I’m just this guy, you know?

  • 11 Posts
  • 268 Comments
Joined 2 years ago
Cake day: June 12th, 2023
  • SolidGrue@lemmy.worldtoSelfhosted@lemmy.world•Anyone automate anything with smart thermostats and outdoor temp?English
    4·
    17 days ago

    I have some logic around notifications and a few actions. My spouse and I both grew up in houses with heat, but no AC, so I’ve programmed HA to send notifications to our phones if the setpoint on our Ecobee thermostat is warmer than the outside temperature in Cooling mode, and cooler than the outside temp in Heating mode. Outdoor temps are a blend of three weather service feed “feels like” observations and two outdoor temperate/humidity sensors.

    The outdoor sensors are a ZigBee sensor, and some area sensors I snoop a few times an hour with an RTL-SDR radio single via MQTT bus. I have a helper that blends the weather service and local obs to compare with the thermostat. It bothers us every 2 hours to open some windows.

    We both also have a bad habit of not closing the back door all the way, so the Assistant bugs us if a door or window is open for more than 10 minutes and the outdoor temperature is below the heating setpoint, or above the cooling setpoint. It turns off the HVAC a few minutes later if the condition persists and sends a snarky notification about not being made of enough money to fix climate change. However, it will turn the heat back on to 60F if the house falls below 58F and send notifications every hour til the condition is addressed.

    Otherwise the ecobee does a fair job adjusting itself to maintain a desired inside temp on its own.

  • SolidGrue@lemmy.worldtoSelfhosted@lemmy.world•[Resolved]Jellyfin won't fetch the good metadataEnglish
    9·
    22 days ago

    You’ve solved it by now but this Jellyfin doc article was helpful for me, beginning with the section Naming.

    https://jellyfin.org/docs/general/server/media/movies/

    There at similar guides for TV Shows, Music, Books and other mixed media.

    There are also guides for “stacking” multi-segment media titles, for example Lord of the Rings movies which come on several discs.

    Jellyfin can be a bit opinionated about detecting bad metadata. The override tags in the media data filename or folder name can help clean that up. In fact, I’ve started hard-coding those [tmdbid=…] tags in my encoding workflow because I’m just so damned tired of fighting with the metadata feature.

    Hope it works form you,.too.

  • SolidGrue@lemmy.worldtohomeassistant@lemmy.world•Help Me Satisfy My Wife Using HAEnglish
    7·
    8 months ago

    Look into the GE Enbrigjten series of Z-wave dimmer switches & 3-poles. They’re about half the price as what you linked, and use a more modern protocol stack. You’ll need a Z-wave hub, but you can get a USB dongle for about the cost of one of the switches, and it will probably Al’s include ZigBee on board as well.

    GE makes dimmable 2-pole and 3-pole switches. The good thing about their 3-pole switches is you only need one smart switch for the branch, and can use companion switches to control the main smart switch over the traveler wire.

    As always, pay attention to ALL smart switch literature and make sire you have a compatible load. Many switches require a neutral wire, and/or aren’t compatible with halogen fixtures. The product literature should make it pretty clear.

    I also use Minoston switches, which I believe are another brand of the GE switches.

  • SolidGrue@lemmy.worldtoMemes@lemmy.ml•I'm both happy and scared!English
    2·
    10 months ago

    +1. Honestly, any of the three can be a recipe for disaster, especially when messing with DVW.

    Of all of them, gas is the one that can be explosive, although crossing electrical pairs is a big risk too. I bought my house from an electrician, and you probably would not be amazed at the number of 20A breakers on 14awg branches. There were at least 3 I’ve swapped back to 15A first time I cracked open my panel.

    To every man his domain, I say. Myself, I grok electric and plumbing. I hate messing with gas.

  • SolidGrue@lemmy.worldtoMemes@lemmy.ml•I'm both happy and scared!English
    612·
    10 months ago

    Congratulations!

    I’ve had my place 20 years. Here’s a couple of tips:

    If you’re not already in a fixed rate loan, refi into one as soon as its feasible for you.

    The Home Depot 1-2-3 series books will save you thousands in basic troubleshooting and repairs. YouTube is really good for general handyman advice too. Caveat: learn your limits and don’t take on anything you don’t know ypu can see through. Several hours’ research is generally all you need.

    Be judicious about home warranties. They’ll spam you with FUD. Just hang out at a local trades bar and chat with the regulars. You’ll learn a lot.

    Electric and water generally* pretty are easy. Don’t mess with the gas lines.

    If you DO undertake your own repairs, don’t cut corners and leave it for the Next Guy. That Next Guys will inevitably be you.

    Nothing will be plumb, square or true. You learn to deal with it.

    If you like to use rich colors in your décor, learn about tinted primers, especially when dealing with red paints.

    Equity is Capital. Don’t touch it except for capital improvements to the structures & grounds, and even then be judicious. I’m talking new roof, new sump, kitchens & baths. Do not usenit to pay off consumer debt or college loans. No matter how tempting.

    Really, Don’t Touch The Capital.

    Live there for you. Its your house. Make it your personal retreat from the world, and set it up how you like it. Don’t worry about resale until it’s actually time to sell.

    Again, congratulations and good luck!

    –
    * for basic repairs, receptacle replacement, and the odd new branch. Know your limits.