So as the title suggests, I would love some help and direction with making first steps setting up my very first smart home.
Eventually I would like to automate a lot of things, but initially would be focussing on lighting through bulbs, wall switches and contact / motion sensors.
Having looked into all the available devices I am totally mind blown, so here is what I think...
I am most certain that Hubitat will be my hub - therefore need to know what devices you guys recommend that will work well without dropping off and breaking the bank?
I've bought a broadlink light switch (wifi) and although I like it, I would like something that's quicker to trigger the action i.e turn on the light.
I Like Aquara sensors ( motion, contact ), but prefer the look of sonoff zigbee wall switches... but then there is zigbee, Tuya, Ewilink - literally I have a headache from thinking.
My other confusion comes from the topics discussing the zigbee mesh and the fact that aquara extenders will not work for sonoff and vice versa.
As you can probably gather from the question, I am a total noob and would love some idiot proof tips please!
Lutron Caseta for switches, Lifx for strips and occasional stand alone bulbs. Check the compatibility list for sensors. (Find what you can, a lot is not available right now) and please ask as many questions as you can.
That said what are the first things you want to automate? Start there..
My recommendation would be to start small. Maybe setup one room with lighting and motion as a starting point. Remember that there is a lot to learn, so things will not work perfectly the first time, and this is why starting small will help.
When it comes to the hub, in my opinion Hubitat is great because of its relative ease of use, scalability and the fact that it is local, so it responds fast. As an example, I have a very complex multi-hub setup at home that I keep tweaking (because I can) and I am very happy with what it does. My father on the other hand has a simple setup with only a few devices that essentially never changes and he couldn’t be happier.
Another aspect of the hub that is really nice is it a ability to integrate a broad variety of standards, from Zigbee to Z-Wave, to Lutron and locally accessible web devices (like LIFX and Shelly). Those protocols can be inter-mixed without issues.
As for devices, my favorite sensors are from Smart Things, now sold by Aeontec. They are not cheap, but I have found them to be easy to setup and to work well. Sonoff on the other hand are cheep and can be a bit more tricky, but once setup also generally work well.
My favorite switches are from Inovelli. Unfortunately, they will probably be out of stock until their new Blue Series (Zigbee) dimmer/switch combo comes out.
Hopefully, you will enjoy the journey, and keep asking questions!
Hi There,
Thank you so much for the quick response!
Ok, so initially I'd like to achieve the following:
Kids room:
When my son goes to bed ( 8yo ) he tends to manually turn on the following things:
TV + 30min timer
Xbox for YouTube
Ceiling light ( turned to blue - his favourite colour )
Star projector ( Cheap amazon thing - not sure if there is a way to turn this on, but operates with a remote )
Dumb fan
I'd like to be able to achieve a routine that would accomplish all of this with a single click, as well as automatically turn off when for example 20mins after the TV had gone off - to make my life easier
Living room:
Pretty much as above really, but with different devices.
I'd like some kind of a scene controller so that when I am off to bed, I can click and it will accomplish something like:
Turn TV off with 30sec delay
Turn lights off with 45sec delay
Turn on the stair lights/lamp - so that I can see where I am going
Perhaps have some automation to gradually change the lights temperature based on time of the day ( Cooler in the day, warmer at night )
Bathroom:
I've just renovated my bathroom and installed dumb led strips in recesses and a skirting board.
Given there is no window ( bathroom ), I'd like the lights to:
Be permanently on, but pretty dimmed. Only when someone enters I'd like them to brighten up.
Extractor fan to turn on when humidity reaches particular level ( I can wire that to a smart plug )
Kitchen:
Under cabinets lights - same as bathroom, dimmed to "brighter" when motion detected
That's just a few and in theory, I know exactly what to do and how to accomplish it, but I am just so confused with all the zigbee, z-wave, tuya etc. and building a good mesh in general ( 3 storey house )
Given I don't have £1000's to spend, I'd like to avoid mistake and choosing wrong products - ones that will for example kick each other off the network, or perhaps won't play well as extenders ( I know aquara can be picky, but that's about it really )
It is also important to me that there is no significant delay when for example motion is detected or when the light switches are pressed.
I am UK based, with neutral available for the lighting
This forum is full of very helpful information for you. Do your due diligence and search often. It appears that you have done so. My input is more of a personal opinion. You get what you pay for. I have attempted to do home automation projects cheaply. It seems that frustration levels increase as the cost of the devices used decreases. In the end, researching desired devices thoroughly and modest $$$ investment has worked far better for me (and the WAF) than trying to shoestring a system together.
I can confirm that whilst waiting for your replies, I've ordered the Hubitat!
I've done plenty of research and as useful as the above input is, it doesn't actually help me understand the zigbee mesh itself, and the compatibility of mixing products/brands.
I've mentioned sonoff and aquara, mainly because of the extensive discussions about them across the internet as a whole and the fact that they seem easily available.
From my understanding:
Sonoff - Is the cheaper more fiddly ( Don't really know "adjustments" are needed ) option, but deep down I don't understand if they are actually fully local ( zigbee ) or wifi by Tuya?
Aquara - Seems to have a lot of good reveiws for most of it's devices, but the mesh has to be top notch and can only be achieved with very particular extenders - like the IKEA smart plugs.
Based on the above, can they be mixed?
