home-assistant

A smart home sometimes needs to notify its users of certain events or states. Instead of installing dedicated notification devices, why not use the smart lights which are present in most smart homes anyway? This turned out to be much more difficult than it sounds. However, I found that WLED, a great firmware for LED light strip controllers, offers an interface almost predestined to implement visual notification effects, and so I wrote and published a Node-RED node which does exactly that. Visual notification effects, simple to use, without side effects. It’s open source and now available on GitHub, npm, and the Node-RED library. Watch the demo video and read on for more details.

The cheapest fog machines typically come with a wired remote control with an indicator light and a button. The indicator light signals when the machine is at its operating temperature and ready to emit fog, and the button makes it emit fog while pressed. However, this turned out inconvenient once I found myself repeatedly running to the machine to trigger it. And even if it were wireless, it would still need manual handling. So this calls for automation, and it’s quite easily possible without DIY electronics, with a Wi-Fi Shelly switch and a relay. Read on for a demo video, build instructions, and a Home Assistant automation.