Rob went from 15 Apps to One Smart Home With Home Assistant

Rob joins Phil and Rohan from New Zealand to share how he replaced 15 smart-home apps with Home Assistant. Discover his AI-assisted workflow using VS Code, Claude Code, Codex, Git, YAML documentation, solar optimisation, camera-powered number plate recognition, and a resilient smart-home network.

Watch this episode on YouTube

Show notes for this episode are available at https://homeassistant.fm/HA249

Support the Podcast

Get early-access to episodes and an ad-free feed by supporting our Patreon.

https://homeassistant.fm/patreon

Share your story

We wouldn't be able to do this podcast without community members and home automation enthusiasts sharing their stories. To register your interest to come share your home automation journey, head over to homeassistant.fm and click share your story.

Chapters

00:00:00 Intro

00:02:00 Escaping the app overload

00:07:00 First automations and Wi-Fi devices

00:10:00 Batteries, presence sensors and vacuums

00:17:00 UniFi network and Home Assistant upgrade

00:20:00 Solar, Modbus and energy optimisation

00:23:00 AI coding workflow with VS Code

00:33:00 OpenCode, MCP and custom workflows

00:37:00 AI documentation and automation intent

00:42:00 Fail-safe smart home design

00:45:00 AI camera gate recognition

00:50:00 Security, modes and alarm integration

00:54:00 Backup power and future projects

01:01:00 Advice for a new setup

This episode was made possible thanks to our sponsors

Home Assistant Cloud by Nabu Casa

Easily connect to Google and Amazon voice assistants for a small monthly fee that also supports the Home Assistant project. Sign up for your free trial in your Home Assistant system: https://my.home-assistant.io/redirect/cloud/ or visit https://nabucasa.com

Zooz

If you're looking to upgrade your smart home - you can’t go past Zooz! Zooz offers a range of affordable and innovative devices, including water leak sensors, water valve controllers, smart plugs and scene controllers.

For the best prices on all Zooz products, head over to https://thesmartesthouse.com

Apollo Automation

Apollo Automation are the makers of open source smart home sensors built for the Home Assistant ecosystem. They're an official Open Home Foundation commercial partner and their devices are built with local control, privacy, and reliability in mind, giving you full control and flexibility right out of the box.

Want Phil to help with your smart home?

You’ve heard him troubleshoot Home Assistant on the podcast. Now you can book him to troubleshoot yours. From broken automations and confusing YAML to dashboards, devices, and complete smart home setups: https://smarthomecto.com

Products Discussed

AirGradient air-quality sensor: https://www.airgradient.com/

Home Assistant Connect ZWA2 (Z‑Wave radio): https://amzn.to/3MfPzsP

Aqara FP300 presence sensor: https://amzn.to/3LpkZ02

Products we Recommend

Hosts

Phil Hawthorne

Website

Twitter: @philhawthorne

Bluesky: @philhawthorne.com

Buy Phil a Coffee

Rohan Karamandi

Website

Twitter: @rohank9

Buy Rohan a Coffee

This episode contains Amazon affiliate links. If you click on one of them and make a purchase, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.

Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy