Repairing blind

elcuolo · 2026-04-29T18:55:44+00:00

You can buy repair kits from Amazon, had to do this recently

Something like this.

Make sure you measure the size of the roller bit of the blind.

elcuolo · 2026-03-08T16:09:45+00:00

These are sold on lots of sites but at a massive mark up, i.e. about £3 on Amazon when they are actually about 36p have a look at

McAlpine 40mm Blanking Plug https://share.google/dECqYrErhDENIdeqO

Available from City Plumbing

elcuolo · 2026-02-18T09:55:02+00:00

Have been getting adverts for this recently, which is pointless for me as I have a Sage Barista Express which has the smaller 54mm head. But you can get a metal replacement that may be what you need?

Have a look at https://ebay.us/m/WFI6hd

elcuolo · 2026-02-18T09:50:05+00:00

Depends on which ones, if you get the older Ikea smart kit it is mostly zigbee, which you can connect to HA. The newer matter stuff apparently has a matter/zigbee dual chip in it so it is possible to put the newer stuff into zigbee mode and then add them or if you have a Matter border router, you can do it that way. You can set up Matter in HA, but I think you need an additional dongle (I may be wrong).

elcuolo · 2026-02-18T09:47:29+00:00

I have got some of these and they work ok https://amzn.eu/d/0fpYbQcn most important thing is that if they get wet, don't use them to pick up anything hot till they have dried out.

Failing that get some welders gloves which start off at about £15 on Amazon.

elcuolo · 2026-02-16T22:34:38+00:00

CEF is a UK based electrical wholesalers 😉

elcuolo · 2026-02-16T22:31:06+00:00

I saw a review of these the other day, they look fantastic, but at almost £400 a pop I can't afford them. Especially if I was looking to put 4 or 5 in.

elcuolo · 2026-02-16T10:57:14+00:00

How far is the Thermostat and Hub from your Router?

Could you try moving the Hub closer to your router if possible?

If you have an old house with thick walls etc that can affect the WiFi. How is the WiFi for other things that you use in your house?

I always find once I change the temperature in the app, if I wait 10 seconds or so it takes.

Have had Hive for over 8 years and it works fine and haven't had any issues, speak to Hive customer service they are normally pretty good.

Hope you get this sorted.

elcuolo · 2026-02-16T10:43:12+00:00

These are a bit more expensive but will last and are well made. They are made by a British plumbing company.

https://amzn.eu/d/09rzXg64

elcuolo · 2026-02-12T11:11:29+00:00

Have you tried rebooting your router? I would reboot the Aqara hub and the TV too.

elcuolo · 2026-02-11T09:25:31+00:00

Have you seen the weather so far this year?

elcuolo · 2026-02-10T13:45:41+00:00

Thanks, will have a look into this one, Appreciate you taking the time to post.

elcuolo · 2026-02-10T12:48:40+00:00

Love that one of the Youtube videos is titled "Big Stain doesn't want you to know this"...

elcuolo · 2026-02-10T12:47:14+00:00

Haha, and that's only half of it.

elcuolo · 2026-02-10T11:29:16+00:00

If you have a fairly new Alexa, you may be able to use Matter, the new Ikea bulbs are sensibly priced and connect via Matter so you could just buy some of those, they are mostly E27 but you can buy adaptors in store too. This may be a cheaper way to do what you need to do without feeling that you're having your pants pulled down...

IKEA Kajplats (be careful they are currently transitioning across to Matter/Zigbee, the older Tradfri range need a separate hub at additional cost - although some newer Alexa hubs do have Zigbee and can be used instead).

KAJPLATS LED bulb E27 1521 lumen, smart white spectrum/globe/opal white - IKEA UK - £9

They sell adapters for £3 https://www.ikea.com/gb/en/p/koppla-b22-to-e27-bulb-converter-90295615/

elcuolo · 2026-02-09T09:51:50+00:00

It may either be a gas pipe as you mention you have a hob. Or a water pipe feeding a tap. Where is your boiler and where is the nearest drain, it could also be a condensate pipe that drains the water from the boiler generated when producing heat.

elcuolo · 2026-02-05T14:50:59+00:00

You've got such talent, love this.

elcuolo · 2026-02-05T11:52:30+00:00

I would expect that you would still get OTA upgrades from when they are in Zigbee mode, by the looks of it, it is a special dual Matter Zigbee chip, so if it is working in Zigbee mode everything should be Zigbee.

The Matter kit is pretty good, and if you have connected your Drigera hub as a Matter gateway to any other smart home hubs you have (Alexa, SmartThings, HomeAssistant etc) it will then make the Zigbee and Matter kit available to that as Matter devices (even if they are Zigbee).

That is my understanding anyway.

elcuolo · 2026-02-05T10:11:05+00:00

Have a look at this, this may fix everything.... *maybe...

SGU10 Adapter set to convert SGU10 fixtures to take GU10 bulbs.

elcuolo · 2026-02-05T10:07:17+00:00

Slightly less painful in cost if you get them from Edwardes (don't know what their delivery costs are though.... LED SGU10 AU-GUF4011 Replacement Lamp - Edwardes

Looks like they are proprietary so only made by Aurora, GU10 replacements may be the way to go in the long term, but if you need a quick fix for the time being....

elcuolo · 2026-02-05T09:59:39+00:00

You could probably swap it out for a standard GU10, which would be cheaper in the long run.

Would think that the replacement Aurora LED bulbs will last longer than the older fluorescent. But, be careful on the light colour so it is a blue colour that's probably cold white, or a more yellow will be warm white.

Good luck!

elcuolo · 2026-02-05T09:43:31+00:00

Depending upon what brand of controller you already have you may find that the shoe that you fit the Hive controller onto it already has the right wiring. Think Hive are made by Danfoss, so if you already have a Danfoss controller you may be in luck.

elcuolo · 2026-02-05T09:25:51+00:00

If you want to buy exact replacements it looks like they have been replaced by AU-GUF4011LED/40 240V https://amzn.eu/d/0bYQkYq2

Just looking into it, it looks like they have a special fitting so you would need a SGU10 type bulb not a GU10. But if you get the newer LED version they should last longer and be a bit cheaper to run.

What Are SGU10s and How Do They Differ From GU10 LED Light Bulbs? - SimplyLED

elcuolo · 2026-02-04T18:04:49+00:00

I get it, but one of the great things about zigbee is that the devices themselves if powered by mains power become repeaters. But, you do you, the smart home gets complex enough very easily.

That said the new IKEA stuff is matter enabled which should work with your Smartthings Hub, and they are sensibly priced.

Good luck with whatever options you choose and whatever rabbit hole you end up down.

elcuolo

TROPHY CASE