There are so many things you need to know before buying a smart light switch.
❤️ Found this video useful and want to support the channel? I'd love a donation at paypal.me/homeautomationguy
I cover:
00:00 - Intro
01:00 - What are smart light switches?
01:33 - When to use smart light switches
03:14 - Choosing a smart light switch
03:36 - Understanding Neutral Wires
06:00 - Smart switch features
Links: Using Scenes in Home Assistant: • Using Scenes in Home A...
I tried a few different switch-brands until I hit upon the Lutron Caseta switches and I have never gone back. The Lutron switches always work, under every condition. All other switches that I tried were at one time or another "No response." Yes, I use the Lutron hub.
I've heard that they are great from US based colleagues, but for some reason they don't seem to be that popular in the UK or Europe!
@@HomeAutomationGuy Lutron have never made Caseta available as an international product. However, in the UK you can buy Lutron Ra2 Select systems instead
@@dvwebster Are there any smart devices that add capability to dumb dimmer switches? Lutron aren't really available in the UK. I already have the dumb dimmers installed in the house and don't want to change them.
@@weeeeehhhhh no. Consider replacing the dumb dimmer modules with smart versions that will retain the switch faceplate. Aurora AOne or Samotech SM323
Apreciate the phrase "im gonna tell you everything I know..." vs the more popular and sensationalist "everything you need to know". Minor difference, but the former is more honest imo
Thanks! I'm just a chump with a smart home trying to share what I've learned. And some of it is often wrong, and people correct me in the comments so we all learn!
@@HomeAutomationGuy Thanks! FWIW, prior to me moving into this house, I was looking into this stuff Then I bought a Philips Ambilight TV, which does work amazingly well with Philips Hue lights. So, I figure that I may as well buy in, to the entire Philips eco system. Then, get Philips Hue compatible stuff I've got live and switched live myself
Recently got into home assistant and home automation. I find your content informative and easily understandable. You got my sub mate
Very nice introducing explanation for beginners, but I would add one thing. Regarding neutral required yes or no, somewhere on 03:52. Yes, most of the houses have no neutral in switch junction box, but on the other hand, most of them have 3 line or 4 line cable from up junction box to switch junction box, where at least 1 wire is not connected to anything, so you can use that wire to bring neutral from up junction box to switch junction box (at least, this is the case here in Serbia). When house/apartment is building, electricians have no so much time to pull of the coat from cable and use exact number of lines/wires they needed. No, they are using 3 lines or 4 lines cables to connect up junction box with switch box, as I said before, so most of the time you have 1 free line. Even if this is not the case (I had one such an example in my new house), you can e.g. get 3 gang switch for 2 different ceiling lights. Then connect both ceilings to one gang, just to have physical switch for emergency case where you are toggling both, and rest two gangs you can use trough HA automation for ceiling 1 and ceiling 2 separately (of course you need smart bulbs for this as well).
I've used both sonoff and yagusmart switched (no neutral) and BOTH have pros and cons. One thing you don't mention is that if (when) your internet goes down the WiFi light in the switch flashes.... Annoyingly! Especially at night in a bedroom (I know from past experience). One way of getting rid of this is by using HA with tuya local (obviously your switches need to be Tuya compatible). Good video and thanks to your dad for the electrical help. As an electrician it's always worth asking for help. Electricity is a silent killer... It sits there not warning that it's going to bite and potentially kill.
Just as a note on the Capacitor for no neutral. Often this needs to be put across the load, not in the wall box. The theory is to provide leakage current to keep your no neutral switch working. Just wanted to mention that as this is the more common setup, rather than having the capacitor in the box. I use Aeotec Nano Dimmers, which are wired no neutral and they have the capacitor across the load. I quite likethese, although they are Z-Wave, as from the outside it still looks like your old standard switch, but on the inside it is a smart dimmer with power monitoring capabilities. Thanks for all the great infromation. I look forward to following your journey with your new home this year.
You got my sub, really Good explanation for everything
I have LightwaveRF switches/dimmers in my house (no neutral), and while they look nice and work well enough you need to get the right LED bulbs to avoid flickering and poor transitions. They support Homekit though which is my primary platform. One frustration there is they can't be used as standalone switches in Homekit - you can only trigger via turning the light on/off itself (haven't looked into Homebridge/Homeassistant options yet).
