Now that Verizon is eliminating their [email protected] ability (they are replacing it with RCS), I can no longer easily send an alert to my phone (via SMS) when some event occurs (like a water leak, low battery, etc.). Is there another “easy” way that I can send a text (or some easy notification) to my phone from Home Assistant?
Thanks.
If you install the HA app on your phone and login to your HA instance while you are at home, you can have automations send notifications to the device. The notifications will work even if you don’t have a subscription to the HA cloud service. I use it all the time. I’m sure there’s a better way to do this, but here’s how I do it.
I have this in my configurations.yaml file:
notify: !include notify.yaml
and then in notify.yaml:
- platform: group
name: kyle
services:
- service: mobile_app_kyles_ipad
- service: mobile_app_kyles_iphone_2
I use a group so both my devices get notifications, and if I get a new device I can just change it there rather than in all the automations.
Then I have an automation that listens for persistent notifications to be created:
alias: System Notify Forward
description: ""
mode: queued
triggers:
- event_type: call_service
event_data:
domain: persistent_notification
service: create
trigger: event
conditions: []
actions:
- target:
entity_id:
- input_number.notification_count
device_id: []
area_id: []
data: {}
action: input_number.increment
- data:
message: "{{trigger.event.data.service_data.message}}"
title: "{{trigger.event.data.service_data.title}}"
data:
push:
badge: "{{states('input_number.notification_count')}}"
action: notify.kyle
And here’s an automation that will create a notification when my remote goes offline:
alias: System Notify on Remote Unavailable
description: ""
mode: single
triggers:
- entity_id:
- sensor.remote_lr_uptime
to: unavailable
trigger: state
conditions: []
actions:
- data:
title: Remote Offline
message: The remote base station is offline
action: persistent_notification.create
And then the last thing is to reset the notification counter and send a zero notification so the badge number gets purged if you clear the persistent notifications.
alias: System Notify Delete
description: ""
mode: queued
triggers:
- event_type: call_service
event_data:
domain: persistent_notification
service: dismiss
id: dismiss_one
trigger: event
- event_type: call_service
event_data:
domain: persistent_notification
service: dismiss_all
id: dismiss_all
trigger: event
conditions:
- condition: numeric_state
entity_id: input_number.notification_count
above: "0"
actions:
- if:
- condition: trigger
id:
- dismiss_one
then:
- target:
entity_id:
- input_number.notification_count
device_id: []
area_id: []
data: {}
action: input_number.decrement
else:
- target:
entity_id:
- input_number.notification_count
device_id: []
area_id: []
data:
value: 0
action: input_number.set_value
- data:
message: delete_alert
data:
push:
badge: "{{states('input_number.notification_count')}}"
action: notify.kyle
I send SMS messages using the Llamalab Automate integration.
I use it to send a notification to one of my Android wall tablets, which has a SIM card. The Llamalab Automate app on the tablet converts the notification into a SMS message and sends it.
If you don’t mind paying for it, there are services like ClickSend, which also has an integration.
I switched over to Telegram from SMS a while back when the telco started enforcing registration rules for sending SMS messages (to reduce spam).
Telegram has been solid and problem free. The telegram integration also allows you to send commands back to HA (I haven’t implemented that yet), but essentially allows you to run an automation in response to a specific command (like “turn the heat up”)
Can you please cite the source for this information? The only thing that comes up in a web search engine is this article about Verizon shutting down some phone app that they offered:
https://cyberguy.com/news/verizon-shutting-down-message-app-so-what-do-you-do-now/
BUT the way you explain this it would be only on your home network, not if you are out and about. That’s a bit more important to me since I know what the temp is while at home and I can easily hear delivery trucks (or the dogs alerting) when they do a drop off. Not as much as if I were out working. For me I would like the alerts wherever I am at the moment.
I get notifications wherever I am (as long as my device has an internet connection of some kind). With the mobile app, HA uses the push notification system of your device OS (either iOS or Android) to get you the notifications even if you aren’t at home.
Indeed I tested it last night and it works off of either cellular or the LAN. Thanks for thr help everyone. Now i got to see if i can figure a way to set the alert tone for just HA differently so i dont ignore them. Mostly concerned with my water leak detection sensors near the water heaters and the basement toilet.
That’s a good use case for having an automated shutoff valve or in my case I’ll remove power to the well pump.
I may do that… Electrical I can do… plumbing not a big plumber so I would need to look into that and learn for the springtime. My well pump is outdoors under a fake rock cover. I have often thought of dropping a small shed over it for more protection and adding a water softening system since I do not have a drain in the basement where the water heater and pressure tank. Can’t purge the water softener into the septic so I may if I get enough $$ come spring see about building a shed or if I can drop a shed over the well head maybe I can add that valve there AND my water filtration/softening system along with it where I can just purge the brine out downhill into the woods.
I miss my Florida home, that one had an above ground pump in the garage with the well about 10ft outside the garage, the water softener drained out into the yard so it was simple. Surprised they don’t do more of that here in South Carolina where it does get colder in the winter.
My neighbors used to have a faux old-school wooden well lawn ornament over their front yard well head, with an underground power feed for a decorative light. Might be an alternative to building a full shed, and cheaper to heat with a 100W incandescent bulb or snake tank warmer on nights when the SC temps dip below freezing (like my remote weather station says it is right now at our tree farm in the SC midlands)…
As an alternative solution that is electrical only. I put in a 220v 30amp motor relay (I have a 1/2 hp well pump) and control the relay with a 110v zwave toggle switch installed in the basement near the breaker panel. The relay has manual controls on it, so I can always enable it if the zwave switch craps out.