Making dumb extractor fans smart

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CrazyFool

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Hi guys

Whats the easiest way to make dumb extractor fans smart?

I have one on/off fan in my basement that I want to be humidity controlled. I'm thinking I should attach a Sonoff TH to this.

Another fan in my bathroom.... I want this to be triggered by humidity but I also want switch control.
I'm thinking of wiring the switch to a sonoff mini and also have a Sonoff TH that turns the Sonoff mini on when humidity threshold is triggered.

What do you guys think?
Is there an easier or better way to do this?

Kind regards

CF
 
I have not had very much success with humidity control with high humidity, the sensors can get over damp and take ages to dry out, does not matter if simple display or switch, and had the extractor in my dads old shower simply run 24/7 where simply the bedroom was dry but sensor remained damp.

The pneumatic switch
ae235
worked well, set to run to max 10 minutes press on entering shower and press when leaving, simple. Keep it simple.
 
Sorry to reactivate this old thread but it is very similar to something I am looking at.

I recently installed a new humidistat extractor and I regret it now - no matter how I set it, it either does not come on or keeps running even when the bathroom is adequately dry.

I have a Home Assistant Server so I thought I would put in a basic extractor fan and then control it with a Sonoff relay as has been suggested above.

I was thinking of then buying an Aqara humidity sensor in the bathroom and using that to tell the extractor when to come on.

Is this worth doing? Ultimately, I cannot work out whether the humidistat sensors in extractor fans are not good enough or whether any humidistat sensors are going to have exactly the same problem.
 
I have had a Shelly H&T humidity and temperature sensor in my bathroom controlling a fan through Home Assistant for several months. It works adequately. The fan starts while I am showering and stops when the relative humidity drops back below 60%.
 
I have the same question so this thread is timely. Except I need a normal Manrose extractor fan in an outbuilding utility room to come on with an increase in humidity (eg when tumble dryer is on). However Im completely new to home automation so a few qs:

- Would I need both a Sonoff Mini and a humidity sensor, and whats the difference between the two?
- Is the Shelly H&T just one unit or do I need to use it with a relay switch, and can this be a Sonoff or have to be from Shelly?
- Can I still have a manual switch at the location or is it all controlled by the sensor?
- What else do I need to run the system - all via proprietary app, through Alexa or through a Home Assistant system?

Many thanks.
 
The Sonoff Mini is a switch that can be controlled by Wi-Fi to switch the fan on and off. The Humidity sensor measures humidity in the room.
The Shelly H & T just measures Humidity and Temperature, it can't switch anything.
You can have a manual switch at the location, or you could switch the fan on/off manually using an app on a phone or using voice control via Alexa for example.
I run mine through Home Assistant. The Shelly H&T tells Home Assistant that the humidity has increased, Home assistant tells the WiFi switch to turn the fan on. When the humidity drops the Shelly H&T tells Home assistant and Home assistant tells the WiFi switch to turn the fan off.
Home Assistant takes a bit of effort to set up, it has a very steep learning curve.
 
pcaouolte said:
The Sonoff Mini is a switch that can be controlled by Wi-Fi to switch the fan on and off. The Humidity sensor measures humidity in the room.
The Shelly H & T just measures Humidity and Temperature, it can't switch anything.
You can have a manual switch at the location, or you could switch the fan on/off manually using an app on a phone or using voice control via Alexa for example.
I run mine through Home Assistant. The Shelly H&T tells Home Assistant that the humidity has increased, Home assistant tells the WiFi switch to turn the fan on. When the humidity drops the Shelly H&T tells Home assistant and Home assistant tells the WiFi switch to turn the fan off.
Home Assistant takes a bit of effort to set up, it has a very steep learning curve.
Click to expand...

Thanks. Which wifi switch are you using with the Shelly H&T?

Until I get my head around HA, the Sonoff or Shelly should be sufficient to do the same job via the app - i.e turn the fan on based on humidity levels and also set programmes based on time?
 
