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smart-home

Control smart home devices via Home Assistant API and MQTT messaging.

Updated Jul 10, 2026
Search Tags:#automation#smart home#iot#mqtt#home assistant#device control#zigbee
One-click install
npx skills add https://github.com/timchap/dot-hermes --skill smart-home-timchap
Or copy as Structured Prompt for Agent▼
Please help me install this Agent Skill.
Skill: smart-home
Source: https://github.com/timchap/dot-hermes/tree/main/skills/smart-home
Command: npx skills add https://github.com/timchap/dot-hermes --skill smart-home-timchap

SYSTEM DOCUMENTATION & REQUIREMENTS

What problem does it solve? Managing lights, switches, sensors, and automations across a smart home requires knowing the correct API calls, MQTT topics, and device quirks, which this Skill consolidates into one operational guide. ## Core Features & Use Cases - Device Control: Turn lights and switches on or off and query sensor readings through the Home Assistant REST API or direct MQTT publish/subscribe. - Automation Routines: Set up common routines like Good Morning, Good Night, Away Mode, and Movie Mode with concrete device actions. - Troubleshooting: Diagnose unresponsive devices, handle Zigbee/Z-Wave battery sleep cycles, and avoid rate-limiting pitfalls. - Use Case: A user asks to dim the living room lights to 15% for movie night; the Skill checks device availability, sends the authenticated Home Assistant service call, and verifies the state change. ## Quick Start Ask the assistant to turn on the living room light using Home Assistant and confirm the new device state.

Frequently Asked Questions about smart-home

High-intent search queries and answers about installing and using this skill.

FAQPage Schema
How do I turn on a light with the Home Assistant API?▼

Send a POST request to /api/services/light/turn_on with the entity_id in the JSON body and a Bearer token in the Authorization header. Verify the new state afterward by querying /api/states for that entity.

How do I control smart home devices over MQTT?▼

Publish a message to the device's topic using mosquitto_pub, for example mosquitto_pub -h localhost -t home/living_room/light -m on. Subscribe with mosquitto_sub and wildcards to monitor state topics.

What is the difference between MQTT + and # wildcards?▼

The + wildcard matches a single topic level, while # matches all remaining levels. Use + for one hierarchy segment like home/+/light and # to subscribe to everything under a prefix.

Why is my Zigbee or Z-Wave sensor not responding?▼

Battery-powered Zigbee and Z-Wave sensors sleep between wake cycles and report on their own schedule rather than on demand. Wait for the next wake interval and check that the entity state is not unavailable before assuming failure.

Can I send multiple device commands rapidly to Home Assistant?▼

You should limit changes to one state update per second per entity. Faster bursts can cause dashboard glitches and inconsistent states, so space out commands when automating multiple devices.

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