Status tiles instead of notifications
It’s easy to ignore or forget notifications sent to your phone. Also, they don’t keep reminding you once you’ve seen or dismissed them. Status tiles on a dashboard located in a place you often see solves that problem.
Use cases
Appliance Status
- Washer Done - Time to put clothes in the dryer
- Dishwasher Clean - Ready to be emptied
- Dryer Done - Clothes ready to fold
Home Awareness
- Doors/Windows Open - Know before leaving the house
- Delivery Waiting - Package on porch to bring in
- Robot Vacuum - Scheduled to run, time to tidy up
Products needed
Essential Equipment
Wall-mounted in high-traffic area
Basic automation setup
Any automation where you send a notification, consider using a dashboard tile instead. You can do that by using either a virtual switch or variable.
Step 1: Create virtual switch
- Name it descriptively (e.g., "Washer Needs Attention")
- Add to dashboard with appropriate colors
Step 2: Set switch ON when attention needed
- Trigger from the event that needs attention
- Turn on the virtual switch
Step 3: Set switch OFF when resolved
- Trigger from the resolution action
- Turn off the virtual switch
Status tile examples
Washer/Dryer status
- Create virtual switch for each appliance
- Turn on when cycle completes (power monitoring)
- Turn off when door opens or manually tapped
Door/Window status
- Show all open doors/windows
- Glanceable before leaving house
- No action needed - just informational
Delivery status
- Turn on when package detected on porch (camera or motion sensor)
- Turn off when front door opens (brought in)
- Persistent until addressed
Robot vacuum schedule
- Show when vacuum will run today
- Reminder to tidy up before it starts
- Countdown to scheduled run
Platform-specific examples
Home Assistant
SmartThings
Hubitat
SharpTools
Why tiles beat notifications
| Notifications | Dashboard Tiles |
|---|---|
| Can be dismissed and forgotten | Persistent until addressed |
| Individual to one person | Visible to whole household |
| Interrupt what you’re doing | Glanceable at your convenience |
| No ongoing reminder | Always visible status |
| Easy to miss | Hard to miss in high-traffic area |
Advanced features
Priority-based colors
Use a color system to indicate urgency:
- Green: All good, no action needed
- Yellow: Attention needed soon (informational)
- Red: Urgent, needs immediate attention
- Blue: In progress or running
Escalating alerts
If a status tile stays red too long, add additional alerts:
- 0-30 min: Red tile only
- 30 min - 2 hours: Add flashing or notification
- 2+ hours: Add voice announcement
Auto-reset
Some status tiles should reset automatically:
- Time-based: Reset at midnight if not addressed
- Event-based: Reset when related event occurs (door opens, motion detected)
- Manual: Require tap to reset (for important items)
Troubleshooting
Issue: Tile not updating
Solutions: ✅ Check virtual switch is properly linked ✅ Verify automation is firing (check logs) ✅ Refresh dashboard browser/app ✅ Check hub connectivity
Issue: Too many tiles clutter dashboard
Solutions: ✅ Group related items on separate screen ✅ Use conditional visibility (only show when active) ✅ Prioritize most important status items ✅ Create summary tile that shows count of issues
Issue: Family ignores tiles
Solutions: ✅ Place dashboard in high-traffic area ✅ Use motion sensor to wake screen when approaching ✅ Add audio alerts for critical items ✅ Make tiles actionable (tap to dismiss)
Related automations: