I’m building a 4" vent system in my shop to handle the smoke from the laser on the CNC and to vent the fumes from the plastic filaments from 3D printing. Just for reference, I’m in the US, so I’m hoping not to have to send overseas for hardware. I have a Z-Wave switch I can use to turn the fan on and off. Some of the inline 4" vent fans like this one have a speed control. The problem is the speed control is manual - not wifi or anything else. There are more expensive models, like this one, that have wifi and bluetooth connections for speed control. (And to avoid those who say just use a dimmer or other fan control, there are multiple methods for controlling fan speeds, and if the speed controller does not use the right kind, it could burn up the fan.) I like the Cloudline fans, they look rather well made and, for reference, they use PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) to control the fan speed.
My goal is to be able to put a 4" inline vent fan in the system and to be able to turn it on and off and control it through Home Assistant. I’ve found some Z-wave fan controllers for ceiling fans, but I can’t find the control method they use. I don’t know what kind of control method ceiling fans use, so I don’t know if a ceiling fan controller is compatible with a fan like this.
I’m open to suggestions of fans, controller,s sets of them, or other options so I can control a vent fan from Home Assistant. I already have Z-Wave and Insteon controllers/hubs and, of course, normal wifi and I can run an ethernet cable if necessary. while I’d like to use the first fan I linked to, I don’t have to.
Are there any 4" circular duct fans that can be controlled from Home Assistant?