Great presentation I am looking at ZigBee to mqtt switches that I can set up in home assistant. Any recommendations neutral required A
Excellent video that gives us that piece of critical info relating to the neutral wire being present or absent in your home wiring system... My home has no neutral wiring to the switches, can you recommend some zigbee or z wave switches that doesn't require the neutral that I can use?
Very interesting and informative, thank you
Great video! I installed Inovelli Smart Dimmer Switches in my home. Absolutely love the switches, but the lighting in my home are the puck style led disk lights, which have a Triac dimmer in them and Inovelli switches don't support that. Bought the Aeotec bypass and they work a little, but have been burning out in a year. Anyone have any luck with a combo like that?
Fantastic guide, thanks. What would I need to look out for if I wanted a switch that didn’t require home assistant? I use hue elsewhere, so maybe something that works with hue hub, or doesn’t require a hub at all?
I am stuck using the Lutron Caseta dimmers. I live in a condo and there are no neutral wires in the switch boxes and no way to run a neutral. They work great and the little pico controllers let you make multi-way control. I have the hub and have it working with HA and has never given any problems. The only down side is that I can't to the multipress like on smart switches which I can install Tasmota. I am starting to see some ZigBee smart switches that do not require a neutral and might look into them for some locations.
If your switch gang doesn't have a neutral wire you install the smart switch in the fixture gang. The wiring example for no neutral is a bit misleading since both hot and neutral come in at the fixture gang and the hot is traveled to the switch and then returned to the light. So you install the switch in the light fixture and use the traveler to connect the switch terminals on the smart switch.
May I ask what is the website that lists the different light switches you show in the beginning of the video. Thanks!
Great video! I’m like you, I use smart switches for ceiling lights and smart lights for decoration lights. I’m using Shelly pucks behind my regular switches to make them smart. They integrate beautifully with Home Assistant and also send events for single or long press. I use 2 gang switches even if there’s only one light because then I can use the second button for scenes. Shelly are using wifi which is the only negative thing I can say about them. But I have no issues with delays.
Thanks for sharing! That's a really great sounding setup and use case
Which type of "regular switches" are you using? An on/off switch or do you mean push button?
@@greghauptmann Schneider Exxact switches with a spring behind to make it resilient.
@@TechMedDurra ok thanks - so "push button"? Then you could use "Shelly Plus i4 Wi-Fi Input Controller" to capture their input and feed into Home Assistant?
@@greghauptmann Yes! An i4 can absolutely be used to control other devices, scenarios and automations in HA 🙂
Thanks for sharing. Btw, can smart switches controls inverter aircon unit? How does the wiring or connection worker? I have a 20amp Sp isolator for Panasonic system 3. ( 3 fan coil ) appreciate your help. Many thks
Nice video. You are talking about 4 switches that you have bought. What switch do you recommend? I need switches in a few places. One in the toilet. A 1gang that controls a zigbee light via HA. One 2gang on the first floor that controls the lights in te first floor and the stairs to the second floor. This light is also turned on and off downstairs and upstairs (2nd floor) so it’s a 3 way. I’m curious what switches you recommend. The existing smart switches I have only work with a unique app so it’s not compatible with homeassistant via zigbee.
Exactly what i searching for
The only ones that fit in my apartment are Sonoff T3-US. I really dislike the feel of sensor buttons - but realistically, the switches are only there for programmatic access; no one ever touches them :) I really wish Sonoff made a model with properly clickable buttons in this form factor.
Good video. Here's some aspects you didn't cover: some smart switches replace the button itself. Others are kust installed behind it. Some smart switches are huge, others tiny. Compatibility with LED lights (many have trouble with LEDs... The ones that work best for me have a feature called zero point crossing or something like that). Also the ways it can work with bistable switches variés widely (with the best ones you can choose whether up=on&down=off or whether whenever you push the toggle it should switch the light)
@PersonXes hello. Ive been trying to use a wifi switch for my huge LED floodlights that I use to light up my property sometime, Ive tried three different brands and they all "leak" current. Meaning that the lights still glow slightly when in OFF mode. There has to be a better wifi switch out there, right? I emailed one of the biggest producer here in sweden and they just said "sorry, that happens to powerful leds together with these kind of switches"
I use the zigbee ZBMini behind my existing light switches for most my lights, but on rooms where I want the lights to dim, I use a light switch that came pre-flashed with tasmota that connects with wifi then use Home Assistant to control the lights. In both cases my Home Assistant application could explode and I'd still be able to turn my lights on and off which is kind of an important thing.
