Troubleshooting Geeni and Home Assistant Integration Problems
Integrating your Geeni smart devices into Home Assistant opens up a world of powerful automation possibilities. However, making the two systems communicate isn't always straightforward. If you're struggling to get your Geeni bulbs, plugs, or cameras to appear or respond in Home Assistant, this guide will walk you through the common pain points and their solutions.
This guide focuses on the official Tuya integration, which is the standard method for connecting Geeni products to Home Assistant.
Understanding the Geeni-Tuya-Home Assistant Connection
The key thing to understand is that Geeni is a brand that uses the Tuya smart platform. Your Geeni devices are, in fact, Tuya devices. Therefore, you do not look for a "Geeni" integration in Home Assistant. You must use the "Tuya" integration and connect it using your account from the Tuya Smart Life app.
CRITICAL FIRST STEP: If you are currently using the Geeni app, you may need to migrate your devices to the Smart Life or Tuya Smart app. While sometimes the Geeni login works, it's often a point of failure. The most reliable method is to reset your devices and add them directly to the Smart Life app, then use that account to log into the Home Assistant integration.
Step-by-Step Troubleshooting Guide
Let's resolve your integration issues.
### 1. Incorrect Credentials or Platform Configuration
This is the most common error. The Tuya integration setup in Home Assistant requires very specific information.
- Use the Right App Account: You must use your Smart Life or Tuya Smart app account credentials, not your Geeni app credentials.
- Select the Correct Platform: When configuring the Tuya integration, you will be asked for your country or data centre. This must match the selection you made when you created your Smart Life account. For most users in the UK and Europe, this will be the Western Europe Data Center. If you choose the wrong one, authentication will fail.
- Authentication Method: Use the "Smart Home App" authentication method. Enter the username and password for your Smart Life app.
Solution:
- Go to Settings > Devices & Services in Home Assistant.
- If the Tuya integration is already there with an error, delete it.
- Click Add Integration and search for Tuya.
- Select it and carefully enter your Smart Life app username, password, and select the correct country/data centre.
### 2. Network Segmentation and Firewall Issues
Home Assistant needs to be able to communicate with your Geeni devices on your local network.
- Same Subnet: Your Home Assistant server (e.g., Raspberry Pi) and your Geeni devices must be on the same network and subnet. If you have a complex network with multiple VLANs (e.g., a main network and a separate "IoT" network), you must have rules in place to allow communication between them.
- AP/Client Isolation: Many routers have a security feature called "AP Isolation" or "Client Isolation," often active on guest networks. This feature prevents Wi-Fi devices from communicating with each other. Ensure this feature is disabled on your main Wi-Fi network.
- Firewalls: Check your router's firewall settings to ensure it is not blocking mDNS (multicast DNS) or other local network traffic that Home Assistant uses for discovery.
Solution: Temporarily connect your Home Assistant server and a problematic Geeni device to the same simple, unmanaged network switch or directly to the main router to rule out network segmentation as the cause.
### 3. Unsupported Devices
While the Tuya platform is vast, not every single device is supported by the Home Assistant integration's API.
- Check Compatibility: Some newer or more obscure Geeni devices may not be recognised. You can check the Tuya IoT Platform website or Home Assistant community forums to see if your device model is known to have issues.
- Reload the Integration: Sometimes, after adding a new device to the Smart Life app, you need to prompt Home Assistant to check again.
- Go to Settings > Devices & Services.
- Find your Tuya integration.
- Click the three-dot menu and select Reload. This will force it to poll your Tuya account for new devices.
### 4. Exploring LocalTuya (Advanced)
If the official cloud-based integration is still causing problems, or if you prefer a non-cloud solution, you can try LocalTuya.
- What it is: LocalTuya is a custom integration (installed via HACS) that attempts to control Tuya devices directly over your local network, bypassing the Tuya cloud.
- Pros: It's faster, works even if your internet is down, and offers more privacy.
- Cons: It is much more complex to set up. You need to extract a "local key" for each device, which can be a challenging technical process. This is recommended for advanced users only.