Hi all.
So now we have this mini heat wave I have decided ceiling fans are needed. So is the best option a dumb fan with a smart switch? I have a smartthings hub.
Or is there a smart fan with a direct control within smartthings without 3rd party apps or complex coding required
Any advice welcome
Jim
There are lots of choices. You can get a smart wall switch if the wiring for the fan supports that. Or you can get a smart fan with a remote and then use the bond controller or something similar to bring that into smartthings. But it all depends on the exact model numbers. What country are you in? The device selection does very.
So take a look at the fan FAQ. Although it mentions Alexa in the thread title, it applies whether you are using a voice assistant or not.
FAQ: 2020 Ceiling Fan and Dimmer light wall mount control compatible with SmartThings and Alexa?
Thanks for a quick reply. I am in UK. How will I know if wiring supports the switch type? Sorry if thats a silly question.
OK, for the UK, there aren’t very many choices. I think most people end up using the Sonoff WiFi device that fits in the ceiling rose. It comes with its own switch that just sticks on the wall.
You can talk to people in the UK who are using it in the following thread
I use a standard Ceiling fan/light which has an ir remote but use a broadlink rm mini to send out the ir signals. Although you can’t control the broadlink directly via smartthings you can by using virtual switches to trigger an alexa routine to activate a broadlink scene.
I use a temp sensor in a smartthings routine with a virtual switch to trigger the fan to come on at a certain temp or increase to the next fan speed when a higher temp is reached. Its quite a flexible option.
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