This helped me,hugelly,im a spark by trade,but av never used this gear before, my goid freinds health is getting,far worse,and were looking into this gear,im from the uk myself,,i found it very overwhelming ,but you sir,have made it easy to now,understand thanku loads
I am using homematic smart switches. Plus side is they are working independently of any smart home solution. You always can turn light on and off. Same argument is also a down side since you cannot block or disable the switch if you'd like to. But they are very reliable and work great with home assistant over my homematic ip gateway.
Great Video Alan. I think the only thing that might have been nice to add would be the availability of (and any testing you might have done with) Thread connected devices. While their use is currently limited to Apple ecosystems, I expect that will change in the coming months. It is my plan to hold off on more light switches until I can get some running as Thread border routers.
I'm still a total n00b when it comes to Thread, so I haven't had any exposure to it. I plan on looking into them when they become more widely available (And I have time to learn something new!)
Great Video thanks, has anyone used\seen black glass fronted dimmers (No Neutral) for use with HA thanks
An alternative to 2 or 3 way smart switches ist using a Shelly Switch device to control the existing dump switch.
An IKEA Tradfri Bulb dims itself through Zigbee. What Switch do you need, if you want to dim that? Aren't traditional dimming switches just playing with the power supplied? That does not sound what a Tradfribulb needs? Or can it handle both actual power reduction or just simply an instruction through zigbee to dim? Also, do all zigbee switches act as a zigbee router, since they're on 230V permanently like light bulbs?
Hey, great video! Really good explanation for everything, although I’m curious what you do in areas where you choose to use smart lights, just turn them all on with your phone? Or do you have switches/buttons you use for those? Keep it up!
Some are triggered using Zigbee smart buttons, but mainly so guests can turn them off if they get confused. They mainly turn on and off automatically based on automations triggered by presence sensors. Check out some of my lighting and presence sensor videos on my channel for more information. I barely use my phone to control my lights.
Dear sir thankyou do much indeed for your brilliant video,
I have the old sonoff nspanel and its amazing. Flashing it with esphome was a game changer.
Yeh. It really is a shame you can't flash the new one
I use Shelly devices behind my dumb switches and sockets in order to achieve a consistent look across all rooms and therefore higher acceptance and compatibility with guest and my partner. They offer a vast range of single relais, roller shutters and 2-gang relais, dimmers and LED controllers. But I have to admit that I've installed prosumer grade WiFi at home to manage the 25 devices and IP-adresses
Thanks for your choice for our MOES product.Hope you can be one of our valued customers.😘
Ok...
So which zigbee smart switches do you use and how do you like them?
Thank Q for a great video. I have a triple switch in the hallwa one for porch light,one for halway light and third on is a 2 way switch for landing light. what automated smart switch can I replace it with? I have no neutral wire bhied the switch,,,,
I'd suggest speaking with an electrician to see what would be best supported with your wiring.
I have a traditional 1 gang 2 way. 2 wires in L, 1 wire in L1 1 wires in L1 I have a neutral wire smart 1 gang 2 ways use less wires. Can I just Dead end the xtra wires ? Does it mater which1s I dead-end if this is the case ? Any videos comparing the 2 ? Thanks
Another great video! Do you know if philips hue bulbs and led strips are compatible with dimmer switches?
Definitely not. You should either use smart switches like this or smart bulbs. If you want to control Hue bulbs I'd suggest buying the Hue wireless dimmer switches. I use them and they're great
Didn't hear you say anything about relays. Are they any good?
Great switch overview. I'm using HA and mostly ZigBee devices in my new home installation. Just installed a couple smart bulbs in my ceiling recessed lights and have a dumb switch. Learned quickly that is problematic, and need to find a smart(er) switch to hold power to those bulbs so I can control colors through HA. I want to retain a manual on/off and do not need switch dimming. I don't even need wifi or ZigBee control ... just the power pass-thru (I think). Am I on the right path, or missing something? Also any switch recommendations would be great!.. Thanks.
One solution I've seen is to keep the "dumb" switch and put some sort of covering over it. I've seen special blank faceplates that can sit over them and hide the switch underneath so people don't turn them off
Cloud u recommend a smart light switch or making a review videos on it will be great! Thanks
Yep, I'll soon be making a video showing which smart switches I chose and why. I tested so many of them, and so many of them are just garbage!
