Smart plugs

[penfold]

I have a basement and one of the things I did last year was put my bike on a trainer and use it over the winter. This year I want to make it a little nicer to encourage me to get on the bike more. As a result I want to cordon off a section and build a "room". The basement is basically open plan so it has lights on either side of the house which is good enough for going down in the dark and having light which is bright enough to walk around and grab what you want. Now because I want to section off a part for my training room, I will be cutting off the light from one side of the room. I was thinking rather than putting in some new lights I would put in a lamp which I may already have and put in a smart plug which I could then use to remotely turn the lights on meaning I don't need to get to the light switch in the dark.

 

Another thing I am looking into is getting a smart switch for an electric heater in one of the cold bedrooms. I would like to be able to measure the usage and again control remotely if possible. One of the things that I don't want to do is buy the cheapest, and then if I want to expand in the future I need to buy again. The only thing I have at the minute is google home so I want it to be compatible with that, but I want to future proof myself as much as possible so I can use 1 system and don't have to use multiple apps.

 

Is there anything I should be looking for specifically. My idea eventually is maybe I could put a wireless sensor in the basement which would automatically turn the lights on downstairs as I walk into the room. But I am not sure how practical (or the cost) that is. While the cost of a couple of smartplugs is not too expensive, it's not that cheap either and I don't want to waste money. Any ideas or recommendations?

[FN-GM]

It’s something I am looking at the moment. It’s not the plugs themselves I am not sure on, it’s the smart hub. There are plenty of Zigbee plugs out there, but I want a decent Zigbee hub to use with many vendors as i grow the stream.

[penfold]

This is maybe something I should be looking into also. I did see that some plugs are only useable with specific connections (such as Zigbee) but then what hub do I get to connect everything together? My primary goal for now is just to "test the water" with some plugs, but I don't want to them limit myself into a specific "ecosystem" or need to buy a multiple hubs to make things work.

[Davit2005]

I had bought a few Hue sensors as already had a Hue. One sensor worked and one did not. The one in the Kitchen has been flawless (setup to switch on the HUE strip light whenever it senses movement but only after dusk) but the one I bought for the Hall never seemed to connect to the Hue hub.

 

Apart from that I have Z-Wave hub (and a few sensors for temp etc.) which I have not got back into testing, Home Assistant which I have tied into Hue but not done any automation with yet and some TP-Link Kasa smart plugs some monitoring consumption and some jus plain switches. The Kasa plugs seem reliable enough, I have 4 of them tied into Home Assistant.

Edited September 5, 2022 by Davit2005

[TechMonkey]

Hub wise, if you have a big, modern Alexa or certain Google devices then you have a hub. Otherwise a Hubitat or Home Assistant (thrusting hips optional) maybe a good option, depending on level of tinkering or budget.

As for the plugs, I'd say you'll never waste money on them if you get reputable ones. Always a use.

[ZeroHour]

So I have been digging into the smart home stuff for a few years now so some thoughts:

 

Hue: Very good all round, I have never had a bulb fail yet and the hub works well, I would personally use the hub and integrate that into whatever controller you use over managing zigbee to each bulb yourself, you get bulb updates with the hub and they plan to add matter support which will need the hub. The motion sensors I have work very fast and are very light on the battery.

 

Homekit: If you are in the apple system I do like it but you need a homepod/mini/tv to get the good of it as a hub device, the newer mini and TV's support the Thread protocol which I can see replacing zigbee in the future as the normal protocol. It does have its quirks though and really needs a good wifi setup to work well.

 

Home Assistant: Amazing software, I have it as my primary controller/logged in my house on a Pi4 8GB with an SSD. Its not easy to get into though but its so powerful and supports a huge amount of 3rd party stuff. If you like to have a lot more local control it can be very useful. It also allows you to add none Homekit devices into homekit as well as a whole lot more. For example my kitchen ceiling lights cant take Hue bulbs until I change the fittings but I put a wifi switch in the wall (needs neutral wire though) and a hue motion switch and it means the hue motion controls the lights depending on brightness and time even though hue doesnt support anything but hue and a few partners.

Its very good but it can be a bit overwhelming.

