Hopefully, over the next few months I'm going to use this space to document my new home automation system using the ESP8266.

My ideas currently revolve around the use of the ESP8266 standalone, i.e. no Arduino in sight.

Ideally, everything should be a direct drop in replacement in a standard UK wired home, no need for pulling wires, ripping open walls, or destroying the house. So we are assuming everything is 240v AC safe.

Everything should have the Wife-Acceptance-Factor and be useable by a guest walking into the house with no assumed knowledge, e.g. light switches should work as expected, or in an intuitive way. Technology should be unobtrusive and assistive rather than prescribing your behaviour to interact with the system.

Following lighting, I'm aiming at control over the heating system, with individual room control of temperature. That might get a little "rip things up and cut into floors" though ;-)

The usual disclaimer: These projects will involve work with 240v AC, there is a great risk of frying yourself and others, if you don't know what you're doing with mains voltage, please find someone who does, the 3.3v side of this project will be breadboard able on the bench, then you can find your resident sparky and say "Hey, can you hook the 240v to these terminals please" !