January 29, 2025 Reading time: 5 minutes

You've probably seen some small pipes on some terraces in bars or similar (especially in summer, of course) that spray a thin layer of water, and that help to cool the environment. The idea is cool, and it's something that's not expensive to prepare if you want to set something up on your terraces, pools or wherever you like.

First of all, I'm going to tell you the basics of the matter, then I'll explain how to "automate" it without the need for home automation and, finally, how you can make it as pro as possible, and link it to your home automation center.

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January 29, 2025 Reading time: 8 minutes

[Have you read part 1 of this guide? Click here to start from the beginning!]

And we end this "little" "quick" guide to home automation by touching on something basic but with a lot of potential: the functions of Home Assistant itself. This software has various options that will make our lives easier, and some of them end up being quite useful. In addition, we can use various integrations that will provide us with a certain added value to our home automation center.

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January 28, 2025 Reading time: 23 minutes

[Have you read part 1 of this guide? Click here to start from the beginning!]

There are many things to connect via Zigbee to our Home Assistant, but WIFI always takes the cake, both for ease and compatibility. And since it doesn't need a hub, we can add devices from the first minute. There is also an added handicap: there are many devices that are designed to be used with their own app, and which usually go via WIFI. That's where Home Assistant gives us one of its best assets: unifying the software.

Let's remember that one of the disadvantages of using gadgets via WIFI is the possibility of saturating our network. It didn't take long for me to have problems with my router (the one that came by default with my provider, Lowi), and I solved it by adding mesh devices. I'll take advantage and talk a little about them, because they are little known and they have worked very well for me.

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January 15, 2025 Reading time: 10 minutes

[Have you read part 1 of this guide? Click here to start from the beginning!]

In plain English, and to make ourselves understood, the Zigbee protocol is a mechanism for various devices to communicate with each other. It's like talking about WIFI or Bluetooth, since Zigbee is another one of many. It is not usually very well known in everyday life, since its use is mainly focused on home automation, security and industrial issues.

Personally, I like to use Zigbee devices in home automation issues, although there are devices that use other protocols, such as radio frequency, WIFI or even Bluetooth. Each protocol has its advantages and disadvantages, but in my opinion Zigbee is the ideal one for this field. If you are not going to have many devices in your system, WIFI is not a bad option either, but in my case I had problems with my router, which was choking with so many connections.

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January 7, 2025 Reading time: 9 minutes

I won't deny that years ago, when I lived in a rented house, I always dreamed of automating my home. But in a big way: all kinds of automation, sensors, cameras... I decided not to get into the matter until I owned a house (for reasons of money and time), and when that day came... how happy I was. In fact, I started little by little, because I didn't even know what I could do, or how. Over the years, and after a lot of research, I can say that I have a home that is automated, and you can't imagine how I show off to visitors. Blinds that close by themselves, lights that turn on when they sense movement, heating that turns on when it's too cold... These are silly things that, together, make you feel like you're in a futuristic house.

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