r/homeassistant • u/TrapdoorJohnson • 1d ago

ZigBee to MQTT USB Adapter doesn't reach all room's

Since Home Assistant has gotten me so addicted, I'm now reaching my limits with Zigbee. I have a NAS with Unraid as the operating system and use HA in a VM with a Zigbee to MQTT USB adapter, but it doesn't reach all the way to the bedroom. I've already looked at Zigbee LAN adapters, but I don't know if I can integrate them easily. Does anyone have experience with this?

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u/dametsumari 1d ago

All you need is some devices on the way that act as routers like most lightbulbs etc. every device need not reach coordinator as it is mesh network.

5

u/brightvalve 1d ago

The idea behind Zigbee is not that every device should be in range of the controller (i.e. your USB adapter), but that you extend the network with "router devices" (most permanently powered Zigbee devices will act as such) that are able to relay the messages between a device that's not in direct range of the controller and the controller itself.

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u/I_AM_NOT_A_WOMBAT 23h ago

Just echoing what others said...I started with a 4 pack of third reality zigbee switched plugs placed in unseen locations around the house as routers (whether I used them for any zigbee switching or not).

Then when I wired up some enbrighten extractor fan controls those became repeaters for those areas and I removed the plugs. The zigbee network almost just grows automatically as you get into it.

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u/TroubledGeorge 12h ago

I have a NSPanelPro that I use to show a HA dashboard and also acts as a repeater.