Running Ahead: Home Assistant

Most of the work right now is panels and rivets. But some evenings are for the part I am really looking forward to.

I’m running ahead on the automation. While the van is still shedding its panels, my head is already at the end of the build.

The goal is an almost button-less interior. Lights, heating, power, all of it controlled through Home Assistant, on a tablet in the van or from the phone app. No wall of switches, just a clean interior and one place where everything comes together.

None of this is due anytime soon. The van needs walls before it needs automations. But to keep the ideas grounded I laid out a first mockup of the power system: 12V, 230V and the network, sketched out with paper and tape. Very basic for now, but it helps to visualize how it all connects.

And a Raspberry Pi is already waiting on the desk. It knows what it will become.

Next up: back to the present. Panels first.