Home Manual

How the house works (lights, heating, Alexa, and automations)

manual.psanalytics.co.uk

Welcome

This guide explains how things work in our home and what to do if something doesn’t behave as expected. Most of the time you can just use Alexa like normal — the rest is automatic.

At a glance

Voice control: Alexa Lights: Zigbee Heating: Tado Plugs: Meross Other: SmartThings / LocalTuya / Broadlink
Normal behaviour
Many lights are automatic (dusk, late night, motion). You don’t need to “manage” them.
If something feels “stuck”
Use the Troubleshooting page first — it’s designed to fix 90% of issues quickly.

Start here

Basics (how it all fits together)

A simple overview of the systems (Zigbee2MQTT, Meross, LocalTuya, SmartThings, Broadlink) and what they do.
Alexa voice commands

What to say, what it does, and the key routines (e.g. “Goodnight”).
Lights

Kitchen, lounge, hall/landing, motion lights, dusk rules.
Heating (Tado)

How to boost, how schedules work, and what “Auto” means.
Automations

What happens automatically and why (so it doesn’t feel random).
Troubleshooting

If Alexa doesn’t respond, lights don’t behave, or heating seems wrong.

Quick tips

  • If a light turns itself off, it’s usually on a timer or “after midnight” rule.
  • If Alexa says it can’t find a device, try again once — then check Troubleshooting.
  • Heating is usually best left on Auto. Use “boost” only when you need it.