@@HomeAutomationGuy thanks! Hopefully it’s the sonoff / Aqara one :)
Athom makes smart switches and plugs that come preinstalled with Tasmota or ESPHome. Works great with Home Assistant. No lag.
Wow, these look awesome! I had no idea
Hi, as a new sub im really enjoyjng your channel, im in the process of completely renovating a house and running all new wires so will be making it smart as well. Lots of your videos are helping a lot Have you covered or can you confirm if a zigbee type light switch that goes through home assistant could also be controlled remotely, i.e switch the hall lights on when you are leaving work ? Thanks 😊
Yep - Home Assistant can be used to create all kinds of automations, including the "coming home from work" one that you describe. It's so powerful!
5:54 Slight correction, the capacitor has to be connected across the load so it is actually installed at the light fitting and not the junction box. Thanks for the video!
Oh right! Thanks for sharing! I was trying to figure it out based on the wiring diagrams and couldn't make sense of it. I'd make a terrible electrician!
@@HomeAutomationGuy although most load bypass devices (also known by some manufactrerers as antiflicker modules) are no more than capacitors, some are modules with other passive components included, making them larger and more difficult to install but always at the light fitting, and not in the switch back box.
I'm on the understanding that the capacitors although needed to go at the bulb end are not needed on all lights, they are only needed to be installed if the light flickers. I have only installed on one light as it had many LED s on the fitting all other bulbs have been smart bulbs and this has not been an issue and I have not installed capacitors
really informative video but, I was wondering what the smart rotart dimmer swtich you have at 01:06 is? assumuing it is a smart switch that is
It's a Candeo smart dimmer switch and works via Zigbee
Which brand did you buy?
Hey guys, I'm looking for a dimmer switch that fades on and off when turning on or off. I want that little delay more so when turning the lights off. I have both live and a neutral power supply to the switches. There's two lights per room so a 2 gang switch. Any help is much appreciated.
Great video. Quick question......I'm also in the the UK and also use home assistant. The few smart light switches I have are all WiFi and I'd like to swap the for Zigbee devices. Which ones do you use and where did you get them from? Cheers.
I tested the ones in the thumbnail and really only liked the Aqara and the Candeo dimmer. I got them all from Amazon
What about Shelly… you didnt even mention them as a valid alternative
SONOFF mini zigbee is a great option of both worlds: manual using the old switch and logical using automation system
I used to think the same as you about WiFi switches. However in rooms where you use smart light bulbs to add the scene lighting. You do not want to end up with a scenario where your guest switch off the bulb. The Sonoff NS Panel and M5 switches can be flashed with esphome easily and can turn on/off/dim homeassistant smart bulbs. However during any outage can be programmed to turn on off the relay when your HA server is down/not responsive. This is something you cannot do with a ZigBee switch and because of this. Things like double tap/triple tap can all be processed internally on the switch reducing any lag
I will be actually testing some M5 switches. I don't like the NSPanel as it feels a bit cheap when you tap or click it.
Hi, good video there. When using zigbee switch, is it possible do decouple it's button from internal relay or is it binded together?
The ones I have tested do not allow this, but I've been told that some people buy a 4 gang Zigbee switch and only wire in two of the them to lights, allowing the other two switches to be used to trigger different things.
@@HomeAutomationGuy Hi, that's what i thought. Zigbee gives me only problems. I bought zigbee dongle because of opple mx960 light, which is great, but when i turn it off, it still stays on (on 1%) (and it's power source slightly hums). Then i bought some Lidl bulbs, but it cannot do brightness transition properly, which annoys me
I have to say thus far I have had great luck with the Kasa TP-Link wifi based smart switches. I particularly like that their 3-way switch works with the other dumb switch perfectly so you only have to replace one of the switches! Hey how did you get your lights to dim and brighten when you paused your show on the TV? Would love to find a way to do this from my FireTV Cube.
I cover this in my Home Automation Ideas video at about 7 mins in. It's one of my favourite automations! kzhead.info/sun/i6ySpJGBeHSipGg/bejne.html
Could I also use these dimmers to dim / switch smart lights using homeassistant? I want to make my smart home more accessible and or still have manual control
Yes, you sure can!