For example use Sonoff wall switches, with aquara sensors etc.?
They can't be temperamental... They tend to drop off unless you have the right repeaters and even then it can be a crap shoot. Stick with sonoff... And most of us use a combination of z-wave, zigbee, clear connect, and a little wifi...
With that in mind, does the sonoff stuff need to be flashed with tasmota or esp home?
Again, I've seen lot's of discussions about it, but can't understand what is the benefit of flashing?
Sonoff Zigbee devices do not need to be flashed with Tasmota. They can be used as-is.
Flashing is to change the firmware on Wifi devices from what they come with (and typically needs to connect to the cloud to get instructions) to one that is local and that can easily be connected to from Hubitat.
Not all wifi stuff can be flashed to tasmota. It all depends on the chip. Instead of trying to find something like that, stick with what's known to work with hubitat. You can always experiment later. I mean do you want to waste money now or get a viable home automation system working first?
I know I am now asking for a lot, but could you please post me a link to some inexpensive and hubitat compatible UK zigbee devices? Or at least point to me a brand?
I need some light switches ( 1, 2 & 3 gang ), temp/humidity sensors, Motion sensors, contact sensors, smart plugs and bulbs.
I understand If I am asking for too much, but I just can't get my head around it all
I would post in the UK group as well, but you can look here (set yourself for uk) And when you find something post about it to see if anyone has it working. Again though look at the hubitat compatibility list and look it up locally on amazon...
Hi and welcome! We all have our favorited devices and it can be overwhelming when starting out. Check here for a summary of the best products known to work well with the Hubitat: A Year In Review
This from @conrad4 ^^^^ - the Year in Review link. You'll find a summary of the products in each category that members here were fondest of (or in some cases hated the least). A good place to begin.
Many of us prefer smart switches controlling dumb bulbs in built-in lighting due to simplicity and ease of use. Manual control of the light works the way it did before things got "smart" (turn lights on/off w/switch) so you don't have to teach anyone to do anything different, but now you can also control the lights using motion lighting rules, time of day lighting, and other automations.
If you have smart bulbs and a normal wall switch, if your family/visitor turns the light switch off the smart bulbs are now dead and non-controllable. Not good.
You can buy switches (Zooz & Inovelli are two) that can be set to "bulb mode" where they work as a smart bulb controller and don't turn power to the circuit they are attached to on/off. I would only do that if I wanted some of the additional benefits of smart bulbs in a location, like changing lighting tone during the day, using the bulbs to signal issues (turn purple when laundry is done, turn red at night when an outside door is open, etc.).
Lamps and any lighting w/on-off control switches directly on them are trickier...if the built-in lamp switch is turned off you will be unable to control the smart bulb in the lamp through any means. For lamps I provide a easy to see/reach smart button that controls a smart bulb in the lamp. I had to do some coaching w/my family so they would remember to use the smart button and not to turn the light off using the normal switch on the lamp. Making the smart button much easier to reach than the lamp switch itself has been key to the success of this approach - lazy family members use the smart button because it's easier. You can also plug lamps w/a dumb bulb into a smart plug, and again have a smart button for control.
I also use lamps to provide notifications via color changes so using smart bulbs in lamps is useful for me.
I'd start with smart light switches and outlets to build a strong mesh from mains powered devices that repeat, figure out where you may need/want to use lamps and ensure you have a good plan for controlling them that 1) Family members & guests won't constantly screw up, and 2) Is compatible w/the switches you buy. Then start adding motion and contact sensors to help drive your automations. I prefer Zigbee motion and contact sensors as they tend to be fastest reporting and smaller (generally) than Z-Wave devices.
Im in the UK with neutrals and ive gone down the zwave route for lights in the house as i wanted dimmers.
I have Fibaro dimmer 2's with schneider retractive grid switches, im very happy with them have 15 installed.
I use a mix of aeotec multisensor 6 & 7's for motion , lux and humidity all powered by usb some mounted in recessor's some wall mounted.
A couple of smart implants that link my smoke alarms and monitor my hot water tank and showers/bath.
3x aeotec plug in sockets
1 x aeotec recessed door sensor 7
1 x yale conexis l1 lock
I also have many zigbee devices
I use smartthings contact sensors for my doors.
I have 32 ledvance rgbw bulbs in the garden
3x hue outdoor motion sensors.
11 x cheap zigbee rgbw strip controllers
Tuya 4 button scene controller
Many smartthings buttons
A couple of aqua button (do keep dropping off)
Tuya and ikea repeaters
10 x heatmiser stats
5 x clicksmart double sockets
1 x single clicksmart socket
3x auro double sockets ( wouldn't really recommend)
many smartthings plug in sockets
1 x Yagusmart single switch
I have quite a few other bits as well i forget how much i have, but have a good mix of zwave and zigbee as i dont believe that you can do a whole house with just one or the other.
i have a few wifi devices but try and avoid if possible. (naonleafs, dehumidifer, coffee machine)
most of the bits i have im happy with and they work with little to no maintenance
you could do this with any smart switch just wire the bulb to the live rather than the switched live and write a rule/piston to control the bulb, not sure if you would get an electrician todo this but onced its signed off you can do what you want in your own home allegedly.
I prefer to wire things "normally" as much as possible so that there aren't any surprises for those coming after me if and when I suddenly drive off a cliff.
A good place to begin.
