Still new to HA and working on getting all my current device into HA. I’m also finding myself wanting to automate and add sensors to more devices, since HA has so much more potential than any other system.
We have to travel regularly and I’d love to be able to add sensors to my fridge & freezer. Mocreo makes an interesting model, that has a sensor connected to a flat wire with the battery outside. I’ve not found an integration for this that’s straightforward but I noticed that Govee has made a very similar model - and I’ve found more Govee integrations.
It looks like the sensor itself is Bluetooth and they have a version with sensor only or a bundle that includes a WiFi hub. Does any one know if this might be able to be (straightforwardly) integrated into HA - either via BT or WiFi? I didn’t find this specific device listed on one of the Govee WiFi integrations but it also seems to be fairly new so it might not be listed yet. Also, it seems like the BT integration might be more “universal” but I’m still learning so wanted to hear your thoughts.
If this turns out to not be doable at this point, what other options have people used successfully? I’ve heard of folks just putting a temp sensor in their fridge and freezer (particularly one that uses an AAA battery) and had a good experience. I’ve always understood that cold badly affects battery life. Battery life aside, can a battery explode or anything like that, if put in a freezer? If I have to go this latter route, what connection options would be viable? Zigbee, with a good, stable network and nearby router device?
I’d love to hear your thoughts on all this. Thanks so much in advance!
Hi,
What are you looking to monitor? Power, temperature?
For me I have a fridge/freezer that is on mains using a zigbee plug. With this I can monitor it’s power consumption. One is setup the same way but the chest freezer I use differently and measure temperature and power with a sonoff TH10.
It is really down to what you want to monitor though!
Ed: Should have looked a bit deeper into that. I always make my own temperature sensors.
2nd Edit: There is a bluetooth Govee integration!
I’ve had great luck with one of the cheap Xiaomi BT temp/humidity sensors in my deep freeze. Bought a bunch on Ali for a couple bucks each and get a good amount of life out of the batteries, even in the cold. I buy cheap batteries so they fluctuate a bit on life, but I get between a few months to 6+ months (honestly don’t remember when I changed it last).
And no, making a battery cold isn’t dangerous. If anything, the opposite.
Thanks so much for your reply. I really appreciate it.
Great question. It made me give this some thought. I think the answer is…both. I like the idea of using a Zigbee plug to monitor power consumption. I think I read a post of someone doing this with an alert to notify if the power goes up unusually as that can be an early sign of the fan going out and the compressor working harder. Obviously, that won’t need a temp sensor.
I’d also like to monitor the temp. This would let me see if there are fluctuations in temp. A couple of weeks ago, we had an issue where the freezer drawer was registered as closed but was just open enough to allow some items to partially thaw. I’m hoping a temp sensor might help for this type of thing and also let us know how well the unit is holding temps in general.
I’ll look for some inexpensive Zigbee AAA powered sensors but I do really like the Govee style with a flat cable and just a temp probe that goes inside. It appears to be modeled off the Mocreo brand’s style fridge/freezer temp probe.
I’m just curious if you think that the Govee Bluetooth integration would also work for this temp sensor and/or whether it’s better to use it with the optional Govee WiFi bridge for getting into HA. Thanks so much!
To be hones I don’t use Govee. I just looked through the integrations listings. However, It should work.
I also have some door/window sensors on my chest freezer and the upright freezer too. The zigbee ones I use have an in-built temp sensor so I know if the door on either have been left adjar.
That’s a really great idea to use a contact sensor with temperature to help give additional data points if the fridge door is left open. Thanks for sharing.
I also really appreciate you taking the time to check the integrations. I looked it over but am still learning and couldn’t tell if it should work or not since I didn’t specifically see the item listed. That was so kind of you. I feel right now like I’ll forever be a newbie when it comes to HA. I’ve read so much and learned so much already but it’s such a software behemoth that I wonder if I’ll ever feel like I know what I’m doing.
After 5 years I still sometimes feel like a newbie but this forum is full of people who have a great mix of experience and I have found it to be very welcoming to all people asking for assistance in a positive way.
I’m glad I could help.