I am making the leap into 433MHz for receiving data from various 433MHz devices. After reading here on the forum for several days I am thinking of combining the following components to make a 433MHz hub, which appears to be a common setup.
The 433MHz receiver / transmitter parts I found here
And I am thinking of combining the above components with a WT32-ETH01 which I already have.
I have a weather station here that transmits on 433MHz, so hope to be able to receive and decode the signal and data.
I also want to find some 433MHz temperature transmitters like these and this
I figure I am on the right track, but would appreciate any advice regarding interfacing into Home Assistant. Thanks in advance.
Unfortunately, this world is not so simple as it could look. The fact that a device is 433mhz doesn’t mean that you are going to be able to read or control it with a 433mhz receiver/emitter.
You will need to check the protocol used by your targeted devices and find the adequate module, software/library.
You will find below my point of view:
The most versatile open-source solution is currently rtl_433, it can be used with an rtl_sdr on a small board computer, computer, or on an esp32 with a cc1101.
Not compatible with the module you bought.
EDIT we released a major breakthrough that enables to have RTL_433 running on an SX127X + ESP32 board, see below:
You can also use RFLink freeware on an ARDUINO ATMEGA.
Compatible with the module you bought.
Pilight library is also an interesting alternative on an ESP32, ESP8866 or on a Small board computer.
Compatible with the module you bought.
RCSwitch is one of the most popular library and there is a lot of derivates used in different ESP frameworks. It enables to cover most of the cheap 433mhz devices (see the ones marked RF here, door sensor, PIR, water leak, plugs) but will not decode weather station and other more complex protocols.
Compatible with the module you bought.
You can find also proprietary solutions like RFXCom, RFPLayer, or Broadlink RM, but I have less knowledge of these.
Note that for measuring an inside temperature the best solution is for me an LYWSD03MMC flashed with ATC firmware and an ESP32.
Hello there, and thank you for the extensive reply.
So far I haven’t purchased anything, so am open to suggestions on the best entry level / toe in the water setup. I am coming from this with low expectations, so if I succeed in achieving a reasonable outcome then that is a bonus.
I have experience mostly with ESP8266 and ESP32, with most running ESPHome. I dont have any arduino boards, so if it were possible to start with ESP based solutions that would be great. However I am ok to start somewhere else if that is an easier starting point.
Some time back I looked at the RFXCom unit, but couldn’t justify the cost for an experimental setup. As I suspected, most 433MHz devices have a proprietary code, and therefore I would need to decode. I guess I’d hoped that someone somewhere in the world had done it previously for my pretty common weather station.
With regards to the LYWSD03MMC units, unfortunately they dont go below zero degrees, which may present an issue if I want to place one inside our freezer. Not a huge issue, but I was planning on placing a temperature sensor actually inside the refrigerator. That is why I was looking at the AcuRite units because they can go to minus 40 degrees Celsius.
Thanks again for the advice, it really is appreciated you taking the time to provide such detailed information.
Fair question. I did wonder that myself, as I work in an area where I have experienced faraday cage like issues.
Interestingly the AcuRite 433MHz temperature sensor units are designed to go inside the refrigerator.
I also did an experiment with an old La Crosse weather station, by placing the external temperature and humidity sensor inside the refrigerator. And, to my amazement, the receiver picked up the 433MHz signal.
I also read a number of posts on this forum, where people have placed 433MHz temperature sensors inside their refrigerator and have suggested they work. Must confess, I was really surprised when it worked
The IBS TH2 is a good catch for refrigerator for the ones that wants to go the BLE route and don’t want to solder.
433mhz at equivalent transmit power will have a better range.
The Acurite 986 is supported by RTL_433 with an RTL SDR and also with a CC1101.
So going the RTL_433 is a good option.
If you want to play with 433MHZ, buying an RTL SDR dongle is a very interesting route, this is nice to play with and see the enormous capabilities of these dongles.
Regarding the CC1101 + ESP32 you may struggle a bit with the pin spacing of the RF module but once soldered it is a pretty versatile solution.
Note also that RTL_433 supports some outdoor weather stations.
Since this information @northernman54 released a new solution, now RTL_433 can work on an ESP32 + a LORA module like the Heltec Lora ESP32 V2/V2.1
Making it a very interesting soldering-free solution without using a Raspberry Pi or an RTL_SDR.
The issue with the CC1101 is that there is no board with the module integrated, and the pin spacing makes it difficult to integrate even on a breadboard.
This is the list of supported decoders:
It can be web uploaded from below, choose heltec-rtl_433
I’m using the NESDR Nano2 USB device, plugged into the NUC on which I run Home Assistant. It’s been simple to setup and works flawlessly with the RTL_433 add-on.
