DIY Guide: 8 Essential Sensors to Give Your Smart Home Superpowers
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- Опубликовано: 3 июл 2024
- 🚀 Meet the chips and sensors that will set you off on your journey towards harnessing the power of home automation 🌟
⏱️ HIGHLIGHTS
00:00 - Introduction
01:11 - What to expect
02:18 - Assumptions
02:46 - ESP Chips & Sensors
04:02 - ESPHome
06:02 - Common Sensors
06:10 - Temperature Sensor
11:19 - Motion Sensor
13:03 - Light Sensor
14:10 - Sound Sensor
15:47 - Air Sensor
16:43 - Moisture Sensor
19:11 - Load Sensor
19:55 - Touch Sensor
20:45 - Top Tips
⚡IMPORTANT ESPHOME LEARNING LINKS👨🎓
* Getting Started with ESPHome and Home Assistant: esphome.io/guides/getting_sta...
I recommend googling "ESPHome [insert name of chip]" but here are some key pages I used to get you started!
* DHT Temperature & Humidity Sensor: esphome.io/components/sensor/...
* Ultrasonic Distance Sensor: esphome.io/components/sensor/...
* BH1750 Ambient Light Sensor: esphome.io/components/sensor/...
* Sound Sensor (Analogue To Digital Converter): esphome.io/components/sensor/...
* The Grove - Laser PM2.5 Sensor (HM3301): esphome.io/components/sensor/...
* HX711 Load Cell Amplifier: esphome.io/components/sensor/...
* Capacitive Touch Sensor: esphome.io/components/binary_...
🏾 STARTER CHIPS AND SENSORS
* ESP-32 amzn.to/3W5fYfm
* Temperature - DHT-22 amzn.to/3W3ikvi
* Motion - HC-SR04 amzn.to/3L4BY3J
* Light - BH1750 amzn.to/3xEKKT0
* Sound - KY-038 amzn.to/4cJlIkw
* Air - HM3301 amzn.to/4bq8eZO
* Moisture - Capacative Soil Moisture V1.2 amzn.to/3zjPwps
* Load - HX711 amzn.to/4brEXhq
1️⃣ ALL-IN-ONE SENSORS
* Apollo Automation sensors 🌟 apolloautomation.com/handsonk...
* b-parasite Sensor github.com/rbaron/b-parasite
* USB Cable Tester mentioned: amzn.to/3RR5JZL
⚡MY FAVOURITE PRODUCTS🖥️
* All my recommended products are on my site here with affiliate links so you can support my channel: handsonkatie.com/recommended-...
🔨OTHER FAVOURITE TOOLS (if there is a 🌟 after the name it is an affiliate link, so I get a little too! Thank you ❤️):
* Shapeoko CNC 🌟 shop.carbide3d.com/HANDSONK80
* Cricut 🌟 amzn.to/3R75qK1 @Cricut
* Apollo Automation sensors 🌟 apolloautomation.com/handsonk...
* Bambu P1S 🌟 shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=237790... @BambuLab
* Prusa Mk3S @Prusa3D
* Creality CR-10 Max @Creality3D
🎬 OTHER VIDEOS YOU MIGHT LIKE:
• Best Air Quality Senso...
• The Seven FREE Wonders...
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Наука
Every one of your videos I watch make me come up with more and more ideas. A few of them are actually about Home Assistant
The most creative, entertaining and informative smart home channel there is! Stay awesome!
The "ultra-sonic-waves" hand gesture is adorably cute!
Great overview and entertainment as always. Thanks
The way I've been choosing to use my powers, is to convince my brothers new girlfriend who's just moved in with us, that our house in haunted, with lights randomly switching on/off, the thermostat turning itself up, random spooky sounds coming from a hidden speaker.
Am I using my powers for good? Not entirely...
Is it fun watching her freak out? Absolutely!
Genius idea!!! 😈
If you really want to freak somebody out go. To developer tools then services and type in "TTS" and choose the text to speech option. A list of speakers will show up if you have any Chromecast or other smart speakers. Then type in whatever you want it to say, unfiltered. The best part is it works on soundbars so it's fun having it say something while watching TV with my friend and his wife because they have no idea what's happening. I pretend like I didn't hear a thing.
Very clear explanation of the process.
