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Smart buttons are a useful way to activate scenes and automations in your smart home. With Home Assistant, I found that sometimes NFC tags can be more useful, allowing me to know not only when a tag was scanned, but also the device that scanned it.
Inside the main door
Know exactly who is home
the beauty of NFC tags in home assistant is that when you scan them, Home Assistant records the time and date the tag was scanned, along with the tag ID and the scanning device ID.
This means that when two different devices scan the same tag, there are different device IDs that can identify which device scanned the tag. I have a tag right inside the front door, and when my wife or I get home, we can scan the tag to let Home Assistant know we’re home.
This can then be used to activate custom automations. For example, if my wife comes home and I’m not there, play your favorite playlist on the smart speakers and set the lighting the way she likes.
nightstands
Don’t leave anyone in the dark
have a smart button to trigger a bedtime routine It works well if everyone goes to bed at the same time. However, if you are still awake when your partner goes to bed and press the smart button to activate the bedtime routine, all the lights in the house may turn off and devices will turn off, leaving you in darkness and your favorite TV show suddenly turning off.
With an NFC tag on each side of the bed, each person can scan it when they go to bed. If a person scans your tag, they can turn off the bedroom lights but leave everything else on. Only when the second person scans your tag do all the lights go off and the house locks for the night.
under pots
NFC stickers are the perfect choice
This was the first way I started using NFC tags in my smart home. I wanted a way to record when I watered the house plants so I could create automations to remind me when they needed watering again.
Using NFC tags was an obvious solution. I couldn’t really stick a smart button next to every plant in my house, but sticking an NFC sticker to the bottom of each pot was easy to do. When I scan a tag, it records the time, which I then pass to an automation to remind me to water the plant again after the appropriate time.
in the laundry room
Know who washed
Another place where it is very useful to know who scanned the tag is in the laundry room. You can use a vibration sensor or a suitable smart plug to determine when you finished your washer or dryer, but there is no way to know who started them in the first place. A smart button can’t tell you either, but an NFC tag can.
When we start doing the laundry, my wife or I scan the NFC tag, which records which of us did it. When the upload is complete, the notification is only sent to the person who scanned the label, so they know whether to remove it or put it to dry.
In my medicine storage
A simple way to record my medication
I have to take medications every day and it is very easy to forget them. I built myself a reminder notification system using Home Assistant which will continue to send me notifications until I confirm that I have taken my medications. I wanted a quick and easy way to mark the medication as taken.
An NFC sticker on the bottom of the medicine storage box is a simple solution. It’s hidden under the container, but I can quickly scan it with my phone to record that I took my medication and the automation will stop sending me reminders.
Next to my garage door
The door will only open for my phone.
Another nice advantage of NFC tags is that since they send a device ID when scanned, you can ensure that automations are only triggered when scanned by a specific device. I have one next to my garage door and if I scan it with my phone it recognizes the correct device ID and the the garage door will open.
If someone else tries to scan the NFC tag, their device ID will not match my automation ID and the garage door will remain firmly closed. This is something that is not possible with a smart button, which would open the garage no matter who pressed it. This is not a very secure method, so you should not use it if you are worried about people breaking into your garage.
In my coffee machine
Can I log in when I change the filter
I’m a big coffee lover and have several different brewing methods, from AeroPress to V60 pour-over. I have two coffee machines– An espresso machine and an automatic drip coffee maker, both with removable water filters. I wanted a way to remind myself when the filters needed to be changed.
I added an NFC tag to the bottom of each machine. When I change the filter, I scan the label and the date is recorded. I have an automation that is set to automatically remind me to change the filter once the appropriate time has passed, at which point I scan the tag again and the pattern repeats.
Sometimes NFC tags outperform smart buttons
Smart buttons can be incredibly useful ways to activate automations in your smart home, but they have their limitations. The fact that NFC tags can tell you which device scanned them can make them more useful in many cases. They are also cheap to buy and there is no batteries to changewhich can be a real relief in a home with many battery-operated sensors.
