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Found a solution for Sun interference with my garage door sensor
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zoloftt lemmy.world zoloftt@lemmy.world
Joined: 2025-06-04
Quote

This time of year the sun tends to cause interference with my garage door blockage sensors.

I've been manually closing my garage as a result, but finally took the time to "fix" it

PVC threaded female end to slip on. Didn't glue it, but it's jammed on tight enough. Sensor still works fine when an actual object is in the path.

158   Original
TrackenDaKracken lemmy.world TrackenDaKracken@lemmy.world
Joined: 2026-09-29
#2 · Quote Reply

I have a similar problem. My garage faces North. In the Fall and Spring, the sun rises and shines directly into the sensor. Back when I left every morning at that time, I'd get out of my car, and cast a shadow so the door would close. Another option was to move the garbage bin so it cast a shadow, but it wasn't tall enough to work for the whole time.

A tube might have worked, but then what would I complain about?

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folekaule lemmy.world folekaule@lemmy.world
Joined: 2023-06-20
#3 · Quote Reply

Thanks for the reminder! I have the same issue and I have a little wood shim I turn into a little sunshade. The old one had fallen off so this was a good reminder to go replace it.

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shads leminal.space shads@leminal.space
Joined: 2026-07-30
#4 · Quote Reply

Haha, had a client recently modify a sleeve from a whiskey bottle. Same effect just with a whiskey theme.

4
zoloftt lemmy.world zoloftt@lemmy.world
Joined: 2025-06-04
#5 · Quote Reply

Thanks for the reminder! I have the same issue and I have a little wood shim I turn into a little sunshade. The old one had fallen off so this was a good reminder to go replace it.

That's what I was doing! Kept falling off, pvc fitting has been a dream hahahaha.

4
zoloftt lemmy.world zoloftt@lemmy.world
Joined: 2025-06-04
#6 · Quote Reply

Haha, had a client recently modify a sleeve from a whiskey bottle. Same effect just with a whiskey theme.

Way cooler solution than mine, I'll have to take a peak at my liquor cabinet and see if anything fits.

2
shads leminal.space shads@leminal.space
Joined: 2026-07-30
#7 · Quote Reply

Way cooler solution than mine, I'll have to take a peak at my liquor cabinet and see if anything fits.

It was a Macguyvered solution on a Friday afternoon, ergo its likely to be semi permanent.

3
qupada fedia.io qupada@fedia.io
Joined: 2024-08-24
#8 · Quote Reply

I think I may need to do something similar.

At this time of year, sun coming through the skylight hits the temperature sensor in the dining room for an hour or so each day.

A screenshot of a graph in Home Assistant, showing a rapid temperature rise

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zoloftt lemmy.world zoloftt@lemmy.world
Joined: 2025-06-04
#9 · Quote Reply

I think I may need to do something similar. At this time of year, sun coming through the skylight hits the temperature sensor in the dining room for an hour or so each day.

Wow, that's really cookin when the sun is on it. Is that linked to an HVAC system?

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qupada fedia.io qupada@fedia.io
Joined: 2024-08-24
#10 · Quote Reply

Wow, that's really cookin when the sun is on it. Is that linked to an HVAC system?

Indirectly.

Home Assistant is taking a weighted average of 4 sensors (this one at only 20% of the total) and using that to play tricks on the heat pump. So it caused only around a 1.2°C difference in the value that matters.

Of course it's a nice spring day today and I have all the doors and windows open, so that heat pump is on fan-only mode anyway.

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zoloftt lemmy.world zoloftt@lemmy.world
Joined: 2025-06-04
#11 · Quote Reply

Indirectly. Home Assistant is taking a weighted average of 4 sensors (this one at only 20% of the total) and using that to play tricks on the heat pump. So it caused only around a 1.2°C difference in the value that matters. Of course it's a nice spring day today and I have all the doors and windows open, so that heat pump is on fan-only mode anyway.

Neat! Glad it only skewed the data horrendously and didn't impact the overall system much.

3
chunkystyles sopuli.xyz chunkystyles@sopuli.xyz
Joined: 2023-06-29
#12 · Quote Reply

Indirectly. Home Assistant is taking a weighted average of 4 sensors (this one at only 20% of the total) and using that to play tricks on the heat pump. So it caused only around a 1.2°C difference in the value that matters. Of course it's a nice spring day today and I have all the doors and windows open, so that heat pump is on fan-only mode anyway.

As a home assistant user, I'd love to hear about these "tricks"

1
Victor lemmy.world victorz@lemmy.world
Joined: 2023-11-14
#13 · Quote Reply

Wow, that's really cookin when the sun is on it. Is that linked to an HVAC system?

Temp on our apartment balcony hits 40+°C during sunny days in the summer. It's brutal.

Luckily we can open the glass enclosure completely.

1
ryannathans aussie.zone ryannathans@aussie.zone
Joined: 2023-09-20
#14 · Quote Reply

I think I may need to do something similar. At this time of year, sun coming through the skylight hits the temperature sensor in the dining room for an hour or so each day.

Put a white painted shroud on it designed for weather stations, air will flow through and it'll be unaffected by the sun. I just built one for myself this week, now I can finally measure air temp outdoors (not the surface temp of what it's affixed to)

3
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