My house is fully equipped with Niko switches and wall sockets.
I have a few tasmotized Sonoff Mini that I’d like to install inside the wall boxes.
They’re configured to send a Zigbee message instead of activating the relay, allowing me to control the smart lights that I never want to turn off.
I’m looking for something that simply closes the circuit between S1 and S2 on the Mini, a push button similar to this Niko model:
However, I don’t need the internal mechanism, just the spring-loaded push function.
Ideally, I’d like it to have a design that closely matches Niko switches or at least be able to use the decorating plates that are available to buy separatly…
Search around these forums or Google. Many people have been able to convert their existing switches to a momentary switch by adding a spring or a piece of foam behind the paddles.
What I’ve done so far is to lock the rocker (kind of) and now, if you turn it off, it springs back to on. But this is not the behavior I’d like, I’d like to put a “real” momentary switch, that close the s1/s2 circuit of my sonoff mini.
With tasmota, closing the circuit is no longer activating the relay, instead, it is sending a zigbee2mqtt message, captured by Home Assistant that will call the ligth.toggle action.
It is working well outside the wall, the relay is always activated, closing the s1/s2 circuit is sending the message, HA is toggling the light, I’m happy. But I need to encapsulate that behind a nice wall switch, I can’t ask people to use a dupont wire
Therefore, the line behind the switch will always power the bulb but pressing the switch will make the bulb to on/off like if it was a real push button.
Maybe it is what you explained and I did not understand, then sorry
I’d rather like to use a base of Niko hardware so it looks like the other switch of my house but the mecanism is filling the wall socket, no more space for the Sonoff. Maybe a 3D model to print, compatible with Niko plates would be enough but it is not easy to find, at all.
EDIT: I could replace that with this model, from Niko, ZGP, I bought one, to test.
But I’d rather keep the relay solution for 2 reasons: I can still power off by activating the relay via HA or by reseting the tasmota configuration if I put a standard light bulb and, second reason, this EnOcean is crazy expensive compared to a Sonoff mini (70€+)
What I was referring to is to actually turn your existing switches into momentary ones without changing them. Something like this video.
There was another forum post here by @aceindy where he simply used a bit of foam to achieve the same result. The original post is almost 5 years old, so he may be able to tell you if the hack stood the test of time.
Like this but the S1/S2 connected switch doesn’t trigger the relay, thanks to tasmota configuration. HA will do the light.toggle action, and the day my light isn’t smart anymore, change config for the relay to work like at factory’s default.
EDIT: If I keep the switch “as is,” there’s no room in the wall to put the Sonoff. Otherwise, I would have put both in parallel in the box.
Agree, that’s my current setup, but I don’t want it anymore.
As said before, if I keep the switch “as is,” there’s no room in the wall to put the Sonoff. Otherwise, I would have put both in parallel in the box.
Because in this setup, the power is briefly interrupted, and the light stays on.
First, it is too fast for HA to detect the power off, so I cannot run any automation to effectively switch it off (or on).
Second, after 5-6 times, the light bulb resets to factory default and quits my Zigbee network.
That’s why I don’t want to interrupt the power at all (if I need a reset, I’ll use the relay of the Sonoff), but I still need a way for guests and my wife to use the switch.
Even though there’s a Zigbee remote on the exact same wall, right next to the physical switch, they all keep using the switch, and it’s pissing me off.
It doesn’t have to be in the wall socket per se, you could also mount it near the lamp (or even inside the lamp )
Bonus, very often the is a neutral available there too
I don’t get it, sorry, maybe I’m lacking a schema of some sort.
If I put the relay at the lamp, I still need the switch to close the S1/S2 circuit of the Sonoff. The only wires going to the lamp are L and N, and those I can’t reuse.
Blue and red already exist but “greyish brown” doesn’t
Today, it is easy, the switch cut the L into L(in) and L(out), N is going through, it is not a bipolar switch.
Tomorrow, I don’t need to provide any power to the switch, it only needs to close the S1/S2 circuit (because Niko is selling push buttons, really nice, but not leaving enough space and meant to handle the 220V /16A that I don’t need).
I could use a Wago connector in the wall to keep the bulb constantly powered, but my Belgian house has concrete ceilings and brick walls, not plaster.
Running two new wires from the switch to the Sonoff (if it’s not in the wall box) would mean chiseling a channel in the wall. I’d risk hitting existing wiring, create a lot of dust, and have to replaster. Alternatively, I could make a hole in the wall just for the Sonoff, but it is the same dust and plaster. Then I’d have no access if there’s a problem, and I’d have to break the wall open again.
That’s why I was looking for a “light version” of the switch, leaving enough space behind for the Sonoff keeping the look of all the other switches of the house…
It seems the S1/S2 inputs are 3v3 powered (and should therefor not be connected to 220v mains) and should be closed by an external SPDT; according this site the SPDT switch is the only and first external switch that can be compatible with it.
I’ve not seen this configuration before; I am used to deal with Shelly’s
They just use one S input, which is connected to a switch (and the other side connects to 220V)
I recently switched to BSeed switches (both available in zigbee as well as wifi); and they can be used without lights (just put a capacitor of 2.2uF/2250v instead of lamp.
The mini R2 that I have is the “regular one”, with 220V (L power) running into the S1/S2 switch.
I’m operating it with a dupont male/male cable for now, just shorting the 2 screws is activating the relay (factory default) or sending the Z2M messages after a good tasmota config
The Sonoff mini R2 is what I have, it is 42.6 x 42.6 x 20mm, that is pretty small.
The Sonoff mini R4 is a bit smaller, especially in the height (39.5 x 33 x 16.8mm)
The Shelly 1 mini gen3 is the smallest of the 3 (34 x 29 x 16mm)
The wall box is 40mm deep and there are cables at the back (most of the time with some Wagos to relay to the next outlet), and the Niko switches are massive, 20mm thick
EDIT:
Sonoff mini R2: 36,3cm³
Sonoff mini R4: 21.9cm³
Shelly 1 mini gen3: 15.7cm³
By volume, of course it seems obvious to use a Shelly 1 mini gen3 but I’m pretty sure that, whatever the model, it will not fit in the box with a regular switch.
I’ll give it a try in my bedroom.
I was reading about detached mode, because this is what I want, and it seems to be possible, even easier than with tasmota
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