Pocster

Yes ! The title is not click bait ! In her absence ( but now returned ) I was given a gold star. Never really a fan of Alexa because without viable use it’s just a gimmick ( an interesting one at that ) But now , now we have SWMBO approval for HA application of Alexa . ” Alexa , tell media server to play the latest Coldplay album in the living room “ media server references squeezebox on a pc . Living room ( it couldn’t understand my pronunciation of lounge ) is the raspberry pi with dac to speakers ; so not through Alexa speaker . Naturally you can instruct media server to change volume , skip track , play radio , play random etc etc ” Alex red lights on “ in the bathroom causes led rgbw to go red . Naturally we have a cycling “ rainbow “ option . It’s important to appreciate I have no ‘Alexa enabled devices ‘ in our home apart from the phone . So this is about adding functionality to things that don’t have it . I then struggled ( with a work around ) and did “ Alexa open door “ . Perhaps need to be careful with that one ( someone shouting outside could open our front door !! ) HA is doing a lot of the heavy lifting here as none of the devices support Alexa natively. So many ideas of things to try now ! 😎

Grow some , grow them now 💪😎

Automation at its most basic level ( lights on , lights off ) can save a great deal of hassle in a large open plan room and also cost savings on light switches .

I don’t wonder . I know why

Yeah but very old skool boring . Best to over complicate with automation 😁

Yeah - I can implement that easily and am still considering it . Maybe Alexa commands override default and as you say exist for longer until timing out back to ‘normal’ mode .

Most rooms don’t have switches ( though I could do that ) . I think geo fencing will solve lots of issues on a room basis until of course SWMBO leaves her phone in a different room .

It’s not the sensing that’s an issue . if default lounge lights are say white at 80% dim . Swmbo ( via Alexa as unlikely to use my rough iPhone interface ) makes lights blue at 100% . When do I instigate the default of white 80% . When does automation reset over personal preference ? . I can’t be ass’d to change light colours / dim everytime someone has fiddled with them . Mulling over geo fencing on a room basis ….

(expletive deleted) wit The underlining technology is a non issue … 😊🙄

How does that help ??

In swmbo’s absence I’ve been experimenting ( no , not like that ) Whilst not a huge fan of Alexa ( unless it’s on a different website ) have got some integration into my HA . But … in the bathroom ( for example ) lights come on / off depending on motion sensor ( still not allowed a camera ) . If SWMBO is sat in the bath watching crap on her phone ( even though there’s a wall mounted iPad 🙄 ) ; lights go out due to lack of activity - she waves her arms or says “ Alexa ( bitch ) lights on “ - how should I revert to “automatic lighting “ again ? . I thought maybe a timer - or after 2 hours of no motion in bathroom it reverts back to ‘automatic’ mode . Seems a bit crude . Geo fence swmbo’s phone to in/out bathroom ?. Reset at midnight to default automation ? There’s plenty of situations where automation can be overridden yet needs to ‘reset’ at some point … Suggestions welcome !

What about this switch ?

It’s a bit like everyone use to plasterboard a shower enclose and then tile it . You wouldn’t ( shouldn’t ! ) do that now. It’s a bolts n braces approach I think . If you didn’t use decoupling mat and flexible adhesive and tiles crack - you’ll kick yourself . If you do and they still crack - then at least you tried …..

Save your money ( lots to save ) HA , zigbee - then pretty much any light , switch , plug etc you want .

Sorry - my bad ! No CGT !!! 👍👍👍👍👍

As a full time LL my advice ( although CGT ) is sell . The rules are stacked against you as a LL - making it at best difficult and at worst impossible. I’m stuck in LL world as it’s my only income - but have to adapt to the new ‘ presumed ‘ and current rules / regs . No one in their right mind would choose to be a LL now - which is exactly the reason I stay …. But for ‘amateur ‘ ( no dis-respect intended ; I.e not full time ) - it’s a sea of mess - sell it - take the CGT hit and move on .

Something tells me it would respond “ I don’t know how to do that “

Was meant to be fun but is now torture . 2 devices in the bathroom mirror ( with a light ) and lights Got “Alexa turn off bathroom mirror “ etc working Lights though “ Alexa turn on bathroom lights “ gets me “ bathroom doesn’t support that “ In homeseer you can override the devices name - so I called it twat so I say “ Alexa , turn off bathroom twat “ - it comes back and says “ did you mean lights ? “ So I’m now shouting twat instead of lights ffs !

Go for it @Onoff - you are now on a roll …. Since 2018 👍👍👍👍

At the end of terminator 2; once the credits have finished , Arnie comes back on screen and says ( Austrian accent ) “ I’ll be back and lick your goaties “ - honest to God !

You lot are (expletive deleted)ed when AI comes to lick your goaties

In the end I went for standard 60x60 tiles . Much cheaper than the larger format version . Also I can do it all on my own 😎

Check out Rubi . Wedges and clips . Really good system - reduces lippage .

Yeah I know. Lenders would love it though!. Isn't the country going back to the 19th century anyway?

Generation load . Parents die , child takes over , they die etc etc The infinite loan !