Smarter home

Product used : Xiaomi Mijia Smart Door & Window Sensor, but any door sensor will do I wanted to know when some one rings my doorbell to notify me when I cannot hear the doorbell, when I am in the garden for example. In combination with a webcam I can see who is at the door when I am not at home. I know that there are products on the market that can fix this, most of them are not visual appealing, are expensive, and/or requires you to pay a monthly subscription. I think my doorbell looks fine, so I do not want to change this, and to be honest: it is more fun to make something yourself! The model of doorbell I use works with two magnetic coils which actuates a metal rod which then hits the bell. Magnetic coils can also activate reed switches because they are magnetic, so let's try that! I taped a door sensor next to one of the two magnet coils to see if it will work. After some moving the sensor around and ringing the doorbell I found the best spot. I marked it and glued it to...

Product code: Mi Flora Specifications Bluetooth low energy (ble) Powered by a CR2032 (3V) battery Measures: Soil moisture (%) Soil fertility (uS/cm) Light intensity (lux) Air temperature (C/F) After automating lights you'll get a need to automate more, so why not plants? I found the Mi Flora sensor online and because they are pretty cheap I thought it was worth the try. The idea is to stick the sensor in the soil and it will log the moisture, fertility and temperature. You can use the Mi Flora app or the plugin in the Mi Home app to read the results. In the app you can pick your plant and it will set all the ranges accordingly, but you can also set the moisture, fertility and temperature boundaries yourself. The sensor is well built. The older versions are white, the newer version is green(ish) which does not stand out that much next to the plant. The inside is weather protected so you do not have to worry when you water the plant. The manual does state that you hav...