[Official] Home Automation Thread

[Yureak]

regards to this home automation thingy, is there any gadget that will automatically alert me if my fridge loses power?

My house prone to trips so sometimes when it does trip, by the time i reach home, i can throw away my ice cream and milk etc.

then again when house trips all appliance all mati including internet etc.

I believe this is definitely possible but you might have to approach a dealer to confirm.

 

[ten_david197]

Unsure why people think home automation is not a good idea for HDB flats.

Some HDB units are huge but then home automation is about convenience and experience, not size.

 

[Yureak]

Unsure why people think home automation is not a good idea for HDB flats.

Some HDB units are huge but then home automation is about convenience and experience, not size.

Well he has a point regarding size since imagine how convenient it is to turn off all lights without having to travel from floor to floor and room to room in a landed setup.

You are also right about the experience and I think its really the future

 

[FINE_01]

Anyone saw on youtube how ppl use amazon echo for their home automation? Like very cool.

regards to this home automation thingy, is there any gadget that will automatically alert me if my fridge loses power?

My house prone to trips so sometimes when it does trip, by the time i reach home, i can throw away my ice cream and milk etc.

then again when house trips all appliance all mati including internet etc.

Your case go hire an electrician better.

 

[Yureak]

Anyone saw on youtube how ppl use amazon echo for their home automation? Like very cool.



Your case go hire an electrician better.

Not sure bout echo but ive seen some with siri too...

but check this vid out

 

[Yureak]

I just found out Amazon Echo can be integrated.... Looks like im doing this next...

 

[digitalhomes]

Unsure why people think home automation is not a good idea for HDB flats.

Some HDB units are huge but then home automation is about convenience and experience, not size.

I agree.

 

[digitalhomes]

I just found out Amazon Echo can be integrated.... Looks like im doing this next...

Yup. The drivers are out but we should be testing this out early next week. Stay Tune.

 

[digitalhomes]

regards to this home automation thingy, is there any gadget that will automatically alert me if my fridge loses power?

My house prone to trips so sometimes when it does trip, by the time i reach home, i can throw away my ice cream and milk etc.

then again when house trips all appliance all mati including internet etc.

Yes, There are devices that can monitor the fridge / appliance power. High End Fridge, Wine Chiller and Oven by Sub-Zero & Wolf can be monitored and Control. But then again, if your power trips, your whole system is down hence there is no way of the Home Automation system alerting you due to power outage but not unless you provide redundancy / contingency planning i.e. to provide a UPS and configure the UPS to send pre-alerts to you should it detect a power failure.

 

[Yureak]

Yup. The drivers are out but we should be testing this out early next week. Stay Tune.

Wow you must be the first to do this in Singapore

 

[Big Eyes!]

My switches and air conditioning can be controlled via my phone, is that considered home automation?

 

[digitalhomes]

Is the system able to provide feedback as well? Let's say I bring xiaosan home to **** ****, but before i reach the house I wanna check wife home already or not. Possible?

Haha...interesting. Well, of course you can. It really depends on the setup and it's not costly at all. You need a Digital Lock that can recognize who the user is when they enter the apartment / house and once they have enter the house / apartment, it will send a pre-alert to the user if USER A, B, C etc entered the house.

 

[digitalhomes]

My switches and air conditioning can be controlled via my phone, is that considered home automation?

Yes, it is. There are 5 "Pillars" for Home Automation. Lighting, Comfort, Security, Audio Visual & Multi-Room Audio.

May I ask what system are you using to Control your lights and Aircon now?

 

[Yureak]

My switches and air conditioning can be controlled via my phone, is that considered home automation?

Well it may be considered but you should probably aim for integrated solutions

 

[bullfrog]

Those wanting diy.. And not invest in expensive solutions Here's what i did.

1)Logitech harmony for controlling my ir devices like tv, fan, aircon. Bought from amazon usa.

2) Belkin wemo light switches. Ordered from amazon too. This is tricky as they are sized differently then our surface mount boxes. Surface mounts need to order separately from amazon too. I have the number of a freelance electrician who can lay the neutral wire. Charges about 50+ bucks to run the wire and replace point.

3) august smartlock + connect. Ordered from amazon too. Replaced the thumb turn of my front door deadbolt. Allows me to remotely unlock /lock my door.

4) skybell v2. Ordered from amazon too. Allows me to remotely see who rings my doorbell and buzzes my phone.

Basically i also used a contactor (bought from sim lim tower) and with that, used a wemo light switch to control my storage heater.

Right now everything can be controlled by my phone.

To link the smart home together and take it to a higher level, i bought the amazon echo. With it, i can now verbally turn on and off my tv, aircon, fan, bedroom lights, water heater and living room lamp. The plus point is i didn't have to engage a middle man and can gradually link more devices as budget allows.

Just bought Samsung smartthings from amazon too. Have a door sensor connect to it so i can check the status of my door (open/close) as well as logs to when the door state changed. Also have it turning on my living room lamp when the door opens after midnight so there is no need to reach for a light switch. It turns of the light after 2 minutes.

