@tomasmcguinness

  • Getting lower power consumption on the XIAO nRF52840

    Following on the heels of the success with my nRF52840DK power consumption, I moved to my XIAO nRF52840 board. This was the board I wanted to run my Zigbee F.A.R.T, sensor on. I used the same arrangement as before, with the Nordic Power Profiler Kit (PPK) supplying 3.3v. I soldered… Read ⇢

  • Reducing power consumption in my nRF52840 Zigbee sensor with the help of a Nordic Semiconductors’ Power Profiler Kit

    As part of tinkering on my Matter and Zigbee projects, I want to support battery power. Specifically, I want my Zigbee FART sensor to run for a few months on a battery. I’d love to box it up and hide away all the wires. My wife would love that too.… Read ⇢

    Reducing power consumption in my nRF52840 Zigbee sensor with the help of a Nordic Semiconductors’ Power Profiler Kit

  • Switching my Temperature Sensor from BLE to Zigbee (Part #2)

    In Part #1, I started trying to convert my simple two probe temperature sensor from BLE to Zigbee. I got off to a slow start, dealing with compilation issues and incorrect behaviour. When I finished the previous post, I was waiting to hear back from Nordic’s support. I’m writing this… Read ⇢

    Switching my Temperature Sensor from BLE to Zigbee (Part #2)

  • Building a Matter powered “under-the-counter” light switch for my kitchen worktop

    Light switches are great, but when paired with ordinary bulbs, they have their limitations. Smart light bulbs are better, but require a different approach! My main problem with light switches is that they aren’t always beside you when you need to flick them. 99% of the time it’s not a… Read ⇢

    Building a Matter powered “under-the-counter” light switch for my kitchen worktop

  • Switching my Temperature Sensor from BLE to Zigbee (Part #1)

    Having had a lot of success with a Matter device project, I started thinking about my twin probe temperature sensor. I wondered if was possible to convert from my dodgy BLE mesh to Zigbee. My BLE Mesh wasn’t behaving itself, so perhaps going to Zigbee would help improve my radiator… Read ⇢

    Switching my Temperature Sensor from BLE to Zigbee (Part #1)

  • Does low temperature heating actually use more gas?

    With the first cold weather snap behind me, I wanted to share the results of a little experiment I ran to answer this question: Does having your heating on low and slow use more gas than having it hot with short bursts? This is the question I often get asked… Read ⇢

    Does low temperature heating actually use more gas?

  • Avoid Outdoor Temperature Sensor Mistakes: My Own Experiences

    This came as a surprise to me. My kitchen extract fan and my bathroom extractor fan have been interfering with my outdoor temperature sensor! I’m using an Ecowitt Temperature sensor (https://amzn.to/4i2dNCf) mounted on an enclosure (https://amzn.to/4fH2yxy). I don’t have the waterproof version of the sensor, which is also available. I… Read ⇢

  • Adventures in low temperature heating

    In this video, I give a brief explanation of that low temperature heating is and how I’m able to heat my 1950s home with radiators at between 30 and 40 degrees Celsius! If you’re interested in getting more performance from your boiler or want to better understand how low temps… Read ⇢

  • A brief update on my radiator sensors

    As we’re now (almost) back into the heating season here in the UK, I thought it would be worth posting a brief update on my radiator sensors project! The aim of this project is to develop a set of sensors that connect to the flow and return pipes of a… Read ⇢