I have an MQTT server and MQTT client set up, along with two devices that provide data from our electricity meters. I can see in the client logs that all devices are connecting and sending regular updates.
I can process the data in flows, but I haven’t found a truly practical use for it yet. For example, if I send the meter readings via WhatsApp, it becomes annoying every few seconds.
Is there a way to easily display the meter readings on a dashboard and perhaps even analyze monthly consumption?
Adding a Tasmota device directly doesn’t work because no device is being detected."
To get a device for these values, you have to create a so-called AVD (Advanced Virtual Device) with the Device Capabilities app.
Please use this link to install the app, because it’s the lastest test version of the app, already published on December 7, 2023. You can believe me that this version is stable.
I have no clue, what to do. In the Device Capabilities is 0 matching template for Tasmota power meters… I also guess i would need to add a tasmota device in the 1st place to use Device Capabilities, but this still fails.
What exactly do i need to do to add a Tasmota device? The server and client are working well and i can see all of my devices in the logs of the client. But every time i try to add a Tasmota device it does not find any.
Who said, that the DC app has templates?
No, you don’t need a tasmota device in 1st place to use an AVD from the DC app. If you already have a tasmota device, why should you create a virtual device from it? What sense does that make?
I think there are at least 3 or 4 ways:
Ask the app developer if he’s willing to add you device
As I already mentioned create an AVD with the DC app. The number fields created in the AVD for the different data from your Tasmota device must then be filled with corresponding flows. I had written a tutorial in which this is partly explained: How to integrate Hoymiles Microinverters via OpenDTU and MQTT
It may be possible to use the MQTT Hub app to create your device. However, I am not familiar with this app, so I recommend visiting the corresponding app topic → [APP][Pro] MQTT Hub - Community version
As I saw in the Tasmota App Topic, you also use Home Assistant. With the Homey Assistant Community App you can import the data to Homey and create a device accordingly. I recommend visiting the corresponding app topic → [APP][Pro] Home Assistant - Community App
I’m currently doing the same with my Tasmota Hichi IR sensor, by the way. The reason for this is, because it’s not possible to use an AVD for the new energy dashboard at the moment.
I find it weird that I have the MQTT server running on my Homey, but I can’t directly see my Tasmota power meter readers. However, I can add these devices in Home Assistant and then re-import them into Homey through the Home Assistant integration.
Somehow, this feels like shooting myself in the back through the chest into the eye…
In Home Assistant, all I need to do is provide the login credentials for the MQTT server, and I immediately get access to all available parameters.
Somehow, Homey Pro feels much more fiddly and complicated compared to the community-driven software Home Assistant. While Home Assistant provides a more seamless and automated experience, Homey often requires additional manual work, configurations, or workarounds to achieve the same functionality.
The biggest disadvantage of Homey is that if a device is not supported by any app, then it is not possible to use it, at least not without some workarounds.
But HA is much too complicated, at least for me. MQTT is maybe an exception, but only because many MQTT clients have HA MQTT Auto Discovery integrated.