My current setup is ha running in a docker on my ubuntu server, everything running smooth, I have the aeotec z-stick and slowly but steady starting to populate the house with built in switches and sensors, I like it… but components are not cheap… Which is why I started looking at xiaomi aqara for a LOT cheaper sensors, but I don’t want to get a third gateway (have ikea and hue) so I wonder…
How much of a hassle is it to get deconz running with a conbee, and to set up xiaomi running? Worth my while? I have some linux experience, run a cli-server with storage and networking, some license servers etc, but I’m no pro by any means. What order of magnitude of fidgeting will this require compared to running home assistant with z-wave devices and fidgeting with that?
If I do spring for the conbee, how capable is it with IKEA and HUE? The ideal route would of course be to replace those gateways too, but in the home assistant documentation I don’t see support listed for example for HUE RGB lights and led-strip, which I have and want to keep.
I’ve been running deconz for almost 1.5 years now. I’ve migrated all my devices to this system (Hue, Ikea, Xiaomi), Im also moving away from z-wave wherever possible.
With the deconz docker there has been a lot less issues with what you need to do to run and upgrade deconz.
I am really happy with this instance and am awaiting Ikeas Zigbee curtains coming soon
I have deconz running on a Ubuntu 16.04 server for about 6 months now. It took me a bit to work out how to tweak the installation - every time I install a new deb package - so that it runs under the correct user account. Firmware updates of the Conbee stick work fine.
So far, I have only connected several Aqara door/window sensors (because they’re comparably cheap), and one IKEA light and one switch (because there is not a lot available from the Tradfri product line in the country I live in). That is all working without any problems. The integration in Home Assistant is seamless.
I still have my Hue hub in place, and I’m not sure if I will migrate the light bulbs and strips over, mainly because as far as I know you can’t update Hue firmware with deconz, and because it’s a bit unclear which Hue lights are actually supported.
So, for now, I will likely stay with Zwave, Hue and deconz.
Deconz docker is running pretty flawlessly for me for a couple of months now. I have tradfri bulbs, outlets and motion sensors all fine. Also, hue bulbs, xiaomi sensors of various types and some innr bulbs too.
I support others - Deconz (conbee) in docker works great. I have more less 40 devices and never had connectivity issues. The platform is very stable and Im more happy with it than with zwave (also have aeotec zstick).
The only issue you need to be aware of is that there is (was?) a limit of battery powered devices that get increased once you add repeaters (hue bulbs in my case). IIRC, the limit was about 16.
I run Deconz+Conbee on the Windows “home” of my HASS.IO Ubuntu VM and could not love it more, it’s quite literally “set and forget” and hasn’t messed up once ever since I set it up (~3 months ago), which is more than I can say for ZWave.
Once you add pricing of devices into the mix, it becomes clear why I haven’t added a single ZWave device since going down this path.
Thanks everyone, idk why I’d gotten the impression this would require alot of tinkering. After the first intial lovebombins for this approach in this thread I went to a shop and got a conbee and some aqara’s, in literally 20min I was up and running with a docker container on my ubuntu cli-server and integraded in HA. If anyone else is having the same kind of hesitancy as I did initially - fire away. I’ll be selling my hue and tradfri gw’s as soon as I’ve migrated everything.
My only hickup was I had to add an env-variable since the community container defaults to port 80 and that was already occupado on my server, but it was easy and well documented on the github-page.
Yes I was just in the start of aquiring a lot of motion sensors and since that price cut in half/third now I literally saved hundreds with this purchase, add to that selling the old gateways the migration would be free essentially.
Great that the philips motion sensor I have lying around is now more easily exposed to HA, which is a great sensor. I’d seen the thread on how to use it in HA while still on hue but man that thread was depressing. Will give aqara motion sensor a try too… Their door/window sensor works really well, very stable and fast update. I won’t be investing much in zwave-sensors.
A shame it seems that only one maker has made a built-in-switch which is twice the price of a fibaro zwave which is not sensemaking at all… Hopefully they’ll have some healthy competition soon.
What’s the state of support for those tho? Is there an integration/component? I heard mixed things and some users had issues and that shelly did not step up customer relations-wise.
Custom component works fine for me (only running the non-power metered ones, so no idea if that’s an issue) and Shelly supports MQTT officially.
As for customer support, all I can say is that the damn thing is 10 bucks… if it breaks, my time spent with a rep would be worth more than just buying another one.
Here’s another question that I COULD have tried myself but thought i’d ask you guys anyways.
The last things to move to the deconz are my tradfri LED-drivers that are over the kitchen counter and inside the closets in the bedroom. It was REALLY hard to add these to tradfri, I had to hold the remote like flush to the cupboard they’re inside of and I’ve read that adding tradfri to deconz is also very limited in range and you have to have the lights close to… that however is not an option for me so… what do i do?
Should I just power down my server, boot it up at the kitchen counter and run a usb-extension so I can hold the conbee close to the LED-driver, or is there some hack where you can extend the range when pairing like with the remote, or the tradfri repeater which I also have?
If you are talking about LED tradfri power supply (transformer) then it pairs without any issues (including distance issues). It is exposed as light in Deconz.
