This isn't too fancy but very useful on a daily basis.
We have a drawer in our mudroom where our kids put their toques and gloves but when it's left open, as it constantly is, we come in through the garage door and smash the drawer with the door.
So with a simple contact sensor, some spare electrical parts I had on hand and a smart plug we now have a very obvious indicator in the garage if the drawer in the other side of the door has been left open and we will potentially smash it with the door when we open it.
A great solution to what I'm sure is a very annoying problem. Next, maybe a TTS announcement from Hubitat asking the kids to go back and close the drawer. Maybe Alexa or Google nagging them about it will get them to close the drawer on a regular basis.
If there's a couple of inches of space behind that drawer, you could rig a rope through the wall on an pulley to pull it closed --gently, with mashing any kids' fingers.
That's an interesting low tech idea. This could be done for sure but the front door isn't that far as an alternative and I would worry a bit about a hole into the garage for fumes from a running car to enter the house. Probably not a real issue with a small hole but when the front door is so close just not quite worth the risk. I like the idea though!
I need one of these to warn me when the DW arrives home so I can make sure I’m off the couch before she walks in.
In all seriousness, I need one of these in my camper. Destroyed a kitchen cabinet door at the very end of the season bringing in the kitchen slide because it was not completely closed.
That would be a challenging environment to install in! Almost need just a battery powered contact sensor with built in audible alarm if left open for a certain period of time.
We have a google home that announces when one of us arrives home, which is when we enter the geofence area within the Hubitat app. So there is about 30 seconds warning for you! Better yet, you can use life360 and make an alert when your DW leaves work. Even more notice!
Had to look this one up This was a very novel way of using your system! You can purchase self closing drawer slides from specialty wood working places like Rockler in the US as another option to minimize the chance you are forced to reopen the garage door and go in through the front door.
Haha yes mainly a Canadian phenomenon! I did look into the self closing mechanisms but worried about little fingers. Maybe when the kids are a bit older that will be the route to go and repurpose the contact sensor and smart plug!
This was a very novel way of using your system! You can purchase self closing drawer slides from specialty wood working places like Rockler in the US as another option to minimize the chance you are forced to reopen the garage door and go in through the front door.
