So, I own an AirBnb with an arcade. Obviously, I don’t want to leave the machines on 24/7, as that gets very expensive. What I want is if someone comes into the arcade, I want to have a motion/presence sensor to turn the games on, maybe using cheap TP-Link (Matter?) smart plugs. I saw the Aqara FP1E as an option that is plugged in (no battery sensors because I am not there to change them).
So I guess my question is, is this all I need? Do I need a hub or can Home Assistant see them without it? Do I need to run Home Assistant locally in the arcade all the time to do the work? Can I run Home Assistant from a Tailscale machine from my house? It’s this part that I really don’t understand, between Apple (NO!), Android (OK), Home Assistant, etc.
Feel free to suggest alternative hardware as long as they work and can be plugged in permanently and not battery-powered.
Thanks for helping me understand the missing basics.
I’m doing something like this, but without the presence sensor. It may be a privacy issue, so I don’t use presence sensors.
I’m using rental control with HA and a ZWAVE outlet. When rental control is on, the ZWAVE outlet to the Arcade is on, when Rental control is off, the ZWAVE outlet is off. So it is not running 24/7 if it is not occupied.
My guest even takes out the battery from the smoke detector when they arrive, I have to send remembers that it is a safety hazard and to plug it back in. I’m not sure about putting a motion detector and definitely not going to put a presence sensor in there.
Fp1e is using zigbee, so you’d need a zigbee stick as well and local machine running ha.
But if you do need to avoid adding extra server at the airbnb. You could make a diy mmwave sensor using ld2410 with esphome and using plugs also running esphome (kauf plugs). There’s wireguard component you can use to connect directly to your HA at home.
So, don’t know if you have experienced this before. I have a friend who has an Airbnb in the same area where mine is. He had an MMWAVE human presence detector. A guest made a complaint about it, Airbnb removed the property off their site and refunded the guest. The guest was able to prove that MMWAVE human presence sensor can create an image and that invaded their privacy.
He was able to appeal, the appeal took a month and a half, the end result was them forcing him to remove the sensor.
Not all guest are aware of the abilities of an MMWAVE sensor, so you may get lucky. But it is not worth it in my opinion, coming from real experience.
I have tons of automations running on my properties to reduce energy costs, automate turning lights off, AC management, turning the water heater off, other equipment off, and etc. But none of the automation includes anything that would be a privacy risk.
Same one could say for smart meters (can be even obligatory) which - often very detailed - record energy consumption and allows to not only track usage of devices but indirectly also presence
Also mmwave are found today even in light bulbs and often replace or extend passive infrared sensors
The automations probably not, but the collection of data which can be tied to a customer might already be an violation of data protection rights in some states
Yes, you can’t have camera or any recording devices inside the unit. The guest said the human presence detection was a privacy concern because it can generate an image of them.
It the ability to possible generate an image of them. Also no listening devices and such. You can have camera on the outside and motion detectors outside.
I’m not sure about data collection, but there’s some countries and areas that don’t allow you to regulate the AC. I set a minimum and maximum temp for my AC, there’s no restriction in my area. I love my Honeywell T6 PRO for that!! Prior to that, guest would set the AC to the minimum temp causing it to run continuously and ridiculous temperatures. Now I have automation to prevent and reset the temp for each guest. Also, I run it to control humidity when it is no occuppied. For me, it was a cost savings of 5 to 10 percent on my bill!
Unless they had 3 arms & 2 heads, I fail to see how an MMWave sensor could generate any personally identifiable information (PII) which would lead to a valid complaint.
Hell, even if they did. I’m not even sure that MMWave can even grab that level of detail off its signal.
Even if you fail to see how, the issue is that many people are tech illiterate especially those that sit as judges and law makers in various countries.
The fact that human presence (not images) isn’t only detected but probably recorded/logged (in HA) might be already an violation of GDPR if there is no prior consent. Same should be true for PIR and even contact sensors. Even if the recorded states are not containing the name or personal details directly it might just be enough to know that guest X where booked in timespan Y to “personalize” the records.
Yes. I avoid those violations by not having any MMWAVE sensors or PIR sensors inside the property. I do state there are outdoor cameras and energy saving motion activate lights on the outside in my house rules. The guest can get this information prior to booking.
In General, they have full privacy and full use of everything (partial AC features) while they are staying. My automations are really AWESOME when they leave, while the unit is unoccupied, and just before they arrive. I LOVE HA for that!
I get a lot of Europeans and being compliant with GDPR is important. Many don’t abide because they are not totally aware.
But I apologize for hacking the OP thread. In general, I don’t recommend putting presence sensors in your Airbnb. There are better ways to save on energy costs.
Most of the lock owners don’t have HA, they relay on manufacturers app. And even if you have only local control, try to demonstrate it to some person that doesn’t know how to use computer…
