DIY-Sensors Tutorials

Want to learn how to build your own smart home devices without getting overwhelmed? The DIY-Sensors projects are the perfect place to start. Whether you’re completely new to electronics or just starting to explore Arduino and Home Assistant, these projects walk you through every step—from wiring a sensor to seeing the results in your smart home dashboard.

Each project comes with:
🔌 Clear wiring diagrams so you know exactly where each wire goes
💻 Arduino code that you can use and customize
🌡️ Real sensor examples like temperature, motion, air quality, and light detection
📦 3D-printable cases to make your build neat and functional
🎥 Video tutorials to follow along at your own pace

You’ll also learn how to send sensor data to Home Assistant using MQTT, so you can control your lights, monitor rooms, and automate your home—all without the cloud, subscriptions, or complex setups.

These projects don’t just show you what to do—they help you understand how it works.

If you’ve ever wanted to get started with smart DIY electronics, this is your launchpad.

DIY-Sensors Project Library

Looking to level up your smart home hardware? The DIY-Sensors project library is a collection of documented, tested, and modular examples for building intelligent sensors and controllers based on ESP32 and ESP8266 platforms. Each project demonstrates not only how to build and connect the hardware, but how to make it communicate efficiently and reliably with Home Assistant using MQTT.

You’ll find:
🧩 Modular Arduino code with reusable functions and well-documented logic
📡 Efficient MQTT messaging (only sending state changes) to reduce load on Home Assistant
🔧 Clean wiring diagrams and pin maps for quick implementation
📦 3D-printed case designs to protect and mount your sensors
📈 Optimized performance for local processing, reducing network chatter and storage growth

Each build focuses on low-power, high-efficiency design and is fully compatible with both custom dashboards and automation systems in Home Assistant. Whether you're building a multi-room presence detection system or want to monitor environmental data like CO₂, temperature, and lux levels, these projects form a robust foundation for experimentation and integration.
Ideal for makers, developers, and Home Assistant power users who want complete control over hardware and software.

DIY-Sensors Component Reference Library

Our components section is built as a technical reference for makers who want to integrate sensors and actuators into reliable, modular DIY smart home systems. Each component is documented with pinouts, voltage requirements, communication protocols, and real-world examples. The focus is on popular and proven hardware for ESP-based builds, including:
🔸 ESP32 & ESP8266 variants – with differences in GPIO handling, flash size, and power consumption
🔸 Environmental sensors – DHT22, BME280, ENS160 for temperature, humidity, air quality
🔸 Presence & motion – HC-SR501, LD2410C (mmWave), AM312 (mini PIR)
🔸 Light sensing – VEML7700, BH1750, LDR analog setups
🔸 Output control – mechanical relays, solid-state relays, MOSFET drivers
🔸 Displays & feedback – I2C OLEDs, LEDs, buzzers
🔸 Power management – buck converters, battery modules, deep sleep considerations
Each page includes:
⚙️ Wiring examples (schematic + breadboard view)
💡 Arduino/ESPHome-ready code snippets
📶 Communication type (digital, analog, UART, I2C, etc.)
🧪 Notes on reliability, accuracy, and real-world behavior
🔗 Related projects where the component is used
Whether you're prototyping a custom sensor or optimizing a production setup, this library gives you the technical clarity to make smart choices.