Smart RV

I have no interest in it myself, but one of the YOUTUBERS I follow had a recent video about his Smart RV projects, and referred to a forum or facebook page for people interested in it.

Consider this.. They are not so "smart" when they fail.

RV smart locks have a pretty bad reputation for failing and when they fail, it is at the least opportune time.

Security cameras on a RV? Gonna have to bring your own "Internet" with you, that is going to be a huge data bill and if you camp in places where cell coverage is not so good most likely will not work..

Internet T' Stat, why bother, a RV is very small, takes you a whole 1 minute to walk front to back and just seconds to reach between the side walls..

Leave your "Tech" at home and enjoy the simpler life of being "unattached" to the Matrix..

Where in the world are you going to need all that

There's not much commercially available smart tech specifically aimed at the RV market. I don't know of any RV compatible "smart" locks or thermostats. There are keyless locks and programmable thermostats, but as far as I know, none of them are controllable by any home automation controller. There's not necessarily anything RV specific about security cameras and 110V smart outlets, so there are many options there.

Having said that, if you want to get your hands dirty and roll your own, there are options. Home Assistant and OpenHab are two options for smart "brains" that don't require constant internet connection and could easily be setup to run off 12V or 110V. These could be installed on a Raspberry Pi and control a combination of off the shelf smart outlets and other controls. These systems integrate with just about any technology and combinations of different vendors.

There is a module called a Sonoff SV that is designed to switch and operate off of 12V DC using wifi. These can be reprogrammed to be controlled by HA or OpenHab. They come as a bare PC board module though and you have to provide the case and wiring. There are also Sonoff smart outlets for 110V that can be reprogrammed. Those come as a complete module, but the have to be opened up and reprogrammed to be controlled by the automation software. These solutions do require a fair amount of technical involvement.

Ive had good luck with the Wyze cams. Theyre 5v so its a little more friendly being powered by your 12v system. I run the plastic outdoor covers and squeeze dielectric grease into the electrical connection. Ive had 2 installed on my trailer roof for over a year. Been rained on. Covered in snow. Driven down washboard roads.

I’m not here to be judged, just looking for suggestions. We are living full time in our rv and will have WiFi connection almost always. Camera will help deter someone from trying to steal the expensive smart tech I plan on installing, not to mention my electronics for my telehealth job. I appreciate all the comments with the helpful suggestions though. Would appreciate only helpful comments/suggestions. Thanks.

352 wrote:
Where in the world are you going to need all that

Need might be a strong word, but automation has many goals and purposes in a sticks and bricks and potentially even more so in an RV. You might see all automation as frivolous and meaningless, and you're entitled to your opinion.

So on the chance that you are asking as serious question, here are some "automation" features that come up a lot that I think are extraordinarily worthwhile. To answer the question, I need some automation wherever my RV might be. I want other automation because that's one of my hobbies. Some automation I too find less than useful and I won't implement that automation, but others might find it useful or desirable. I know that's just my opinion...

• Tire pressure monitoring systems (These are indeed a form of automation that could save your life)
• Water leak detection (could save you lots of $$$$)
• Refrigerator/Freezer temperature monitoring with notification of over temperature (Not as much of a problem with my residential fridge as it was with every RV fridge I've owned. I prefer to know there's an issue while I can still salvage my food.)
• Automated city water and water pump shutoff when leaving for extended periods
• Ambient RV temperature monitoring heat/freeze warnings (Could save a pets life)
• Automatically turn water heater electric element off when there's no water present
• Detecting power failures and notifying you if you're away from the RV
• Replacing the idiot RV monitor light panel with something that's actually useful and can automatically notify you when you're getting low on water, battery, or LP and when your holding tanks are getting full

Some of the potentially more frivolous but also potentially useful:

• Automatically turning off any outside lights at bed time
• Automatically turning on the coffee pot first thing in the morning
• Automatically retracting the awning when high winds are detected
• Adjusting the thermostat without having to get out of bed
• Turning the lights off without having to get out of bed

Where do you need an RV? Why do you need a fifth wheel over a travel trailer, or a TT over a pop-up, or a pop-up over a tent, or a motor home over a trailer or diesel over gas, yada yada yada...

New, especially high end, RVs are starting to move to some forms of automation. Unfortunately, the RV industry doesn't have a great track record with technology, so some of it might not be great.

Some automation might be about being lazy, but some serves useful even critical purposes. I have implemented some of the ideas listed above, and hope to implement some more as I have time.

Gdetrailer wrote:
Consider this.. They are not so "smart" when they fail.

That is a consideration and one of my guiding principles in any automation I undertake. There are some crazy automation systems and implementations. Smart devices are a lot more reliable than they once were, but they can fail. "Dumb" switches can fail as well though. There are some newer high end coaches that have some automation built in from the factory and I worry about some of those systems where a failure could lead to more or less complete electrical system failure.

I personally believe that, almost always, any device being automated should work as it did before automation and not require the automation controller to function. In other words, I believe if you automate a light switch, there should still be a light switch in the same location that functions substantially the same and regardless of the availability of a "smart" controller or internet. I'm also a fan of automation for a purpose and understanding both the automation and the purpose. In other words, I believe you should know why you want to automate a switch or device, how the device is being automated, and how to return it to non-automated status in the event of a failure.

Perhaps the OP should look at what the ultra high end diesel pushers are using. See what the million dollar units are using to make their coaches smart. Tablets seem to control the entire coach. Seems pretty expensive what they're doing. Seen on some RV tv shows.

Rkb.rv wrote:
I’m not here to be judged, just looking for suggestions.

Dont feel singled out its common here. The grumpy guys are like sharks and need new stuff to complain about. They hunt down the new posts and give their negative opinion and then luckily they move on to the next.

You can already see the last 2 posts are awesome and very helpful.

wopachop wrote:

Rkb.rv wrote:
I’m not here to be judged, just looking for suggestions.

Dont feel singled out its common here. The grumpy guys are like sharks and need new stuff to complain about. They hunt down the new posts and give their negative opinion and then luckily they move on to the next.

You can already see the last 2 posts are awesome and very helpful.

Yes! I see that now, thanks.