Love this video: enthousiastic host, clear tutorial, well structured, humorous, geeky, beautiful editing. What more do we want?
Wow, very nice approach to ESPhome! Congrats!
Just changed my WiFi password, changed my esphome common.yaml file, one click, 79 devices updated with new password👍 Love the HA esphome combo. Fair to say I automate most things!
It's great, eh??? ☺️
this is the most refreshing take on nerdy smarthome stuff I saw in a long time.. thank you !
Thanks Katie. really getting into your channel. its very informative and easy to follow. But also fun to watch. I don't think I have found another channel this good and ticks so many boxes. Looking forward to the next Video/short.
brilliant video, a friend gave me a couple of sensors and I did not know where to start. Thanks for this overview, it made life simple for me ;-)
Good one. Few notes.
1. ESP firmware installation works from some browsers, not all. E.g. it does work in chrome but not Firefox.
2. Before plugging in power to the sensor, check what voltage it works with. Might be 3,3V or more, but sometimes 5V might break one working with 3,3V. Logic voltage is another subject ;) Just check parameters of the sensor and connect to a proper esp32 pin
3. I used these moisture sensors but at least for me, they were not reliable. I need to give them another chance
Great points - I cut a lot out of this trying to keep the balance between detail and simplicity!! 1. I had in my notes, but forgot to mention! 2. another great tip (esp as lots of ESP32 chips have both!) and 3 - I've heard this before, but I've had loads - at least 5-6 running for years without any issues - hence I mentioned the capacitive point as I can certainly see the resistive types degrading pretty quick. Might be worth giving them another shot!
@@handsonkatie re 3, true. Resistive corrode and adds chemicals to your soil… don’t try this with basil :) I will try it with esphome, I was trying like 2 years ago with custom python script I prepared for RPI. But couldn’t find consistency between devices or even readings of a particular device. Few pumps are still waiting to be used and add water from air condition to the plants on the balcony while I sleep ;)
Another great point actually - indeed these resistive types just seem more silly the more I think about them!! Ah, that could be the difference - give it a go, I'm thinking of doing a dedicated plant/gardening video in the future, so might deep-dive a bit more!
trouble shooting chips at the end are great!
awesome video, gorgeous presenter
I combined T-sensors inside and a weather station outside to control a sizable fan sucking air out of the flat to have a kind of AC. The main motivation was that given a temperature difference of only 2°C between inside and outside I get an efficiency (Q/W_el) of 900%, 3x that of an AC. Ofc there are some limitations, notably that it only works when outside really gets colder than inside, you still have to manually open and close windows, and that the fan is louder, but in total I am quite pleased with my setup. For anyone trying to replicate that be consoled that the devil is, as always, in the details ;)
Great example.... and love the stats!!!
Very good video, informative and well presented.
Just been doing a lot of the same and really love it when you get your geek on 🥰
So true!
The hackiest thing I've ever added to my smart home was a DHT22 to see when my refridgerator failed. It had a bad board or something but come back fine if you unplugged it for a few seconds. I hooked a DHT22 into a tasmota flashed 15A smart switch, got them both working in HA, and wrote a script in NodeRED to control the logic. I got another 15 months of life out of that fridge!
This is a great example! Love it! It's also a common thing I hear about that fridges temperature management is a bit ropey, so it'd be quite interesting to see how a temp sensor measures up to the fridge's perceived temperature! Plus how long it takes to re-chill the fridge every time you open it! Endless fun!
Amazing video! Entertaining and educational! Great references and accent! Cheers from Nova Scotia, Canada!
Haha I love the extra 'flair' in this overview.
Nice ❤
Dr Horrible reference 😂
You just earned 1.000 nerd points. ❤
...be careful, Bad Horse might hear you..... 😉
You’ve revealed another one of your superpowers: AI prompt engineering! Your stable of sensor superheroes was quite impressive!
Have you looked into micro-power sensors from a German company called enOcean? They harvest power from the environment and can transmit their readings to a specialized transceiver. Their generators will derive power kinetically, from light, or from temperature differentials. They also have a wireless remote, powered by an internal piezoelectric generator (i.e. does not require a battery or super capacitor), that sends Bluetooth advertisements upon button press and release. These devices are a little pricey, but the lack of maintenance is priceless.
