Ideas for turning home smart?

[Mappa20]

Hey guys, I'm currently renting a 2 bedroom apartment and was wondering if its possible to go smart home on it? I dont necessarily want to change out wall switches but general ideas of what I may need? I sourced out some smart LED bulbs so far

 

[Confucius]

You get Shelly and Sonoff devices that fit behind your existing plugs and switches so that way you can easily remove when you are leaving.

Depending on the type of bulb, you also get the Sonoff slampher.

WiFi bulbs work out really expensive.

What do you want to make smart.

Best to stick to one or 2 ecosystems that can easily be integrated to home assistant.

 

[CarboVan]

I'm currently running Xiaomi/MI smart bulbs. Can confirm on pricing as Confucius said, it adds up quickly!
Their app isn't too bad, and links to Google Home easily.

Also picked up https://www.takealot.com/bneta-wifi-smart-power-plug-with-power-meter/PLID65529369 this, since I wanted to get a power meter to measure draw on a few items, and this was cheaper than most standalone jobbies, with the joy of wifi and remote monitoring.
I would not use this on something crucial though. During a 1 week period, it switched itself off twice. This could have been due to loadshedding changeovers, or perhaps when there's no load for an extended period it might switch off as a form of protection? (was used on fish tank heater, so load would be on/off for long periods)

+1 on the sonoff's. Grab a few Sonoff Basic R2 WiFi, some cable, 3 prong plugs, Janus couplers, and make up your own mini smart leads. Then you can easily just plug in a standing lamp/fan etc. And just move it to another appliance in future. This is a bulky solution though.

A mate has embraced Xiaomi, which has an impressive set of sensors and plugs etc. Definitely worth checking them out. Just note that some of the switches/sensors will require their Hub, and can't connect straight to wifi like the others.

 

[J37]

Hey guys, I'm currently renting a 2 bedroom apartment and was wondering if its possible to go smart home on it? I dont necessarily want to change out wall switches but general ideas of what I may need? I sourced out some smart LED bulbs so far

Depends on what you want to achieve.

I've got quite a bit of automation at home, I didn't do too much research of what's the simple and most cost effective method, but the end result works for me.

I use a RM4 Pro (for IR and RF devices) to control remote controlled blinds and a handful of these which I use for scenes/buttons (via my phone/Smartlife App) and automation's via Smartlife or Home Assistant (Tuya).

In my experience, I've found it more beneficial to buy a smart plug (like the Bneta plugs) to control lights etc. than get a smart bulb. As the bulb can only fit in certain sockets, where as a plug can be used for many applications and not just controlling lights.

 

[Fife]

You get Shelly and Sonoff devices that fit behind your existing plugs and switches so that way you can easily remove when you are leaving.

Out of interest (I haven't looked them up) but do you still have to run a neutral to the switch then? Had to run a neutral to all my wall switches and it was an absolute pain to run about 15 new neutrals 😅 but it was totally worth it...

 

[Byakugan]

First see what you wanna make smart and then see what options are available. We want smart homes but majority of the time we just want things to turn on and off on a schedule. Cause you dont own the home your options are bit limited.

Get one of these and mess around with it

Sonoff Basic R2 WiFi Smart Switch (compatible with Google Home/Alexa) - GeeWiz

Sonoff Basic R2 WiFi Smart Switch (compatible with Google Home/Alexa) for sale online at the Best Prices! Door to Door and Overnight Delivery

www.geewiz.co.za

GeeWiz Wifi Smart Plug - SA 3 PIN 10A / 3 Meters / IOS Android (Works with Google Home and Amazon Echo) - GeeWiz

GeeWiz Wifi Smart Plug - SA 3 PIN 10A / 3 Meters / IOS Android (Works with Google Home and Amazon Echo) for sale online at the Best Prices! Door to Door and Overnight Delivery

www.geewiz.co.za

 

[Fife]

Just want to drop this here, I've bought from them a couple times, their prices are pretty decent, great service and they have a wide range of stuff:

Communica South Africa

Communica is a wholesale and retail distributor of semiconductors, electromechanical and passive electronic components for automotives, electronics, electrical, automation, mining and process control industries and technical and tertiary educational institutions.

www.communica.co.za

It can also give you some ideas of things to do*

 

[Confucius]

Out of interest (I haven't looked them up) but do you still have to run a neutral to the switch then? Had to run a neutral to all my wall switches and it was an absolute pain to run about 15 new neutrals 😅 but it was totally worth it...

On the Sonoff, yes. A neural is also needed but for lights it’s not too difficult to pull a neutral from the light fitting back to the switch.

There are some other brands that work with eWeLink that you can use without neutral but need a capacitor to be installed at the light. I have 2 of them but never got around to install them as yet.

 

[souljazk]

Make a guest wifi network on your router. Connect IoT and guests there

 

[dhirennaidoo]

I've invested in quite a few Shelly 1's some years back and they're great for a few reasons:

• Small enough to fit behind most light switches
• Has open HTTP API. So works easily with Home Assistant but also anything that can speak to an HTTP API.
• Don't need to load Tasmota or simlar to integrate with 3rd party systems.

Downsides:

• Now quite expensive in SA compared to Sonoff, etc
• terminals on the Shelly 1 are more sized for 1.0mm wire so if your wiring happens to be 1.5mm or larger, it's a bit of a battle getting them in.
• Needs a neutral

There are some smart switches that don't require neutrals but so far I've found they're usually Zigbee which means you need a hub or home assistant. In theory Zigbee devices are supposed to be cross-compatible with other vendors but in my experience, they aren't. I ended up needing a Sonoff ZB hub for some Sonoff ZBMINI-L switches I bought that did not pair with my existing Xiaomi ZB hub.

As for sockets, GeeWiz also now stock this: Geewiz EWELINK WiFi Smart Plug 16A South African Power AC Plug Socket works with Alexa / Google Home *NOW with Energy Monitoring Meter* - GeeWiz

I've bought 3 so far and they're great. Although mine linked to Tuya (Smart Home app) not eWeLink. They support a full 16A with energy monitoring and can remember last state for load shedding.

 

[Mappa20]

ideally the switches are a decent idea, I will give some thought about the plugs... not too sure what application i can use it for other than being lazy to turn on my fan xD

 

[dhirennaidoo]

Oh also going back to smart homes in general: The one thing I bought that I would never give up is my Broadlink RM3. Lets me turn on the TV, home theatre and box with one tap. Also turn on the air conditioner while im on the way home. It's the little things 😂