How to Make a DIY HomeKit Weather Station Using D1 Mini and BME280
The smart HomeKit-enabled weather station that we are going to build today works similarly to the official Elgato Eve Degree, which costs ~€80. This is a completely homemade weather station that you can make for under $10 and integrate with the Apple Home app on your iOS and macOS devices, such as iPhone, iPad, and MacBook. It also works with smart home automation software, such as Home Assistant.
Things You Will Need
To build this mart DIY weather station forApple HomeKit, on which it is recognized as an Elgato Eve Degree, you will need the following components:
Flash the Firmware
To make this DIY weather station, we will use the firmware byHomeKid. For this, you will need access to a macOS or Windows system and a micro USB cable. The instructions to flash the firmware are as follows:
On Windows PC/Laptop
Once the firmware is flashed successfully, you need to restart the device by disconnecting the USB power supply and then following the next instructions to connect the board to your Wi-Fi network.
Connect to the Wi-Fi Network
Close the Flash Downloadtool and connect the D1 Mini to the power adapter or your system.
If the password for the WLAN network is wrong, the device will restart the Access Point (AP) after some time. You can connect to the AP again and enter the correct password.
Connect the Components
Refer to the diagram below to connect the BME280 and SSD1306 OLED display to the D1 Mini or NodeMCU board.
Add Weather Station to the Apple Home App (HomeKit)
Connect the micro USB cable to the D1 Mini or NodeMCU and on your iPhone, iPad, or MacBook, open the Home app. Then follow these steps to add the HomeKit-enabled DIY weather station as an accessory to the Home app. The weather station we made will be recognized and added as an unofficial accessory. However, it will work similarly to an official Elgato Eve Degree sensor for Apple HomeKit.
To view the barometric pressure values and altitude, you will need to install the Eve for HomeKit app on your iOS device. This app provides a much nicer and more intuitive UI. It is highly recommended that you install the app to use this unofficial DIY HomeKit accessory, just like we added theElgato Eve DIY HomeKit motion sensor.
Troubleshooting Common Issues
In case you encounter one or more of the following issues, you will need to re-flash the firmware:
In such a case, use the flash tools to erase the D1 Mini or NodeMCU board and re-flash the microcontroller board with the HomeKidd firmware.
Most Affordable Home Weather Station
You can build and use this affordable DIY HomeKit-enabled weather station to measure the temperature, humidity, and barometric pressure at your current location or in a room. You can use this sensor to further automate other devices in your Home app, such as a fan or HVAC unit when the temperature increases or goes down to a certain value. You can also add and integrate this sensor into a Home Assistant server and create multiple automations for your smart home.
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