The J008 will just need a power source. And if you’re running a wire for a power source, you could get any cheap siren, and power up an esp8266 and a relay and use that to trigger the siren instead. However, unless the power source has back up battery, this unit won’t work if you lose power.
Unless you’re going to use the remotes to enable/disable the alarm via home assistant, you won’t need a device that can receive signals into HA.
I’d just get the BroadLink, discover the codes that the remotes send to the sirens, and then use them in your automations.
Thanks, that’s really helpful and clarifies a couple of things I was missing. So I just need to pick a siren (and its remotes) get the broadlink and I’m set.
I do like the idea of a backup battery in the siren because, like you, I have a UPS powering every other element of the system (POE Switch for the cameras, HA server, router and fibre modem). But I think the J008 has a battery so presumably I’d be okay if the power was cut (or perhaps it wouldn’t last?).
AliExpress reviews suggest the J008 isn’t waterproof. The listings state it is so I don’t know if that’s just a dodgy seller or dodgy kit (or both!).
I’m afraid a quick Google of the esp8266 makes that route seem a little out of my comfort zone (with unlimited time perhaps not!).
Don’t think any of them are completely waterproof, but should be ok if under an eave or something. I think it had a rubber seal from memory, but there are holes in the back, so it’s a little bit redundant.
If it’s going to be really exposed to the elements, and little bit of silicone to seal it should work fine.
It does have a back up battery though, so it’ll be the simplest to setup I think.
Looks like there is new firmware for the Sonoff RF Bridge (Portisch) which supports more rf signals, so it might be an option vs the broadlink afterall.
Thanks for the tips on the waterproofing, there isn’t much protection where I intend to put it so I’ll do as you suggest.
It’s just occurred to me that if I get the J008 then I need to get the F8 Transmitter and start messing about with the Pi. I’d rather not have to do the latter (mostly due to time) so perhaps the SJ1 plus a single remote and the Broadcom (4 presumably ok rather than 3 which seems less available) remains the way forward…?
Seems to suggest that the Broadlink doesn’t allow a local API… I may be misunderstanding but I’d prefer everything to be local if possible. Does this push me down the Sonoff with Tasmota route (not sure how much extra kit I’d need to do that) or perhaps the more expensive Bond Bridge he mentions (though not sure how easy it will be to source that in the UK)!?
So easy to head off down a rabbit hole with this stuff!
Furthermore I’m going to have think about range as I have one/two thick solid walls and two floors to go through between the RF Bridge and the siren… If the Broadlink was POE that would help as I could site that very close to the siren or I might have to run a long power cable from my UPS for the bridge… Or perhaps the 433Mhz penetration will be sufficient…
Okay fine, you’ve twisted my arm! Here’s what I’m thinking…
I’d be curious to retry using the sonoff with the new firmware - you’ll have to let me know if it’s successful for you.
With the devices using USB power, you could always plug them into a USB portable charger, and then plug that into a power adapter. That way you can place it somewhere to help with range, but still not lose that backup function.
@haphassard I’m interested to see how you get on with this as well. I was looking at the SJ1 as it’s the closet thing to a Zigbee Outdoor Siren that I could find. I’m wondering how much power the panel actually generates and the possibility of hacking it to fit a Tuya Zigbee siren. Probably unlikely seeing as the latter is mains powered.
I also came across this one which has a big panel on it and claims to last a lot longer without sun.
Well a larger panel should make a big difference, I just wanted to go with something that others had found to be reliable. I’ll be providing my SJ1 with power as someone else in the UK mentioned it couldn’t cope with our winter sun (or lack of) and I’ll likely be putting it on a North Facing wall.
I’ve read reports of people upgrading the sirens with larger/better panels so that’s also something to consider.
That’s probably a good idea with our grey skies! I’ve got a south facing front wall so hoping solar will cut it. I’ve found some interesting info on the specs. The Tuya Siren only consumes 61uA-180uA according to this which is a lot less than the <10mA quoted by the Wolf Guard listing. It can provide 155mA via it’s panel too.
This is a great project. Thank you all for posting all the information. I have implemented this with a Sonoff Bridge and RF door sensors and PIRs. However, I cannot make the J009 Indoor Wireless Siren to pair with a code. Would you please someone be so kind to describe the steps to follow to make it learn the code(s) to activate/deactivate the siren? Does it use the same code or two different codes? Thanks in advance for your help.
I suppose it depends how much power the other components of the SJ1 consume, unless you only want the panel but in that case perhaps you’d be better off getting a separate panel and a separate (and truly waterproof) housing?
I was wondering if you were able in the end to get it working?
I’m trying to use a J009 (the indoor one) siren and I’m not able to make it working, even trying with the code sequence which darius shared.
Yet to get into HA but is it possible to do something similar in Google Home? Say use Tuya sensors to trigger a 433MHz alarm as long as everything is recognised by Google Home?
!