Can you recommend a dimmer model that works with a physical dimmer, please. It doesnt need to fit behind the faceplate, it's being installed into an access panel below with multiple modules. thx
Take a look at the Shelly Dimmer
Really helpful video thanks! Have you had any experience using Aqara wall switches or relays?
I have tested one Aqara switch, and it seems fine. I've not used it long term though
@@HomeAutomationGuy - Have you had any issues with using SMART BULBS in bulb holders connected to your Aqara Switches? I know you said you mainly use smart bulbs in lamps.. but smart bulbs in smart switches is a common issue so it would be great to hear your experience with it...
@@OldSkoolPGFan You should avoid using smart switches and bulbs in the same circuit. I recommend using one or the other. When you turn off a smart bulb with the smart switch, it will lose connection to the network and that will cause you problems.
@@HomeAutomationGuy - I don't see why you couldnt use a smart bulb in an Aqara H1 with decoupled mode?
Which smart switch would you recommend for smart bulbs? As a physical alternative control for the smart bulbs.
I personally use the Hue dimmer switch
@@HomeAutomationGuy only problem is they only support single press for each button.
Great video. Also a tip when buying from chinese webshops : make sure the back of the switch is compatible for your house. In europe the back is mainly "round" , in China its a square. When buying a chinese switch it will not fit inside your wall most of the times when living in Europe.
Great tip! Thanks for sharing!
a question: You mentioned that in a switch you may have multiple switches (gangs), that then require multiple channel support from the relay. But how about if there are two or even three different physical switches that control the same light, or set of lights? Does this set any additional requirement for the relay itself?
That's what he meant by a 2-way switch. The gangs are just how many separate circuits that item is controlling
I miss in this count, the possibility to make it smart in the background. When you socket is deep enough you can use your existing dumb switches and use them as normal and still can automate ist. e.g. with shelly
Yes, me too.
I want to be able to, when someone makes a booking into my Airbnb I want that booking to trigger the sauna to heat up and when the door opens for my virtual recording to treat them by there name can we do this ? How much to consult with me ?
Zigbee Dimmer Switch Model GL86ZTD11 BSEED reliable keys, I only have a problem with the ZHA custom quirk.
I’m interested in your comment about Shelly. They seem to have good products and pricing but in another video you mentioned Zigbee is better because it’s quicker and more reliable?
I use a combination of both. Zigbee isn't really more reliable if you have a rock solid WiFi network, but most homes rely on their dinky ISP provided router which doesn't play nice with dozens of smart home products relying on it
Hi. What is the website that you have used to showcase the variety of switches?
I use Blakadder's list zigbee.blakadder.com/
Any idea how to get 2-way switching working in instalations w/o neutral, so it will work also when your smart home is down ? Based on Zigbee? There is not much to be found about it, so chance to be the first one 😀 I belive that in some countries it is called hotel-switching instead of 2-way.
Some smart switches support traditional wired two way switching. With other technologies you can use a wireless switch elsewhere in the house to control the first one. Traditional two way switching will still work when the smart home is offline, Zigbee based ones won't work if the Zigbee network is down.
@Home Automation Guy Hi Alan, Many thanks for your reply! I would really, really, really appreciate much to know at least one smart switch that support traditional wired two way switching. By traditional I mean at one switch 'L' is coming in, two helpers are coming out, on the other switch two helpers coming in, one switched 'L' is going out the bulb. Neutral is only at the bulb. No extra wires. Looking for something that would do without success already for long time. Didn’t find any scheme for that. By the way, a tutorial about all kind of different approaches to the subject would be first one on the net. Hmmm 😀 Cheers and thanks again. Great video's!
I recentley upgraded my home network. I went for a cheaper option. I just live in one smal appartment, so i dont need a rack. But i always use cat6 cable on everything i can. My laptop and phone is the only thing i use Wi-Fi with. I had 2 8-port netgear prosafe plus GS108 + 1 gs105 switches. I got a used HP Procurve 1810g-24 (24 port manage gbit switch) cheap. My router is an old computer with an os called ipfire (almost the same as pfsense, but built on Debian). The router have been working for many years now and have old hardware. The switch i got has lifetime warranty. That made it Easy to use used hardware.