Ooh very interesting, hadn't spotted them - will have an investigation!! ☺️ These self powering devices are starting to get in range of consumer price points, so will get very interesting soon...!
Amazing, entshuasistic and informative video. I am using raspberry pico as it seems to have lower power consumption.
Great solution - pico's are excellent little chips too!
Katie you have become a legend in our little DIY group. Just letting you know that you have a gaggle of gay men who are 3d printing, esp32'ing, Home Assistant'ing and drinking wine watching your videos (well except me, I drink grape juice). We all take shots at every riské joke or when the temperature suddenly plummets. 😂🍷🌈 One of our friends commented that he loved the fact that you are wielding your sensuality without a care what others say. One of our "feminist" lesbian friends nearly had a conniption though (the irony). Here's hoping your channel gets to 1 million subs soon.
Edit: I have bought a pack of 20 ESP32Wroom boards with touchscreens and am currently embarking on a 30 day weaning my smart home from any kind of cloud dependency. Goodbye Alexa/Siri/GA and Bixby. I would like to see an in-depth tutorial on integrating HA with ESP32 if you can work that into your video releases or even a post on your site. My current issue is the disparate instructions that sometimes contradict each others. For example, I've been trying to find a GUI builder that is easy to use for nonprogrammers so I can replace my current WiFi light switches with ESP32 Touchscreens.
Hello Nelson! Well your comment made me chuckle and yes, I do life is too short for a sterile and conformist existence.... :) However, my mischievous side is now plotting, given you've revealed the rules of your game, so don't blame me when the next video is stale and dull for 19 minutes and then has 1 minute with 30 risqué puns in a row sending you all to hospital.... ;)
Great to hear about your micro adventure, good luck de-clouding! And I'll definitely add it to my list (which keeps growing!!)
@@handsonkatie Lol, oh boy! I shall disseminate the news to our little group, there be many preparations to be made. Wine (and grape juice) for the toasting, pearls for the clutching and smelling salts for the occasional nip appearance (or for when one of our friends finally take a close look at your logo) 😁
@@nelsoncabrera6464 lol
@@nelsoncabrera6464 > _"... the occasional _*_nip_*_ appearance"_
.
"Notice of Intended Prosecution (NIP), also known as a Section 1 warning, is a warning issued under Section 1 of the Road Traffic (Offenders) Act 1988"
😜
"con - *nip* - tion", eh? 😆 You didn't choose that word by accident, right? \* 😉 Oh, how I love puns (intentional or not) and playing with words. Thank you for the amusing comments. 😁
.
\* I was pretty sure you wrote it on purpose, after reading your next reply to Katie in which you say: _"... the occasional _*_nip_*_ appearance"._ LOL 😂
Do alot of these types of projects. Great video and technical content. Being hot also doesn't hurt :)
Great channel, and this is again a great video 👍
I’ve seen some RFID / NFC devices in the beginning of the video.
Will you be doing a video about these to ?
I’m struggling getting them to work in Home Assistant om both Android and iPhone with the same tag.
Also tried NFC-Tools.
Thanks in advance.
Thanks! Regarding RFID tags - I use them all the time, so I can certainly add it to the list!
Hi Katie. I'm not that familiar with smart sensors. But I'd love to learn more. When you mentioned the sound sensor, I got an idea that would be great for me to learn about sensors.
Do you think it would be able to detect mosquitoes? And do you think that if I could connect many sound sensors in different parts of the room, maybe I could get an app to try to pinpoint its location?
Love it! Really creative idea - don't know mosquitoes well enough, but sounds very possible - indeed I'd imagine they've got a distinct sound pitch of their irritating whine! Having separate sensors would also let you locate as you say!! You'd just need to research/test different mics to make sure you got the right sensitivity - but could be a neat idea to have it alert you when one is detected!
@@handsonkatie Not just sound an alert... but ⚡ *zap* ⚡ the mosquito by activating a _(relatively low-power)_ *Tesla coil* ?! 🤓
Another great video, what was the name/model of the usb cable testing board?
Thanks! Link should be in the description - but for extra ease: amzn.to/3RR5JZL
Tot must have very large hands, according to the Amazon page these are 50x54 *cm* ... 😂
😂😂😂 stone age USB size!