 

Smart Plugs: I have used a hue one for a specific lamp, it works well but isnt rated to high ampage. I have got a bunch of Meross ones and some are Homekit but to be honest I am not impressed. They are okay especially if you have no control hub but they can be a PITA with wifi. Currently I am using Tasmota based plugs which link into Home Assistant and allow me to do energy monitoring, they are 100% local and sold in the UK. With that I have been logging the washing machine power costs and when it detect the power usage drop to 1W Home Assistant sends me a push notification to tell me the wash is over, the cost of the wash and duration and I have done that with the tumble dryer as well.

If you like the idea of the plugs I am using with control via Home Assistant etc I can link you the ones.

 

Alexa: As a control hub it does have a lot of cloud stuff to integrate, it probably the widest support but I really find it a bit of a mess to work with, I am moving everything to Home Assistant with Alexa interfacing with it to make it simpler to be honest. I would not use it as a Zigbee hub.

 

Google: Like alexa I have found it a bit of a mess and varying support.

Edited September 5, 2022 by ZeroHour

[jmak]

If it's for lights, check out quinetic switches: https://www.quinetic.co.uk/

I use one where the light switch is on the opposite side of room to the door. Works really well and a lot simpler than smart switches - possibly not quite as cool....

[hardtailstar]

I've got a Google home and Bluetooth Phillips Hue lights in all my lamps and ceiling lights. They are the ones that dont need the Philips hub.

 

I can manage them via google home and have them set to come on/switch off at specific times or when I ask the google home.

 

Had them installed for almost two years now and never had an issue.

[penfold]

Thanks for all the responses. I have looked into Home Assistant briefly a few months back and eventually I think this is the route I want to go. At the minute I don't have anything "smart" so it is a but pointless to set it up now. Now stupid question time does Home Assistant just smart devices to connect to your local Wifi or it also requires an additional hub? I know I could read up/watch videos but a)I'm a little lazy and b) I know there will be many people who have already done this and can provide some links

 

Thanks

[Davit2005]

Thanks for all the responses. I have looked into Home Assistant briefly a few months back and eventually I think this is the route I want to go. At the minute I don't have anything "smart" so it is a but pointless to set it up now. Now stupid question time does Home Assistant just smart devices to connect to your local Wifi or it also requires an additional hub? I know I could read up/watch videos but a)I'm a little lazy and b) I know there will be many people who have already done this and can provide some links

 

Thanks

 

You can get away with Home Assistant and wifi controlled lights/plugs without a hub. You can run HomeAssistant on a Pi or as a VM.

 

But I'd recommend looking at the things it currently supports. Other options out there too as well even alternatives to Alexa, Google i.e. Mycroft

Edited September 6, 2022 by Davit2005

[FN-GM]

Thanks for all the responses. I have looked into Home Assistant briefly a few months back and eventually I think this is the route I want to go. At the minute I don't have anything "smart" so it is a but pointless to set it up now. Now stupid question time does Home Assistant just smart devices to connect to your local Wifi or it also requires an additional hub? I know I could read up/watch videos but a)I'm a little lazy and b) I know there will be many people who have already done this and can provide some links

 

Thanks

 

You could get a ZigBee USB adapter and plug directly into Home Assistant if you would like.

 

I am avoid Home Assistant at the moment. The be honest I want something simple. I can't be bothered with it after dealing with servers and stuff at work!

[chazzy2501]

I stripped out all my Zigbee stuff. It became more restrictive in the end (its more work to say "turn on x light" than reaching for a switch). Plus I don't like the idea of 40+ cheapo mini power supplies running all the time creating electrical noise. (every device is always on, just not illuminated or active)

[FN-GM]

I stripped out all my Zigbee stuff. It became more restrictive in the end (its more work to say "turn on x light" than reaching for a switch). Plus I don't like the idea of 40+ cheapo mini power supplies running all the time creating electrical noise. (every device is always on, just not illuminated or active)

 

Did you replace it with something else?

[Andrew_C]

I've not tried the plugs (yet) but I'm finding Drayton Wiser as a heating control quite good. Just installing TRVs all around to cut the temps in rooms not occupied all the time.