In the UK, I'm finding it hard to find a Smart Zigbee switch that will fit in my switch box depth-wise. The Aqara and Moes ones have such a chunky back box which don't fit (after purchasing and attempting installs). Does anybody have any recommendations for slim Zigbee switch?
Compact smart switches that are Zigbee devices are harder to find in the UK than compact smart dimmers. Consider the Aurora AOne rotary smart dimmers which are Neutral free and about 25mm deep. Note that in common with other Neutral free smart dimmers, these have a minimum load requirement of 10W, which may be hard to meet with a single LED bulb.
Yeah, I have the same problem, only 25mm backboxes (dot and dab plasterboard walls throughout the house). I fitted a 10mm spacer between the faceplate and the wall to give some extra depth but that was ugly as sin so chased out the wall behind another switch to give added depth but that was way too much aggro so didn't bother on any of the other switches and just added more Hue bulbs. Even the Shelly/Sonoff separate relays are too thick to poke into the 12mm gap between the plasterboard and blockwork.
Are there switches that can be on timers so when my alarm goes off at 400 all my lights go on so it's more of an incentive to get up
These switches get connected to a Home Automation platform, on which you can create automations to turn the lights on and off whenever you want
I bought Moes. Is it good?
Not really. Check out the video I made where I compare all the smart switches
Off topic, but have you had random trouble with wifi on ubuntu/NUC?
I hard wire my NUC in to my network, so I've never really used the Wifi I'm afraid.
That is a beautiful bathroom, Alan! KZhead must be really paying well.
Thanks! KZhead has enabled me to purchase the finest of stock footage! 😅
Any ideas about the lifespan of this switch
I don't. But it's a very good question
I use Tuya switches 1,2,3 gangs at home. I purchased them online in several batches. Every batch is different. Hopefully only one batch was bad quality, all others are ok.
When I replaced all my incandescent bulbs with led (Hue) I removed all my physical switches with the intent to replace them with smart switches. Now, 5-6 years later we still only use the Hue dimmer switches that came with the bulbs :D And with over 95% of the lights being switched using automations even those get barely used.
I have always thought of doing that, but get scared that all my lights will fail if my Zigbee USB stick or Hue Hub breaks... my partner would murder me 😂
@@HomeAutomationGuy Ok, fair point. I don't have to fear for my life when the lights don't work (yikes!). But, I do keep a spare Zigbee USB stick at hand just in case 😅. The db's/config's are all backed up with Duplicati (thanks for the tip and tutorial btw!) and can be resored in less then 10 minutes.
@@HomeAutomationGuy You can get around this with direct Zigbee binding. If the hub or coordinator goes down, the Zigbee button still talks directly to the Zigbee bulb. The downside is that some brands do not report their status changes after binding, so HA or other hubs may not be aware of the bulb's on/off state when controlled via a bound input. You should research your input and output devices for reporting functionality if this is important to you. Zigbee binding definitely strengthens your Wife Acceptance Factor because it reduces the risk of a hub outage causing loss of control in your house.
How can I use a no-neutral switch if I have a neutral wire?
You don't need to connect the neutral to the switch if it doesn't require it
What happened to "start the show"?
Can't tell you after having 70+ tasmota running wifi switches from different vendors I'll skip ZigBee and zwave. I prefer the speed redundant access points and local full control of all of the switch hardware that wifi switches running open source Tasmota firmware provide.
Another consideration re bulb vs switch is does your light fixture even take a bulb. We renovated a few years back and found that (other than very cheap and ugly fixtures) most stores don't really stock much if anything in the way of light fixtures that actually receive a light bulb. All of the light fixtures we installed feature integrated LEDs (ie if the light stops working I'll have to replace the whole fixture, but that hasn't been an issue as of yet). So in my house, its smart switch or bust for overhead lighting automation.
Good call out - thank you for sharing!
Similar here in my Dining room - Zigbee smart lights in most other areas, but integrated LED fixtures in 2 main rooms. I am waiting for 2 different types of Sonoff relays to test out - one is a neutral free "behind the switch" type, while the other will fit inside the fitting but will require a Zigbee switch to control it. My house consists entirely of Sonoff and Ikea Tradfri handled by Home assistant, mainly because I am a cheapskate :)
The Zooz switches I got are great though they took slightly more setup with my smartthings hub as the driver interface needed to be manually loaded, but it was pretty simple
Would love to see a episode focused on dealing with Blind people, my mother went blind two years ago at age 70 and I am looking to tech to help her.
