Okay, so I’ve been messing around with home automation stuff lately, and I wanted to share this little project I did. It’s nothing crazy, but it’s been super useful. I call it “lite doors,” basically because it’s a simplified way to automate my garage door.
Getting Started
First, I grabbed a spare microcontroller I had lying around – an ESP8266, to be exact. These things are cheap and easy to work with. I also needed a relay module, because the ESP8266 can’t directly handle the voltage needed to trigger the garage door opener.
Wiring Things Up
Connecting everything was pretty straightforward. I followed a basic wiring diagram I found online (there are tons of them). Basically, I connected:
- The ESP8266’s power pins to a 5V power supply.
- The relay module’s power pins to the same power supply.
- One of the ESP8266’s digital pins to the relay module’s input pin.
- The relay module’s output pins to the garage door opener’s control terminals (where the wall button connects).
It looked a little messy at first, with wires going everywhere, but once I double-checked everything, it was all good.
Coding the Thing
This is where it got slightly more involved. I used the Arduino IDE to program the ESP8266. I’m no coding expert, but I managed to cobble together a simple sketch. The basic idea is this:
- The ESP8266 connects to my home Wi-Fi network.
- It listens for a specific command.
- When it receives the command, it activates the relay for a short period (like a second), which simulates a button press on the garage door opener.
- Then, it goes back to listening.
I found some example code online and modified it to fit my needs. It took a bit of trial and error, but eventually, I got it working.
Making it Useful
Now, to actually control the door, I initially just used a simple web page I created. It had a single button that, when clicked, sent the command to the ESP8266. Later I integrated this into my Home Assistant.
I just added a entity and that was it!
The Result
And that’s it! Now I can open and close my garage door from my phone, or from anywhere with an internet connection, really. It’s not the fanciest setup, but it works reliably, and it was a fun little project to put together. I’ve even added a little sensor to tell me if the door is open or closed, but that’s a story for another time.