We love your channel so much Katie. You're such a smart and beautiful creator with really enjoyable content. You are so engaging and entertaining, it actually makes me kinda sad when your videos end. Thanks for the effort you put in. Just whatever you do, keep up what you are doing cos its a winning formula.
Just a note on running ESP32's off a USB battery pack though. In most cases it wont be possible. ESP32's do indeed use a miniscule amount of power and can last weeks on a large battery pack (20-30Ah). Unfortunately most battery packs have a minimum threshold of power usage to stay active past a certian period. An ESP32 doesn't draw enough power from the battery pack to keep it discharging power to the ESP32. There are devices you can get that will prevent this by pulsing a higher current draw from the battery at set intervals to prevent the battery pack from powering off.
But they're not easy to find as it is so niche a problem that usually only tinkerers make them by hand and sell very limited quantities if any at all.
There is an electronic engineering creator on youtube, quite a popular channel actually. He makes them and provides schematics on how to do it. I believe he also sells them on his site as well. But I am sorry to say I cannot think of the channel name off the top of my head. If anyone knows who I'm talking about, can you please post the name of the channel below so people can track him down if they need such a device. I think hes German or Russian. I cant remember. And from memory he does a lot of testing and reviewing of test equipment and oscilloscopes.
Thank you honestgoat! Great comment and yes you're completely right, I was trying to not get too deep into the detail on this to keep it accessible, but there are various challenges and as you say you need to pick your ESP32/battery pack carefully, plus there's usually workarounds but these naturally depend on your use case (eg if outside then a solar panel as a boost charger works great), but probably a video in its own right!
Honest question Katie, what is your logo? I’ve been trying to figure it out for a few videos now but I’m not sure…
Also PHENOMENAL video I really love the way you broke this all down, and it made me want to try to more into individual sensors rather than prebuilt solutions!!!!!!! 😌😊☺️
😂 glad you enjoy!! As for the logo, it's become a rorschach test! Is it a log, is it a sewing reel, is it a vinyl roll ..... ☺️
@@handsonkatievery interesting! I always thought your logo looked like my parents fighting. 🤔
Thank you for getting me into this. Love your videos. Clear and articulate. Can you recommend housing for these sensors so they look a bit more aesthetic?
Thank you! Oh goodness, there's millions - I usually actually build my own, so I could share a set in future. But if you search on Printables.com, there's loads of options, so you can pick one that suits your style!
@@handsonkatie oh God, I can't get a 3D printer now as well. My wife will kill me!
But they're so lovely..... and a cost-saving.... ;)
@@handsonkatie can you advise on search terms to find some?
I've actually created a page on my site that covers this: handsonkatie.com/recommended-products/ Have a nosey and I'll always keep products that I really like there!
You do make it sound nice and simple. Thank you! Does this rely on having one WiFi network that reaches all parts of your home? I think I may need a zigbee mesh based system to avoid that obstacle.
You can do either approach - I actually use ESP32s as bluetooth extenders and part of a Zigbee mesh!
@@handsonkatieI will give it a go! Thanks for the inspiration!
Alright, got HA so that's a checkbox, got none of those chips but I am considering, that's why I am here aaaaaand no sensors. Still I'm gonna watch it and leave my opinion and questions. Thank you for your time to make this video.
1. I will have to watch this video multiple times to take a decision, I am building my smart home slowly and very carfelly, if a device exists in my home it means it deserves the attention and is a good spent money. No impulse buying here just because a gadget is appealing in any way.
2. will have to decide if regular network wifi is the communication type i need as the wifi devices i already have in my house are quite a bunch
3. it must be controlled only locally, no batteries, everything must be supported for a very long time
Home automation is somewhat avoided by people exactly because the life span of gadgets are pretty low, companies changing stuff to render your gadegets obsolete.
What you have in your home for a vey long time? This could be subject of a video, including the type of hosting the HA itself. I have tried and gave up so many times till i found the best gear for myself. I could share some info on what and what not.
I will watch all your videos from the first to the latest, cheers.
One type of sensor I'd like for ESPHome is an inductive driveway sensor. I've actually got such a sensor buried next to my driveway but it's part of a Dakota Alert setup which is fairly analog and limited. I'd like to see a more modern version which is maybe hybrid solar powered and can signal battery condition as well as vehicle alerts.