Candeo for dimmers and MoesGo for toggle switches. Both zigbee to home assistant
Does your Candeo Dimmer report its state correctly in home Assistant? Mine works great for automations and the switch itself works great, but if I try to use it via a dashboard card the dimming works but on/off is unreliable and the state gets stuck.
@@bigsteve0001 it feels like it does. I've not really noticed a time when it hasn't reported correctly. We do use a voice assistant most of the time when in the house
@@danielwolman thanks, do you use ZHA or z2m?
@@bigsteve0001 zha
@@danielwolman Damn, was hoping you weren't going to say that! Means something isn't right with mine. I'll have to try reconfiguring. Thanks again
I hate my ge zwave switches because they fail. I would really like a comprehensive video on all the capabilities of the Shelly relays.
You say you like Shelly and Zigbee. Does Shelly make Zigbee products?
I don't think Shelly makes Zigbee products, but sometimes I use Wifi products if they are awesome
@@HomeAutomationGuy Yeah but I'm really set on finding a smart relay that integrates natively with Hue
don't think i've ever seen a 2 way switch without a neutral.... haven't looked for a while though.
I think Aqara has a 2-way switch that works without neutral. I'm looking for a system that supports a 3-way switch. I have a bottom of stairs, top of stairs and end of hallway setup and would love to get that updated. In the interim I have a Nanoleaf array that I can control remotely to illuminate the whole area if I need, and if I need full-on illumination I use the physical switches.
Might have been more helpful if you’d shown or listed some of the products you were talking about especially as you are uk based. Other brits might be interested in purchasing those item.
Maybe, but I was really hoping to show people how to pick their own devices based on their unique requirements and use cases
Just wanna leave a comment here: I bought a Sonoff switch RF only and it doesn't pair to anything and a also bought an universal remote control from Moes that goes offline all the time so it just doesn't work for anything. I'm rethinking if I go ahead with the automation or not.
Thanks for sharing!
the neutral wire requirement is the most important thing for smart switch !!!
It sure can be!
I'm using WiZ Portable Smart Buttons and Smart bulbs 💡
Here is the Top 5 of the best Smart home push buttons in the world: 5) Gira Push Button sensor 4 4) Jung LS Touch 3) Schneider KNX Push Button Flex 2) Siemens TC5 1) MDT Glas Push Button 2
I live in the Netherlands (live, neutral and ground wires) and I've combined EcoDim Zigbee Dimmers (ECO-DIM.07 Zigbee Basic) with Home Assistant. Love them!
These look fantastic! I will have to check them out
Which switches do YOU use?
Make sure you're subscribed and you'll find out when the video drops next weekend! 😏
only used 2. Aqara and shelly.
There is only one problem with my Cables... There are 4 Cables for the lever because I live in germany and everything is complicated
It’s not called a junction box. It’s called a back box. 6:10 I’m a electrician from the Uk.
My bad! I grew up pulling cables for my dad in Australia and clearly misremember and mistranslated 🙈
5:35 Looks like the electrician got lazy here, using blue (usually Neutral) as switched live :P
Yep! When it comes to electricity, never assume that the colours represent what they're actually being used for!
Decent video, especially for beginners. However, it's utterly baffling that you don't mention the new home automation protocol, Matter, at all. Frankly that one omission was almost enough for me to down vote the video. Completely inexcusable, especially for the target audience your seen to be aiming this video at.
Hi David, Matter is not a home automation protocol - it's a home automation standard. There are also very few Matter compatible devices available on the market, which makes it very difficult and risky to comment on. This video is not about protocols, it's about light switches and how to select the best one for your house based on the type of wiring you have available and the features that you're looking for.
I've lost track of the number of botched electrical jobs, so called "professionals" have done on properties I've lived in over the years. One wall socket sparked every time I plugged something into it until I turned off the power took it off the wall to find none of the power cables were securely tightened so every time I used the plug, the cables were connecting and disconnecting. Another house had every light switch using the same coloured cables for live, neutral and earth. The hall two way looked like spaghetti junction so I just put the face plate back on and never touched it again. In short if you are confident enough and know what your doing you'll probably do a better job than half the so called elections out there.
The electricians I've got here have been doing a great job. They've definitely cleaned up a lot of the terrible mess made by the "professionals" who built the house 😂