I use a Shelly 1 as the switch.

I'm afraid that I can't advise on the possibilities of using the Shelly devices via the app. All of my home automation is done via Home Assistant, I don't use the Shelly app at all so I have no idea of its capabilities. Perhaps someone else will join in with their experience of controlling devices through the Shelly app.
 
I've recently set up a SonOff THR320 with temperature/humidity sensor bundled to control a heater and monitor my brick shed after the bitterly cold weather before Christmas.

I've been using it with Home Assistant and originally tried esphome as firmware on it before switching to Tasmota and it works perfectly, I can't speak as to how well the SonOff firmware works as I've not used it.

It does look the job and it's nice having the display/sensor/relay all on the one unit:

TH Elite - SONOFF Official

SONOFF TH Elite Smart Temperature and Humidity Monitoring Switch has an LCD screen to show you the real-time temperature and humidity. Supports 20A max load and has dry contact output for compatibility with more appliances. RJ11 sensor interface provides higher stability.
sonoff.tech sonoff.tech

Tasmota does allow you to set on/off conditions based on a measured value so you could set it up to just turn the relay on/off without needing a full blown home automation setup
 
hllns said:
I've recently set up a SonOff THR320 with temperature/humidity sensor bundled to control a heater and monitor my brick shed after the bitterly cold weather before Christmas.

I've been using it with Home Assistant and originally tried esphome as firmware on it before switching to Tasmota and it works perfectly, I can't speak as to how well the SonOff firmware works as I've not used it.

It does look the job and it's nice having the display/sensor/relay all on the one unit:

TH Elite - SONOFF Official

SONOFF TH Elite Smart Temperature and Humidity Monitoring Switch has an LCD screen to show you the real-time temperature and humidity. Supports 20A max load and has dry contact output for compatibility with more appliances. RJ11 sensor interface provides higher stability.
sonoff.tech sonoff.tech

Tasmota does allow you to set on/off conditions based on a measured value so you could set it up to just turn the relay on/off without needing a full blown home automation setup
Click to expand...
How accurate do you find the temp and humidity sensors?
 
elsmandino said:
Sorry to reactivate this old thread but it is very similar to something I am looking at.

I recently installed a new humidistat extractor and I regret it now - no matter how I set it, it either does not come on or keeps running even when the bathroom is adequately dry.

I have a Home Assistant Server so I thought I would put in a basic extractor fan and then control it with a Sonoff relay as has been suggested above.

I was thinking of then buying an Aqara humidity sensor in the bathroom and using that to tell the extractor when to come on.

Is this worth doing? Ultimately, I cannot work out whether the humidistat sensors in extractor fans are not good enough or whether any humidistat sensors are going to have exactly the same problem.
Click to expand...
Over run on a fan is desirable and minimal on cost .
 
DIY_Doctor said:
How accurate do you find the temp and humidity sensors?
Click to expand...
Pretty accurate, it has a over the top magic factory calibrated semiconductor sensor that's supposedly accurate to 3% for RH and 0.4 degrees for temperature, it also seems to respond quickly, even if the door is only opened briefly it changes more or less instantly.
 
foxhole said:
If your tumble dryer is chucking out moisture it’s broken .
Click to expand...
I don't know yet as I haven't bought one yet. But considering the outbuilding suffered condensation to rust my tools in the past, would be crazy not to install whatever measures possible to reduce the risk given they'll be hundreds of £ of equipment in there. Of course tumble dryers don't chuck out moisture, but the heat they generate is a cause for condensation in a relatively cold outbuilding, and depending on the quality of the seals there will always be a degree of moisture escaping, hence the ratings of condensation efficiency they come with.
 
hllns said:
Pretty accurate, it has a over the top magic factory calibrated semiconductor sensor that's supposedly accurate to 3% for RH and 0.4 degrees for temperature, it also seems to respond quickly, even if the door is only opened briefly it changes more or less instantly.
Click to expand...
That's great to know thanks. I think I've found what I'm looking for.
 
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