So this is my second post in these forums, and I am trying to juggle studying for my finals and planning a home automation setup (not a good idea). I bought 4 dimmable LED spotlight style bulbs:
These are all hooked up to one simple switch (ON/OFF), and I would like to be able to dim them through home assistant using Alexa. Iāve searched around and found that there are a couple of alternatives but I donāt understand completely how they work. A Sonoff basic WiFi wireless switch seems to be good for the job.
But is it capable of dimming i.e. can it serve as a variable resistor? Or must I buy a physical dimmer switch with a turning knob and then somehow link it to the Sonoff? These bulbs are just regular bulbs; no āsmartā features built in, so a dimming feature will have to come from outside the bulb, unlike a Philips Hue.
Any guidance as to what to buy and how to set this system up is greatly appreciated.
The thing is that I bought the bulbs a few months ago before I started planning home automation. Also, I would like to reduce costs as much as possible. A Sonoff device costs around $5 and could potentially control all 4 of my current bulbs whereas a Hue Bridge or TrƄdfri will set me back way more.
Also I wish to implement more functionality besides switches, such as motorized blinds, thermostats etc. so I would need everything to be based on one hub, Home Assistant. I am trying to avoid using apps or remote controls or bridges and instead just go to my localhost and access the UI / speak to Alexa
Thank you for the suggestion! I need to read more about Sonoff capabilities, but the post you directed me to seems very similar to what I need. The only thing is that hijinx used a Philips Hue that could respond to MQTT. I donāt think I could do the same with my bulbs.
In fact, hijinx asks if anyone knows how to set up the dimming with an incandescent 240V bulb (not a smart bulb like Hue Iām guessing). So maybe after all there isnāt an easy way to do this without buying a few smart bulbs. Iāll have to read onā¦
Decent wireless and hubless dimmers that you can use with dumb bulbs, and especially if they can replace switches that donāt have a neutral, are still THE holy grail product of home automation. Whoever cracks it will make a fortune!
Cheers @anon35356645, yeah I think Iāll just install a manual rheostat knob for now, and use Sonoff for other lights. I donāt want to spend too much .
No problem @CM000n, thanks for your prompt replies
@Bobby_Nobble I didnāt expect it to be such a big task, but I figure itās hard to adapt future technologies to suit those of the āpastā. Itās all electrical engineering I guess.
Thatās exactly it, traditional remote dimmers that operate by IR operate by continuously letting the tiny amount of current through which is enough for the dimmer to work but not enough that you can see any light from the bulbs. You can get zwave ones that operate the same way but the price of them plus the hub they need to operate is just stupid. Wifi unfortunately needs too much power to pull this trick off, hence why you need neutral at the switch so they can have an independent power supply.