Is this for detecting vehicles or anything more? If the former, then could be worth looking at longer range RFID tags as an option...?
@@handsonkatie It's for detecting when any vehicle comes up my driveway, so can't assume there would be a RFID tag on the UPS truck.
@@handsonkatie The bigger picture here - I've currently got a Dakota Alert vehicle probe buried next to my driveway which has a wireless transmitter on a tree nearby. On the receiver side I've got a Simplehomenet (company out of business) receiver which then transmits an Insteon signal. I then have an old Insteon device which I monitor with code I wrote in Java which sends a MQTT notification. My smarthome code gets a MQTT notification of a vehicle in the driveway, requests an image from the camera overlooking the driveway and stores that image for review, but it also sends that image to the Sighthound service which tries to determine the vehicle type/make/model/color and possibly even the license plate. My smarthome code then gets the vehicle specs back and recognizes the vehicle, it then sends notifications to display devices around the house as well as push notifications to my Android phone. All of this is custom stuff I wrote. The Dakota Alert/Simplehomenet/Insteon part is the weak point. I'd like to replace the controller in the tree with something solar/battery powered which can send a digital notification (ideally MQTT) that my smarthome can react to, but also indicate things like a low battery.
Oh I see, so you just want to detect any car - I'd personally take all that out, just install a camera, connect to Home Assistant and use image recognition on that feed to do everything and more. There's lots of approaches, but things like: www.home-assistant.io/integrations/doods/ will let you run image recognition - so it could recognise cars (and number plates etc). It'd also let you train to recognise YOUR car, the postman's car vans vs cars plus you could add anything you want - eg recognise people and take photos of them.
I could do a little how-to video on this in future if helpful.
Topic for some video: It would be nice to add a battery suport. So that we could have ex external temperature sensor with battery level and easy charging.
Yes, that's a nice idea - I've done this (and also solar panels) - one for future!
Hi Katie ! Great video,very informative and you are such engaging presenter ! Quick question : What hardware are you using for your home Assistant server ?
I use an Raspberry Pi 4 with 8gb ram and an nvme drive for storage (ran it for years with an SD card, but a proper drive is more reliable!)
Thanks a lot !
"Damn Katie, since I watched your first video about Home Assistant, I bought like 100 sensors, 20ish microcontrollers, and a lot of electronics. I still haven't found the right hardware for Home Assistant. I wanted to buy a Raspberry Pi 5; do you think it is overkill for a beginner? Also, I ordered LoRa modules, and I have no clue how to use them, but I will figure it out. (What have you gotten me into? 😄)"
😄😄😄Well you're clearly a convert! Hardware for Home Assistant - I run a Rpi4 and it's super smooth, so a Rpi5 will give you years of future-proofing - I'd probably go with a Rpi 5 anyway as cost wise they're pretty much on par and excellent value for the extra grunt!
I'm sure this has been pointed out already but Dr Horrible's freeze ray is not an ice beam "that's all Johnny snow" the freeze ray stops time
Also I enjoy your tips on home automation
POINTS TO YOU!!!! 💯💯💯 I thought no one was going to point that out (I'd thought of doing a death ray and an ice beam to be really obvious!)
I appreciated it, it was subtle enough that if you know you know but not hit you over the head obvious.
Just to share, my most recent home automation is to flash a light in my living room when the washer is done and ready to be changed.
You can join my Evil League of Evil any day.... 😉
Great tips!
There are some nice starter kits available that will provide an ESP-32, various sensors and connectors, instructions on getting started, and a breadboard to easily hook things up for those that want to get started in an easy way.
Incidentally, why would you go to the trouble to soundproof a dungeon only to add a sound sensor? ;D
Great point Chris - I might do a quick video on these kits in future, great way to start.
As for soundproofing, the neighbours complained, so I had to soundproof, but the sensors are to confirm when I need to tighten the rack....
😉
The SHT40 is much better for temp.
What is the device that you used to check the USB cable? Do you have a link? I how that i have been bitten by this in the past 😢
Check the description - link there! 😉
Captain Disillusion will do a special video on you if you keep up those SFX,
Hi, been watching your very interesting channel for a while.
Can you help!!
