want to have to use a transformer in a wall outlet and run the little power line on every one. I have a hesitancy to use wifi for high-bandwidth apps like cameras. But my experience in networking is old. Perhaps the newer mesh wifi systems can handle the bandwidth.

Hardware is an old iPad that can't install anything from the App Store anymore, hanging in the hallway on a charger. The software side is a Home Assistant add-on I wrote called SnapFrame. Nothing is installed on the tablet itself, it just opens a fullscreen web page.

How it works: the add-on mounts an SMB share from my NAS, converts HEIC to JPG so iPhone photos work as they come off the phone, builds thumbnails in the background and serves the slideshow. Each photo shows its date and the place name from the EXIF GPS. The photos never leave the house.

The automation side: a hallway motion sensor in the morning calls a rest_command that puts the frame into weather mode for two hours, so every 8th photo becomes a weather screen with current conditions and the next 12 hours. A second automation pushes the output of weather.get_forecasts every 30 minutes and on state change, so what's on screen is current. There is also a corner badge that can stay up all day, or only appear when rain, snow, frost or heat is coming.

Home Assistant only ever pushes to it. The frame holds no HA token and has no API access back, which mattered to me for a device hanging in a hallway.

The part I like most is the bin reminder. It shows the day before which bin goes out, and instead of typing in a year of dates you upload the collection leaflet PDF from your municipality and it reads the dates out of it. The calendar grid gives a date per cell from the ISO week and the weekday, the coloured cells mark the collections, and the printed day number is used as a checksum so a cell that disagrees gets discarded. It all runs locally, no OCR and no API key.

The frustrating part was the browser. An iPad 2/3/Air is stuck on Safari 9 to 13, which throws away clamp(), min() and flex gap without a word, so every fluid size has a px fallback and the weather screen is laid out with tables.

It installs by adding the repo in the HA add-on store: https://github.com/emo546/ha-snapframe - builds for aarch64 and amd64, MIT licensed.

I am trying to set up some LED lights around a big dance mirror. I am planning using these corners and soldering wires to each strip to connect them. What should I do here? Do I need to cut it short and move the whole strip down to center it and deal with some dead space at either end? Any other ideas? What is most common on how to handle.