Home Automation - Smartkit

[SauRoNZA]

Is there a specific image you guys used? Or a guide you followed on integrating the two?

I just use the official one.

Think I originally used that American teacher guy’s videos who has orange over everything whose name or channel I now can’t remember.

But I had a lot of help from here especially since I had the palettes wrong as there were many.

 

[Steamy Tom]

I just use the official one.

Think I originally used that American teacher guy’s videos who has orange over everything whose name or channel I now can’t remember.

But I had a lot of help from here especially since I had the palettes wrong as there were many.

The Hook Up

 

[SauRoNZA]

The Hook Up

Glad my description was decent at least.

Correct you are.

 

[alqassam]

I just use the official one.

Think I originally used that American teacher guy’s videos who has orange over everything whose name or channel I now can’t remember.

But I had a lot of help from here especially since I had the palettes wrong as there were many.

I watched 1 video on node red. Lost me after 10 minutes.

 

[SauRoNZA]

I watched 1 video on node red. Lost me after 10 minutes.

It was a bit of a mind warp for me at first.

Then again anything that requires code puts me to sleep long before that so it was a means to an end.

Now I’m quite happy with it has any quick adjustment or new idea is just a few clicks and drags and drops away.

 

[SAguy]

It was a bit of a mind warp for me at first.

Then again anything that requires code puts me to sleep long before that so it was a means to an end.

Now I’m quite happy with it has any quick adjustment or new idea is just a few clicks and drags and drops away.

Do you think that for us "normal" home automation folk, there's anything the built in HA automation can't do?

I'm always keen for new things, but don't want to add unnecessary complexity.

 

[SauRoNZA]

Do you think that for us "normal" home automation folk, there's anything the built in HA automation can't do?

I'm always keen for new things, but don't want to add unnecessary complexity.

Really something that will answer itself when you run into a wall and can’t do something you expected to be quite simple.

When I started doing the advanced routines for my presence detection to open things under certain conditions but not others the flowchart style of Node Red just makes it much easier for me.

I run a server full of dockers anyway so it’s no more complexity for me to just add another one.

I consider myself perfectly normal with these things.

****

Speaking of a presence detection for some reason my iOS Home Assistant app has just decided I’m at home permanently now and I’ve deleted it and reset it and readded and still does the same.

No idea what’s up there.

 

[Tinuva]

Does your app have access/permissions to background location on your phone?

 

[SAguy]

Really something that will answer itself when you run into a wall and can’t do something you expected to be quite simple.

When I started doing the advanced routines for my presence detection to open things under certain conditions but not others the flowchart style of Node Red just makes it much easier for me.

I run a server full of dockers anyway so it’s no more complexity for me to just add another one.

I consider myself perfectly normal with these things.

****

Speaking of a presence detection for some reason my iOS Home Assistant app has just decided I’m at home permanently now and I’ve deleted it and reset it and readded and still does the same.

No idea what’s up there.

Your HA app is in cahoots with Dlamini-Zuma, you're supposed to be home at all times

 

[xrapidx]

For me specifically the benefit is NOT doing it in code.

But at the same time I do believe it has a lot more functionality or at least make it easier to do many things than directly in HA but I’m not an expert.

Of course it also can integrate with other things if you were to get that hardcore.

I've never been a drag and drop person, I read code and numbers easier than pictures... So far, I haven't found anything I can't do via code (not that YAML can be called code).

I think Nodered might have an advantage when things change in HA, or the underlying components, so maybe worth a visit.

 

[SauRoNZA]

I've never been a drag and drop person, I read code and numbers easier than pictures... So far, I haven't found anything I can't do via code (not that YAML can be called code).

I think Nodered might have an advantage when things change in HA, or the underlying components, so maybe worth a visit.

Yeah you’ve said this before and I’ve meant to go and revisit some of my automations in HA to have a look better never gotten to it.