You say that we can find out all about Home Assistant on earlier posts but i have looked and cannot find them.
Much appreciate some guidance as to where I might find them
Kind regards
Fan from Suffolk...
Nice video.
But why use the BME280 when you can do much more with BME680?
but why use a BME680 when you can do so much more with a DS18B20? ;) And on it goes!!
@@handsonkatie Or what i use now the BME688 - uses AI
@@fredericoalmeida5473 Doesn't everything now have an AI badge on it!? 😂 Great spot - hadn't seen that, will have a nosey!
@@handsonkatie Really amazing as you can train it yourself.
Thank you for a brilliant introduction to the ESP ecosystem.
But what's wrong with hours of headbanging? :D
Very true, I should edit to say 'save hours of banging your head, to give you hours more to headbang...'... 😂
🤘🤘😁
what is these @21:38?
Link is in the description!! 😊
where do. you get the b-parasite "sticks"?
Link in description!
How can I measure the temperature of the water coming out of my shower head? Is there an ESP 32 solutions for this? Or is this special kit?
Interesting one, you'd need to Google around but lots of options, eg this would be a simple install in your pipework and show not just temperature but flow rates also: www.digiten.shop/products/digiten-g1-2thread-water-flow-hall-sensor-switch-flowmeter-counter-with-temperature-sensor-female-and-male-thread-1-25l-min
Teledildonics?
I know, I hate myself too ;)
10:45 The...wait, what?
The ESP devs and HA integration devs need to work on the integration so that it uses a proper build environment so it’s not building and rebuilding binaries for each individual ESP device at every minor update that doesn’t even affect that sensor. It takes waaaaaaay too long to update large ESP environments, as say compared to Tasmota. I can script an update with Tas binaries (even oversized ones on ESP8266 - their minimal binary handles upgrading back to the full size on space limited ESPs) in two minutes with 80 devices.
That same update on the current heavy handed ESPHome integration would take a fast machine an hour.
That’s not properly designed for “embedded” devices in a “smart home”.
The ESPHome build process needs to know which object files actually need built per device and the integration needs to share those compiled files between identical sensors other than network settings / things that change per sensor.
Great video on the sensors. Now it just needs proper integration for updates.
It doesn't take me more than 15 minutes to update roughly 25 devices. Now, I am using a mini PC with a roughly 3 year old AMD chip and DDR5 RAM with an m.. 2 SSD so not what you would get on a raspberry pi but if you have 80 devices you should be running it on x86 if you aren't already. It takes me 2 minutes to do a full backup over the network and my backups are over 2GB because I really need some cleanup.
I do agree though, if you watch an update through the CLI it looks like it's doing a new install, almost like it cleans the existing build files. It should at least be able to tell revisions because it doesn't have to download and completely recompile for some minor changes. At the same time most are doing this in their free time so it's hard to complain.
@@JoshFisher567that’s waaaay more horsepower than a proper “home automation” / embedded system engineering design should need to accomplish the updating of sensor and switch devices that have teeny tiny flash storage.
What’s really happening is two-fold, main ESPHome doesn’t lend itself well to building generic binaries nor have any good way for the build system to look at a config and only build/rebuild the portions needed.
Secondarily, you are correct kinda… the integration is tracking and entire build tree per device and sharing none is the compiled objects between them, even identical hardware.
Having done commercial embedded system work professionally for a while long ago, this isn’t how you design an embedded device build system. You also don’t build binaries on the control boxes. Heh.
It’s an interesting problem they have. Both upstream and the integration. Example: Why throw a warning just because a dot release came out for the overall project upstream, that likely doesn’t even affect your hardware/use case. But the current way it’s architected - the integration has no way to know that. Because upstream has not provided a way to look at the config file and only rebuild needed objects.
It’s seriously goofy. Nabu Casa is trying to make a more professional automation platform it seems, but paired up with ESPHome and integrated it the most “build your binaries multiple times monthly” release model possible.
BTW they do pay at least one ESP dev, I think they announced two some time ago?
The integration seems to be mainly maintained by one of those devs. But it’s pretty clear they haven’t worked in pro embedded (microcontroller) systems. Well until now I guess. But no mentor to guide them in the ways of tiny fast updating binary releases.
