Tag Archives: diy

2020-2022 mega update

It seems somewhere along the way I’ve lost my passion/time for updating this blog. I personally blame getting the bike as now I have yet another exciting way to spend rather limited amounts of available time, but it’s probably largely … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Introduction to Xiaomi Zigbee IoT/Smart Home devices

I’ve recently been experimenting with Xiaomi Zigbee IoT/Smart Home devices. These devices are super affordable (approx $20-55NZD) and make it very easy and affordable to upgrade a home with useful smart devices. My plan is to do a more detailed … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

The bathroom fan debacle

I completed this project a while back and had the images saved up for a blog post – somehow almost a year has gone by since then in a blink of an eye. But anyway, enjoy this delayed update about … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Surveillance State “at home” Edition

A number of months ago I purchased a series of Ubiquiti UniFi video surveillance cameras. These are standard IP ethernet cameras and uses a free (as-in-beer) server agent that runs happily on GNU/Linux to manage the recording and motion detection, which … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Pipegate

The joys of home ownership never stop giving and I’ve been having some fun with my old nemesis of plumbing… A few weeks back we got a rather curt letter from Wellington Water/Wellington City Council (WCC) advising us that they … Continue reading

Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

10 months in

It’s been almost 10 months since Lisa and I brought our current house and moved in. Things are going well, having our own place and not paying a landlord is a fantastic and freeing feeling, but home ownership certainly isn’t a … Continue reading

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Installing Cloud Pipes

One of the essential upgrades for the house has been the installation of computer network data cabling throughout the house. Whilst some helpful individual went to the effort of installing phone jacks in almost every room, an analogue phone line … Continue reading

Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Settling In

This blog has been a little quiet lately, mostly thanks to Lisa and I being busy adjusting to the joys of home ownership with our new house we moved into in mid-September! It’s been pretty flat-out and a number of … Continue reading

Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment