pool controls and homebridge

[jltnol]

So this has been a long journey, and I can almost see the finish line from where I am. I've gone thru the excellent tutorial that is here: https://www.troublefreepool.com/threads/pentair-intellicenter-pool-control-dashboard-instructional-guide.218514/, and have actually gotten to the point of being able to control the pool controls via the web interface on my Pi. This is a major step forward for me.

The next step is trying to this to work thru Homebridge with this plugin , where I have been anything but successful.

Other plugins in Homebridge auto-populate controls to the Homebrige interface, so that's what I'm expecting/hoping will happen with this plugin for Homebridge, but so far, I got nothin'.

I am somewhat familiar with Homebrdige as I'm managing a few devices that I can't control directly from my HA Software.

The good news is I've gotten to the point were I can run things from a webpage on the Pi(and from other computers on my LAN), so I'm hoping what is left to get this working in Homebridge isn't going to be such a slog(at least for me...)

So are my hopes and goals for the Hombridge out of line? Has anyone been successful in getting all this to work thru Homebridge?

[tagyoureit]

We don't have a current native Homebridge plugin. The most recent is by gadget-monk but it's a bit out of date now. Other people use smartthings/hubitat and bridge it to Homekit. But unless someone wants to tackle this and update it, then there is no current version that fully work.

[bsileo]

I am not doing any work with Smart things any longer . That old version of the app only worked with the Groovy API on ST which they dropped. All of the current code is for Hubitat only.

[mhmatttu]

Thanks. I have found that some smart apps built on the old platform still "mostly" work. There are a few automations i have in mind that i would prefer run through ST and display in njsPC. For example, for my pool fill i have a zwave controller connected to a 5v ball valve that i can toggle on/off from ST (actually have a timer setup in webcore). i plan to use a zwave contact sensor connected to a float switch to automate the pool fill. Based on @tagyoureit comment, I'm curious if his "mostly" works and if i can do the same. just cant get past the discovery/verification part.

[bsileo]

Well if you like the old structure, you won't be disappointed with the move to Hubitat. The technology is solid, costs are low. I have a pretty large home automation system running on 2 Hubitat hubs and it's much more stable than ST ever was.

[rstrouse]

To get past your discovery issue use the upnp deviceType urn:schemas-tagyoureit-org:device:PoolController:1 instead of urn:schemas-upnp-org:device:PoolController:1 the upnp,org schemas are reserved for standard devcies.

[mhmatttu]

Thanks @rstrouse! That update allowed it to be discovered to install the pool controller. unfortunately none of the child devices installed and there are no event subscriptions. The smart app does show all relevant equipment listed in the IDE. also no activity in the IDE logs.

@bsileo definitely considering a switch to hubitat or another platform. I've not been very happy with ST since their change to the new app, but most of my use is automated or through other UI's (i.e actiontiles). I would like to leverage this interface along with echo speaks and others.

[jltnol]

So I know I'm in way over my head, but since I have the PoolContols working on my PI, is it as easy as turning on the Habitat Controller in the Pool Control Dashboard, and then downloading the Habitat plugin for Homebridge? Would that get the Pool Controls over and into Homebridge?

[jltnol]

Ahhhhhh Gadget-Monk! The person I've been looking for!
So the BIG PICTURE is to get this pool control working in my Home Automation system, Indigo. But short of someone developing a plugin for Indigo for the PoolControl Server, that seems out of the question. The next idea is to get the Pool Controls working in Homebridge, as I can easily bridge back to Indigo. I'm not looking for the "full experience", but the ability to turn the main pump on and off as well as switch between the two speeds, the aux pump on and off, and to grab the water temp is really all I'm looking for. Anything else will be lagniappe. I've downloaded your original plugin numerous times, and have tried to get it to work from the server that is hosting Indigo, as well as installing Homebrige on my PI where the Pool Control stuff lives, but haven't gotten anywhere. I think part of my issue is understanding what is actually possible here... My experience with all this stuff is pretty limited, but I am fearless when it comes to trying stuff. I've actually had to start over on my PI a few times(for different reasons, none of which involved the pool controls), and since that is the only thing my PI does, its pretty trivial for me to go all the way back to Square One if necessary.

So maybe the first question would be just to get an idea of what the Homebridge plugin can do, just to make sure that what I'm hoping for is actually possible.

Past that, I'm guessing installing Homebrige on the PI is the way to go, as opposed to trying to get Homebridge on my Indigo Server to handle this. Either way, I'm sure I can make the jump all the way back to Indigo.

Thanks for your offer of help.

[gadget-monk]

I am not familiar with indigo but getting homebridge and the pool plug-in running on pi should be straightforward. The plug-in has temp sensors, heater control and switch controls. It also reports pump state as a HomeKit fan device.

[tagyoureit]

Why don't you use the Indigo MQTT plugin and then try to use MQTT to talk back to njsPC? It might be the easiest route, especially if you just want some basic functionality.

[jltnol]

I've actually downloaded the plugin, turned on the MQTT connection in the Pool Controls... have tried to create a "device" in Indigo. but keep getting "connection failed".... namely because I have no idea what I'm doing. On the Pool Control side, I've entered the IP address of the Indigo Server as host, clicked the 'Enable' box, saved the interface, and have left all the other info as default.

On the Indigo side I've created a new MQTT device, have entered the IP address of the PI, and entered the Pi Username & Password, but am still at "Connection Failed".

[tagyoureit]

I use MQTT Explorer to view the topics that are being sent. You may need the Mosquitto broker to send the messages. And the topics are documented in the wiki. Beyond that, I know nothing about Indigo so you're on your own there.