Fun to chat about. I don’t see it getting better without at least 3 devs having it as a full time goal in a pro shop. BTDT. It also would have to be a goal, and I don’t see the willpower from above at Nabu wanting to move ESPHome away from the nerd/hacker mentality toward a packaged product. Shrug… dunno.
It’s fun to play with but if I want fast updates and embedded design architecture - that’s still Tasmota.
ESPHome is the Wild West compared to the goals of the lead Tas devs.
Not sure what Nabu Casa really wants to do with ESPHome but it’s not a fully baked solution for “home automation” device code.
HA overall kinda needs an “LTS” release cycle for those who want to set and forget it. Far too many updates with breaking changes not caught in regression nor documented.
The ESPHome devs seem to be caught up in the release cycle designed for the UI. Embedded devices simply shouldn’t need that fast of a cycle.
And sure, users can learn to ignore the warning in the UI but that’s bad from a “training the user to avoid important things” standpoint.
Even monthly UI releases with major changes are kinda “too much” for any non-tinkering folk to take it serious as a product. Again… shrug. Fun to discuss as an old embedded product guy.
Unique. I’d say. In the embedded world.
@@NatesRandomVideo I see what you're saying and you obviously have the background to recognize this and yes, Nabu Casa does have full time payed devs, there just isn't a lot of them. The guy who wrote microwakeword for voice assistants was a contributed and saw it as a challenge because he heard the main voice guy on a podcast saying that was their ultimate goal and took it as a challenge. That's not a knock on the main voice guy as he had written Rhasspy before moving to Nabu.
On the flip side, having worked for a software development company that makes extremely niche complicated software, there have been times where you start something new like ESPHome, make some poor decisions from the start and have to either live with them, which seems what they are doing, or rewrite stuff from scratch, possibly changing things in a way that would require removing and adding all devices back. I'm. Not saying that's the issue but I have seen it before and once it's in a final release and in customers hands, it's a much harder problem to fix for that reason.
Sometimes you just can't please everyone. I work at a company that makes software for state DOTa and there were always complaints about performance. The devs started storing stuff in Redis cache (memory) which made it way faster but now DBA's are mad because their custom triggers or updates don't work or aren't because if they do an update via the DB directly, when a user saves in the UI it writes what's in the Redis cache to the DB, overwriting the DBA's update. In the end we ended up giving them the option to choose what tables to use Redis so now are application can be slow in some areas and faster in others on a per agent by basis because they have different needs and cache different tables which is over 800 tables. The more complicated software gets the harder it is to make everyone happy.
@@JoshFisher567 yup, BTDT type of thing, too. I think ESPHome could rewrite the build process "relatively" easily without touching how devices are actually working at the end product -- but like you said, limited resources, so live with it. I see they announced they donated the entire project to their Foundation -- for better or worse, going forward... will be interesting to see where it goes. Software so easily becomes a mess without an up-front plan, and us old guys who know the gotchas usually aren't appreciated much (and cost too much) for small companies to bother. Then they get big, and go thru a lot of unnecessary pain re-writing the avoidable stuff! Ha... circle of life, and all that! Cheers! Fun chat!
@@NateDuehr last thing I wanted to add. It's also probably the 2nd best example of the power of Open source with Linux obviously being the best. It's hard to think that it was created by one guy back in 2012, or that's when he uploaded his first version to GitHub, at the time it wasn't an OS or supervisor, below was a post by the guy who started it. Before HA, as you know, to get that level of customizability you had to pay for it and it's out of reach for the majority of people but there will always be those willing to pay for a professional company because they got the money to and the obvious advantages like having the company set everything up, add devices and fix issues.
I started using it right after Nabu Casa was foed and you got an external secure domain for 6.dollars a month. People would complain even though when you pointed out stuff like it's free if you generate your own self signed ASL cert and want toanage all the network stuff for external use. Then they would say it's to technical because setting up an SSL certificate using let's encrypt isn't a click next, next type of thing. Neither is port forwarding and the other network stuff. So while they became big in a sense they never really milked their users and could have easily taken the money and run as I'm sure they have had lots of offers over the years and I give them props for sticking to their original vision. Most would take the money.