Personally the drag and drop and visualisation is perfect for my needs and if HA could just do more of it in the GUI I would be quite happy with doing that instead.

 

[Slip]

Being able to visualize your automation helps quite a bit, as does the ability to drag and drop nodes. There are also function nodes that you can program to do more complex automations. Plus I prefer running my automations outside of home assistant. Would recommend you give it a try.

 

[SAguy]

Being able to visualize your automation helps quite a bit, as does the ability to drag and drop nodes. There are also function nodes that you can program to do more complex automations. Plus I prefer running my automations outside of home assistant. Would recommend you give it a try.

I wonder if nodered can be managed by code, in json/yaml/etc... if that's the case then it's a win and I'll definitely give it a go.

I prefer having everything backed up in github, and I'd hate to backup the entire application and not just a few files.

 

[Tinuva]

I wonder if nodered can be managed by code, in json/yaml/etc... if that's the case then it's a win and I'll definitely give it a go.

I prefer having everything backed up in github, and I'd hate to backup the entire application and not just a few files.

You can export the flow to json.
You can also backup all the configs.

I have moved my nodered docker container between servers easily in the past.

 

[xrapidx]

Being able to visualize your automation helps quite a bit, as does the ability to drag and drop nodes. There are also function nodes that you can program to do more complex automations. Plus I prefer running my automations outside of home assistant. Would recommend you give it a try.

Can automations control automations though?

 

[alqassam]

Can automations control automations though?

Yea it's called

Autoception

 

[alqassam]

For the sonoff SV is it possible to add 2 sensors to it?

So I currently have a SV controlling the gate and a sensor for open and closed would like to add a 2nd sensor for the button on the intercom.

 

[SauRoNZA]

For the sonoff SV is it possible to add 2 sensors to it?

So I currently have a SV controlling the gate and a sensor for open and closed would like to add a 2nd sensor for the button on the intercom.

Assuming Tasmota I don’t see why not.

You have the GPIO’s and the options in the menu interface to have three.

 

[Tinuva]

I've never been a drag and drop person, I read code and numbers easier than pictures... So far, I haven't found anything I can't do via code (not that YAML can be called code).

I think Nodered might have an advantage when things change in HA, or the underlying components, so maybe worth a visit.

Any benefit NodeRed has over doing it in code?

Coming from Openhab. In Openhab the scripting language made no sense to me and there was no way other than looking at logs to figure out if it works or not. Nodered was amazing to assist here.

Now in HomeAssistant, I find that its almost like it is more mature.
The automation/scripting language is more structured. You only need to learn jinja2 templating.
The Template section in the developer tools is an absolute must to do automations, especially if you need to test conditions.

So if you fine with HA, I don't see you needing Nodered, but also Nodered could benefit you in other scenarios. However I can't tell you when, how or why. You need to check out Nodered and then decide for yourself. That is my opinion.

I have moved most of my Automations that I used in Nodered with Openhab, to HA directly, except for one which will happen some time too.

So what I have left in Nodered that will stay there:
1. Tracking Eskom loadshedding, both on Twitter for early warning to me and wife and also from the CoCT website to give us the CoCT specific states. Then lastly tracking the schedule. This is stuff I wont do in HA.

2. I scrape the www . smd . coza website for specific vehicles that I might be interested in buying (crazy hobby).
Only if it find stuff I specifically want it will alert me. I don't have time to sit on this website every day in hope for a post. Now I get a notification once every 4th month or so.

3. Some integrations I couldn't do in Openhab. Now with HA I don't think I still need these, but will evaluate later.

Right now I am busy tweaking automations in HA every day basically.

Can automations control automations though?

I am sure you can what HA allows.

You can do these in HA: (so you can also call these actions from Nodered)

Service:
automation
- reload
- toggle
- trigger
- turn_on
- turn_off

 

[Steamy Tom]

Just a note on using multiple pins, note that same pull high or low on boot up, so keep that in mind for your application.