Sent from under a rock using GAGT

 

[Yureak]

Those wanting diy.. And not invest in expensive solutions Here's what i did.

1)Logitech harmony for controlling my ir devices like tv, fan, aircon. Bought from amazon usa.

2) Belkin wemo light switches. Ordered from amazon too. This is tricky as they are sized differently then our surface mount boxes. Surface mounts need to order separately from amazon too. I have the number of a freelance electrician who can lay the neutral wire. Charges about 50+ bucks to run the wire and replace point.

3) august smartlock + connect. Ordered from amazon too. Replaced the thumb turn of my front door deadbolt. Allows me to remotely unlock /lock my door.

4) skybell v2. Ordered from amazon too. Allows me to remotely see who rings my doorbell and buzzes my phone.

Basically i also used a contactor (bought from sim lim tower) and with that, used a wemo light switch to control my storage heater.

Right now everything can be controlled by my phone.

To link the smart home together and take it to a higher level, i bought the amazon echo. With it, i can now verbally turn on and off my tv, aircon, fan, bedroom lights, water heater and living room lamp. The plus point is i didn't have to engage a middle man and can gradually link more devices as budget allows.

Just bought Samsung smartthings from amazon too. Have a door sensor connect to it so i can check the status of my door (open/close) as well as logs to when the door state changed. Also have it turning on my living room lamp when the door opens after midnight so there is no need to reach for a light switch. It turns of the light after 2 minutes.

Sent from under a rock using GAGT

I previously bought a logitech harmony hub link to try to automate my stuff. Extremely poorly control because its all IR so it never knows if your devices are on or off. I basically chucked it away after weeks of frustration.

Hows the smart things hub? Zwave right?

Personally the whole point of having home automation is to do everything from a single unified control and minimise my user frustration. Hence I dont mind paying more to get a proper "high class" solution that doesnt feel very improvised. It's also a showpiece for my home. I wanted to have the same system used in hotels and offices and not like a piecemeal kind of solution.

Im quite happy I get that kind of feeling you get when you go to a hotel or office now.

Previously i controlled my av system through a pioneer in house app off my ipad and had to use other apps to do other things like lighting. Very mafan

 

[bullfrog]

I previously bought a logitech harmony hub link to try to automate my stuff. Extremely poorly control because its all IR so it never knows if your devices are on or off. I basically chucked it away after weeks of frustration.

Hows the smart things hub? Zwave right?

Personally the whole point of having home automation is to do everything from a single unified control and minimise my user frustration. Hence I dont mind paying more to get a proper "high class" solution that doesnt feel very improvised. It's also a showpiece for my home. I wanted to have the same system used in hotels and offices and not like a piecemeal kind of solution.

Im quite happy I get that kind of feeling you get when you go to a hotel or office now.

Previously i controlled my av system through a pioneer in house app off my ipad and had to use other apps to do other things like lighting. Very mafan

Well, Harmony is for old school stuff that only uses ir. Cheaper to just get that than replace my aircon, tv and fan, just so i can get the state. Besides, i'm right in the room so i will know its state.
Smartthings is great with zwave. My door sensor status changes are reflected instantaneous. But its not good with my wemo devices..need to click refresh to get their latest state. Otherwise, the delay quite long.

Well, i'm using echo to integrate all my different devices. The purpose of what i set out is to have an intelligent home at a fraction of the cost. I refuse to get a professional who charges an arm and a leg that i am completely reliant on.
I prefer treating my home automation like a hobby instead.

Sent from under a rock using GAGT

 

[Yureak]

Well, Harmony is for old school stuff that only uses ir. Cheaper to just get that than replace my aircon, tv and fan, just so i can get the state. Besides, i'm right in the room so i will know its state.
Smartthings is great with zwave. My door sensor status changes are reflected instantaneous. But its not good with my wemo devices..need to click refresh to get their latest state. Otherwise, the delay quite long.

Sent from under a rock using GAGT

I think the Smart things hub looks good. Plus its scalable. How does it integrate your av stuff though?

The compatibility issues with wemo are probably unavoidable. Zwave is an open standard so there are variances without doubt.

Im trying to avoid IR as much as is possible. Lightings especially IR is a nono since theres no feedback

 

[bullfrog]

I think the Smart things hub looks good. Plus its scalable. How does it integrate your av stuff though?

The compatibility issues with wemo are probably unavoidable. Zwave is an open standard so there are variances without doubt.

Im trying to avoid IR as much as is possible. Lightings especially IR is a nono since theres no feedback

Haven't done that av integration yet. But my av is old school, bought over 10 years ago. Will probably get another harmony to control them. Harmony is compatible with smartthings.

Agree with knowing lighting state. Thats why i'm using wemo. Connects to wifi and allows me to get state via app.

Sent from under a rock using GAGT

 

[Yureak]

Haven't done that av integration yet. But my av is old school, bought over 10 years ago. Will probably get another harmony to control them. Harmony is compatible with smartthings.

Agree with knowing lighting state. Thats why i'm using wemo. Connects to wifi and allows me to get state via app.

Sent from under a rock using GAGT

Too bad i lost the harmony or id give you...