Where do you find your ideas?

I'm simply a Home Automation addict at this point.
My name is Stephan, and I have a problem.

I see something that "can" be automated in my home and try to think of a way to do it....hopefully with stuff I already have laying around or stuffed in my HomeAuto graveyard drawer.

Just last week I got my mailbox alerts going...out if pocket costs..$0
I had a brand new Iris leak sensor laying around for months (got a few when they were giving them away and ended up with one too many). Decided to repurpose it as a contact sensor and bam...mailbox alerts. Now to scan the forums for more ideas.



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Hello, my name is John and I'm a Home Automation addict. :slight_smile:

I've had my own ideas and then automated them and now just look around at things that "could" be automated and think of how to do it. I work a side gig with a integration company so I get requests for things and some are easy and some are interesting or new... and I'm on the forums....most of them... a lot... watching, reading... sometimes posting or interjecting. Sometimes welcomed...sometimes not so much :slight_smile:

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Hi, my name is Andy and I’m an insomniac code addict.

I come up with code either from ideas on the forum or things I see and try and find a way to use it :slight_smile:

And yes, it’s almost 4am here :wink:

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This forum mostly. I decided to jump in and learn about circuitry a few years ago, realizing we were on the verge of a technological diy revolution where anyone would be able to do anything. Home Automation gave all of that a purpose, and in bite-size pieces that translate conveniently into weekend projects. Truth be told I'm floored by the brilliant thinking / problem-solving in these forums and wish I had a more comprehensive programming background, but I'm grateful for everything people have contributed.

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Every time I have to do something manually that could be automated .. I write a rule... I prefer my smart home to not have to be told to do something... I like it to know what I want it to do and when... So I am always adjusting to make it better...

So my ideas come out of laziness basically..

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I think you and I have discussed that. I'm the poster child of lazy and everything that interacts with us has been done. Waiting on an electrician to put in some switches and an exhaust fan in the bathroom. I have some switches that need automation, but I'm bored with switches and want to find something cool. that's why I'm stumped. What's next?

Try detecting presence based on patterns and not based on a presence device. I am working on detecting if my mother in law is at our house while we are not there and she does not have a presence sensor. The tricky part is to detect when she left based on door and motion sensors while considering that our dog might trigger the motion sensors....

Why do all of that? To turn on music on our echo while our dog is alone...

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I have presence based on door lock code. Everyone goes in and out of the garage, so why not do something based on the order that things are opened and closed? It would take me forever in a day to figure out a rule for that, but the picture in my head says code entered then kitchen door opens and closes. then kitchen door opens and closes garage door opens and closes. I did something along those lines for my "doggy door" the door opens, the outside light turns on, closes, stays on, opens stays on, closes turns off. Works great. I use a virtual switch to count and reset. Just a thought.

I want to do this, I think. Anyone willing to help me with equipment to buy?


For my sliding barn doors in the basement. It would be great to be able to auto close them! The doors are already on a sliding rail, so i just need to buy the "stuff" to automate it. The motor, the stop, the belt.

It’s more about the idea... think of patterns of events to automate things, e.g. bathroom time. Make your house predict what you want to do to do it for you. Voila, Pandora’s box is opened and you won’t be able to close it anymore...

Btw, no smart lock over here...

My house interacts with us based on patterns. Creatures of habit we are, so that was checked off our list months ago. Phone chargers put the house to sleep, Lights turn on based on time and what motion sensors are active. Lights dim when the tv goes on. I've nothing left besides what we're planning on doing in the bathroom. Thinking about automating my barn doors.

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Nice... Never thought of that one

What's the total travel here?
Doing something like this is a no brainer:

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it would be a double door. two motors. Controlled separately. sometimes I close one and not the other.

The problem is that I don't know enough about motorizing things like this. I also have Anderson crank out windows. Would love to automate them as well, which is a bit more complicated because they have flip locks

Right what's the total travel in inches for one door, open to closed?

Here is a link to my project. We used project 1.0 for about a year and just did the 2.0 version in September, which is much easier on the eyes. Feel free to steal or build upon the project. That's why it's posted here.

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Sorry, Mike. I will get you measurements upon my return. Just left for Christmas festivities with the fam. Boy, I wish I could be home right now and get this project started. UGH. Merry Christmas!

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I would like help creating an automation that would clean up the garage. I have been thinking on this for a long, long, long while. I still can't think of any way. Ideas?

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:rofl::rofl:

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