Nvidia recently approached them to build a local LLM just for HA because they all use HA. Now, I'm not sure where AI will go or if it's something I would ever use but the fact that Nvidia has been doing most of the work with HA devs is them asking questions while they port everything to GPU based as they want to use their Jetson lineup as both the HA server and LLM or separate with the Jetson only being the local LLM. That and they already said their next hardware device is going to be a Z-Wave adapter. I thought that was an odd choice but didn't know how amazing the range is. They said when using "old" Z-Wave with a "new" Z-Wave adapter (I'm assuming new means better range and other stuff) they were able to communicate outside at 0.7 miles. They were at a Z-Wave conference they tested and they're was no place in the hotel where they couldnt connect directly to one another. That could have some use cases as I never used Z-Wave before. Not as good as LORA but way cheaper.
Not toention they currently support 2812 integrations (without HACs) so while I agree they could fix quite a few things in ESPHome, that's a lot to maintain outside just ESPHome. Pretty amazing that MS Visual Studio is the only open source project larger than HA. That and I believe there are more installs out there then people think. The numbers they release are only from people who manually opted into analytics. I don't believe you are prted during the setup, you have to manually go into System and turn it on.
Unfortunately esp32 just like the most other smart home solutions are not easy and require a lot of tinkering. For someone who is not technically inclined it will be a nightmare to manage smart home when its creator passes away/divorce. So I decided to stick to the very simple things that can be easily reverted back to non smart.
that plant is suffering 😁
Some of the Moisture Sensor got toxic stuff in them.
The resistive types can, hence my recommendation to use the capacitive style!
Really enjoyed this and it's got me asking a couple of questions. Changing Wifi networks/SSID's is a real pain which has led me more towards zigbee, why are you sticking with wifi? Is it reliability or cost?
Are all think links provided amazon as a sponsorship thing? No Aliexpress??
Hey, thanks. ☺️ I use a secrets file that holds my WiFi details, so changing it is one line of code (I have a dedicated IOT ssid network also). That said no particular reason I'm sticking with it, it just works! I've got ZigBee devices too and things like the esp32 C6 support ZigBee for example. Links are just as it's easy, can add others like AliExpress in future!
With use of common.yaml in esphome changing networks in WiFi is dead easy. Put the WiFi details in a common file and push them to all devices with an update all. Now changing zigbee coordinator… that’s a pain! I use both 😀
Edit : sorry @handsonkatie didn’t see your reply saying basically the same!
You're funny
You know when you say that I should watch one of your other videos, it would be nice if you provided a link. Your videos don't have one titles "how to setup home assist" so I don't know what to watch.
There goes my load sensor....
No mention of Node Red? Then you have missed the most important superpower of all. More homework needed.
Not for a beginner tour of esphome/esp chips, it has it's place, but wrong stage....!
Without even having watched the whole video... One thing which really bothers me about this esp32 setups that I've yet to see a good solution for and keeping me from using them more.: The power source.
I mean, yes it's easy enough to find a usb power brick and cabling. But by the very nature of smarthome applications, it's going to imply at least one usb charger keeping a wall socket occupied per room. It''s almost impossible to keep those ugly things out of sight, not to mention the equally hard to hide wiring in case the device to be powered cannot be placed directly at the socket.
And then there's the increased fire hazard, which is also an important reason why you wouldn't want your chargers in a dusty corner behind a cabinet or hidden behind a ceiling or drywall.
Batteries? Please no. I hate having to replace those things, especially with the amount and frequency that would be required for such devices.
So if anyone has a nice solution for that, I'm all ears!
Ok so no batteries and no wall plugs is going to stretch the laws of physics somewhat! Have you looked at wall sockets with USB plugs built in? I've got them around the house, so those sockets have two USB ports and two wall plugs, thus these take up zero sockets and require no chargers? Beyond that, you'll need to wait for things like longer distance inductive power to become the norm ! (not a million miles off!)
@@handsonkatie yeah those usb wall sockets are at least a partial solution. Sometimes i'd almost wish I'd get to rebuild or house from scratch just to have every electrical system redone in smarthome style. I'd run a 5v cable along the edges of every ceiling (i believe Linus Sebastian did something like that), along with a knx cable to every outlet and switch (smart ones of course).
You are very intelligent, love, I loved your video and I like you even more, I fall in love with you a lot 💝❤️❤️