[chazzy2501]

I put back the dumb bulbs and sockets. (I still had most of them)

[ZeroHour]

Thanks for all the responses. I have looked into Home Assistant briefly a few months back and eventually I think this is the route I want to go. At the minute I don't have anything "smart" so it is a but pointless to set it up now. Now stupid question time does Home Assistant just smart devices to connect to your local Wifi or it also requires an additional hub?

 

It depends on the device, like FN says you can get a Zigbee USB adapter to interface with things like Hue bulbs directly in HA (Home Assistant) but to be honest if you go Hue I would get the hub as it will be far less hassle and you get the starter pack with bulbs and hub for cheap during sales/black friday, most other things are via wifi, some companies require their devices to go to the cloud and HA pulls/controls via that.

Since you dont have smart stuff right now but you like the idea of HA I would start factoring in a Pi4 8GB (ideally if you will end up doing a lot although I had no issues with 4GB before I upgraded) as its one of the better ways to run it imo. The nice thing with the Pi is that it will use a lot less power over a lot of the other methods and HA actually have their own OS you just image onto an SSD or MMC and it deals with everything for you. It does remove some extra toys you can play with but if you dont want to frig with the OS and want less hassle its the way to go. I did run it on the Pi OS that they have but I ended up having a bad update and it was a right PITA to fix so when I got my 8GB I decided to use HassOS on it instead and tinker with my 4GB.

Plugs wise, the chinese ones from Meross etc are on sale on amazon but like I said above they can be a PITA with wifi.

 

I am avoid Home Assistant at the moment. The be honest I want something simple. I can't be bothered with it after dealing with servers and stuff at work!

 

Yeah I can understand with that, its a big change from the simpler stuff, its crazy powerful but even now I still find it a pain to get examples of implementations.

[HarryMonkey]

I use Tapo plugs and bulbs. I use them via Alexa and it's nice to be able to come in at night with both hands full of shopping and tell Alexa to put the lights on. There is a Tapo app that I can use when Alexa get the hump and wont do what I tell her.

[penfold]

@ZeroHour - I wasn't looking at Hue as I had heard that they are very expensive compared to other devices that do basically the same thing? To be honest, I wasn't looking at bulbs at the minute, as I was just looking at putting some lamps in place and using the Smart plug to turn on/off. But eventually, I guess I may be looking at bulbs also.

[ZeroHour]

Yeah Hue are the premium costly ones but they are very reliable, I got my starter kit in 2017 and no bulb or device has failed yet. They do make a light plug as well. The other more premium brands such as Nanoleaf have quite a few issues with their bulbs I believe right now. Innr isnt bad though but it has its own quirks. If you do consider bulbs you can usually always get Hue ones on Amazon sales, I dont think I have ever paid full price for a bulb yet. I have seen a lot of folks saying the Aqara motion sensor is not as responsive or as reliable as the hue version.

 

These plugs (or well the older models I have) are okay, the app is okay, it works with Alexa etc but depending on the plug it can have Siri/Homekit support or not so if you want HK support look closely:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/stores/page/54EA342C-B6A6-4E75-AADD-CA49756A2983?ingress=2&visitId=e88152d6-686e-4ab2-841a-5be64732d239&ref_=ast_bln

 

I am going to be flogging my Meross plugs at the end of the month when I finish replacing them with local Tasmota ones so I will have a few for cheap then.

 

The one thing with smart home stuff is when you start out I would try and have an idea what you would all like done even if it takes a couple of years so you dont get burned with EOL/Cloud shutdown (points at google and others...) issues. I tend to recommend Hue for bulbs because of the reliability I have had and the fact the whole system can work local mode/no internet as well and they are planning to support Matter with their hub although I have considered Innr as well and if your house was built since the mid 1990's there is a chance you have a neutral wire in the wall switch so you can just use a wifi switch to deal with lighting.

 

Food for thought I would say is try and buy things that talk about supporting Matter in the future as a lot of riding on it to avoid the problems with the huge swathe of ecosystems right now.

Edited September 6, 2022 by ZeroHour

[nicholab]

I am Sonoff user the plugs and th16 to control my hot water and heating. I also control the over bed light with an Alexa and Sonoff plug.

