Just started out with HA and really like it. Just trying to learn and understand everything and also have some automations up and run.
In a couple of months I will move to a new house where I do want to integrate it as well. Beside of lamps, which I now use, I want to integrate the blinds (which are already electric but not smart) and an alarm system next to some indoor cameras. Main controller will still be apple Home, as its just convenient to use as well for my wife.
Lamps: I do have a mix of ikea and Philips hue bulbs. Should I upgrade everything to Philips? I want to still be able to use the physical buttons, but problem now is, that after turning off the lights, they are also offline. Reason behind my question: There are Philips Hue Wall Switches available, which exactly do that – you can still use the physical button without going offline. Or are there other wall switches which do that? Shelly? When Shelly, which one?
Lamps 2: The house will also have no smart bulbs installed. Would shelly also come in handy to make them smart?
Blinds: They are already electric, but not smart – whats the best way to make them smart? Also read about Shelly, but what’s the product to use here?
Alarmsystem: Any suggestions welcome Also best way to integrate it, with doorsensors… cameras…?
General question: I have a TAPO C125 camera, which integrates natively into Homekit. Would you suggest leave it like that or integrate it to HA and then expose it to Homekit?
I would ditch Hue / IKEA where ever you have a switch connected to the fixtures. As you said they will be offline if the power is cut and that affects your Zigbee network. Go for dumb bulbs and in-wall dimmers that you can connect the physical switches to. I use these, but probably not available in your country? Find something similar.
For your non-smart lights and blinds I suggest Shelly relay switches. To my opinion, they come with two strong advantages:
They power themselves from the circuit they are supposed to switch. This means that they can connect via standard wifi. (However, there are ZigBee capable devices available.)
They can run standalone if wanted/necessary, without internet access, Home Assistant, or Shelly cloud. You can access them through their IP from a web browser and program schedules locally. I did so for low-level services such as firmware update checks.
For each non-smart light bulb, you would need a Shelly 1 (considering that they are controlled by one single switch). For your blinds, you would need a Shelly 2 (which can be then set to „cover operation“).
Thanks! Never thought of that idea… i mean if i would need or lets say want to change the color of the lights, then Ikea/hue would still be my best option? Otherwise sure, a switch like that would be nice. I live in Switzerland… so actually a switch based on those countries would work.
Thanks! any advantage for a shelly 1 with wifi vs a zigbee dimmer?
And for the already smart light bulbs, any relay which acts like the hue wall switch? So that i still would be able to use the physical button but which doesn’t go offline?
Personally I prefer Zigbee over wifi because they usually require a lot less power when not switched on, and the network is completely independent. In a very wifi-crowded environment people do report problems with Zigbee connectivity though. Z-wave might be even better there, but I have no experience with that. In any case if you use HA, you can control lights that use different protocols with the same button, that’s the beauty of a platform-independent system like HA.
I am very much in favor of connecting things in such a way that you still have physical controls if your HA instance goes offline. There’s many producst that offer such functionality fortunately. But I would not hardwire a fixture for a smart lamp and then only control on/off with wireless remotes.
Color changes are not possible with dumb lights and smart dimmers. If you want color/color temperature control I would go with sonoff ZBmini in wall switches and smart bulbs. You can connect a physical switch to them so you are robust if your HA goes offline, but you can also make automations to prevent the smart bulbs going without power when the switch is turned off. I use physical smart switches like this for individual lights, and wireless remotes to control scenes, color, etc.
For dimming dumb lights that don’t need color control I have good experiences with EcoDim products Smart LED dimmers and switches - EcoDim - EcoDim .
For the blinds: I have this: NodOn Roller Shutter Module SIN-4-RS-20 Zigbee compatibility . Works really well for me. Also this switch can be connected in conjunction with an existing physical switch.
Yes, if you want colors these will not help you. I opted out of colored bulbs since it’s nothing I would use, I went for dim2warm dumb bulbs. You can also get the same functionality in on-wall turnable dimmers.
I decided to give the shellys a try and found the shelly mini. I think they should suit my need.
However, there is a blue one available, which for sure does what i need (keep the physical switch online), how about the red one, do you know that? Advantage of the red one would be, that you can meassure the energy as well…
Also best way to integrate it, with doorsensors… cameras…?