[ZeroHour]

I am Sonoff user the plugs and th16 to control my hot water and heating. I also control the over bed light with an Alexa and Sonoff plug.

Yeah its a Sonoff light switch I have, I do want to flash it though, its annoying how it supports local mode but if you cut it off from the internet it sits reconnecting to the wifi every 1-2 minutes.

[IrritableTech]

Given your requirements I’d look at Tradfri stuff from ikea (or the stuff from Lidl, but who knows when that’ll be back).

 

They do a good range of smart sockets, bulbs, switches and sensors all through one hub and one app. They’re at the cheaper end of the market and will integrate into home assistant (which I think we all know is the direction this will end up) through ZHA or zigbee2mqtt.

 

I’d personally recommend the zigbee route because as your device number increases it’ll keep the chatter off your WiFi network which can quickly reduce its speed. Zigbee builds a mesh network through permanently powered devices meaning your push switches and sensors powered by batteries can be further afield in your house without issue.

 

Check but I’m fairly sure tradfri works with Amazon, google and home kit too.

[FN-GM]

Given your requirements I’d look at Tradfri stuff from ikea (or the stuff from Lidl, but who knows when that’ll be back).

 

They do a good range of smart sockets, bulbs, switches and sensors all through one hub and one app. They’re at the cheaper end of the market and will integrate into home assistant (which I think we all know is the direction this will end up) through ZHA or zigbee2mqtt.

 

I’d personally recommend the zigbee route because as your device number increases it’ll keep the chatter off your WiFi network which can quickly reduce its speed. Zigbee builds a mesh network through permanently powered devices meaning your push switches and sensors powered by batteries can be further afield in your house without issue.

 

Check but I’m fairly sure tradfri works with Amazon, google and home kit too.

 

I am considering IKEA. But struggling to find how functional they are. For example can they schedule lights on and off (and maybe automatically know when sunset is) as well as a physical switch to over ride. Do they work if the internet is off? Can you see how consumption on the plugs?

 

If anyone has a good resource for the feature set (and maybe others) it would be good.

 

Cheers.

Edited September 7, 2022 by FN-GM

[IrritableTech]

I am considering IKEA. But struggling to find how functional they are. For example can they schedule lights on and off (and maybe automatically know when sunset is) as well as a physical switch to over ride. Do they work if the internet is off? Can you see how consumption on the plugs?

If anyone has a good resource for the feature set (and maybe others) it would be good.

Cheers.

I'm a zigbee2mqtt user, so my go to would be their compatibility list. What is exposed by each device is mentioned here: https://www.zigbee2mqtt.io/supported-devices/#v=IKEA

The socket doesn't do power consumption I'm afraid.

 

Details here on scheduling but I don't see dawn or dusk I'm afraid but that might be doable in the motion sensor because that records illuminance. https://www.ikea.com/gb/en/customer-service/product-support/smart-lighting/how-to-use-smart-lighting-pub53d86412

 

You just need to fire up Home assistant :-p . To be honest these days you'd have it running in twenty minutes. Integrate ikea hub in ten then half a dozen automations in another ten. The onboarding is so much nicer now than many of the guides and youtube videos show. This setup would all work offline too.

[FN-GM]

I'm a zigbee2mqtt user, so my go to would be their compatibility list. What is exposed by each device is mentioned here: https://www.zigbee2mqtt.io/supported-devices/#v=IKEA

The socket doesn't do power consumption I'm afraid.

 

Details here on scheduling but I don't see dawn or dusk I'm afraid but that might be doable in the motion sensor because that records illuminance. https://www.ikea.com/gb/en/customer-service/product-support/smart-lighting/how-to-use-smart-lighting-pub53d86412

 

You just need to fire up Home assistant :-p . To be honest these days you'd have it running in twenty minutes. Integrate ikea hub in ten then half a dozen automations in another ten. The onboarding is so much nicer now than many of the guides and youtube videos show. This setup would all work offline too.

 

Over 200 servers at work so really don’t want anymore 🤣.

 

In all seriousness I will have a look.

 

I might also look at Philips as well. They might have the features I want.

 

Thanks for the reply [emoji846]