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How I hacked my washing machine (nexy.blog)
submitted 2 weeks ago by Pro@programming.dev to c/technology@lemmy.world
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[-] 9point6@lemmy.world 104 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

A lot of the response I've seen to this post has been "this was unnecessarily complicated".

This makes me incredibly sad.

Who the hell is reading a tinkerer blog and complaining about an elaborate hack?

It's like going to a book club and complaining the story isn't boring enough.

I love this kind of explorative reverse engineering bodge job stuff the best of any kind of engineering tbh

[-] buffing_lecturer@leminal.space 28 points 2 weeks ago

I was bracing myself for some level of absurdity after this disclaimer.

Instead it seemed to be pretty reasonably complicated. They didn't flash some custom firmware or even mess with the hardware at all.

Sure, it is complicated, but in terms of hacks it seems to be par for the course.

[-] DeviantOvary@reddthat.com 5 points 1 week ago

I've seen a comment complaining about too much oil on the recipe for... chilli crisp oil. Idiots are everywhere.

[-] bassomitron@lemmy.world 30 points 2 weeks ago

TIL washers now have WiFi connectivity. Inching ever closer to the dystopic cyberpunk era where you really can hack everything in sight.

[-] SheeEttin@lemmy.zip 17 points 1 week ago

Only a few more years until I can overclock my couch!

[-] ccdfa@lemmy.zip 7 points 1 week ago

I overclocked my clock and now I'm never late!

[-] onslaught545@lemmy.zip 1 points 1 week ago

You can get smart couches right now.

[-] lka1988@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 1 week ago

Yes, but a couch doesn't stop functioning as a couch if the smart functions stop working.

[-] onslaught545@lemmy.zip 2 points 1 week ago

Neither does a smart washing machine.

[-] lka1988@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 1 week ago

If the motherboard takes a shit? A washing machine will absolutely stop functioning entirely. A couch is still a couch.

[-] blackn1ght@feddit.uk 2 points 1 week ago

That could happen to the washing machine whether it's "smart" or not.

[-] lka1988@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 1 week ago

A proper older washing machine doesn't have a motherboard.

[-] onslaught545@lemmy.zip 2 points 1 week ago

Yes it does

[-] lka1988@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 1 week ago

And there's my point. A couch is still a couch, smart features or not.

[-] onslaught545@lemmy.zip 1 points 1 week ago

And a washing machine is still a washing machine, smart features or not. Every washing machine is going to have a controller board that can break.

[-] blackn1ght@feddit.uk 1 points 1 week ago

I guess you'll need to go back at least 40 years. Even so, if the belt or motor breaks then the washing machine doesn't work either.

[-] lka1988@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 1 week ago

Well sure, but my original point was that a "smart" couch still functions perfectly fine as a couch with or without its "smart" features.

[-] AA5B@lemmy.world 3 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

I saw this when I had to get new machines 7-8 years ago. However they were an extra like $300 for each machine. wtf.

I would kill for some sort of audio out or usb, but even better would be Zigbee/z-wave/thread, and you can do it for less than $20 in parts.

Now that Matter/Thread has standard profiles for laundry machines and has a chance of building interoperability, I hope my next machines will, for a reasonable cost and no cloud requirement

[-] SkyNTP@lemmy.ca 16 points 2 weeks ago

If you just want to know when the clothes are dry, there's an easier way that keeps you in full control: put a ct clamp on the power cord. Doubles as energy monitoring. You can then block that crappy wifi spying system off altogether.

[-] marlowe221@lemmy.world 16 points 1 week ago

Personally, I use the very technical method of listening for the buzzer to go off…

I hate that everything has WiFi for no reason…

[-] shortwavesurfer@lemmy.zip 10 points 2 weeks ago

I was thinking a vibration sensor connected to home assistant, but that would work too.

[-] onslaught545@lemmy.zip 9 points 1 week ago

Or just a smart outlet that can track power consumption. Plenty of options that work locally with HA.

But I'd definitely fire up the 3D printer and grab an ESP chip if I was doing this at home.

[-] shortwavesurfer@lemmy.zip 3 points 1 week ago

Thats a bad idea because of power draw overload during motor startups.

[-] onslaught545@lemmy.zip 4 points 1 week ago

You just have to use an outlet rated for the max load.

As far as the esp chip goes, I was meaning more along the lines of using a sensor of some sort.

[-] shortwavesurfer@lemmy.zip 3 points 1 week ago

You have to use an outlet capable of handling the max instantaneous load. That way you don't end up welding the relay in the on position.

As an example, my window air conditioner takes 600 watts to run, which is perfectly fine. But during startup, it takes 1800 watts. The plug i have can handle that quick spike, but its really not designed for it.

[-] onslaught545@lemmy.zip 3 points 1 week ago

Right, the max instantaneous load is the max load I was speaking of.

[-] shortwavesurfer@lemmy.zip 2 points 1 week ago

Oh yeah, as long as it can handle that, then you're fine.

I feel like a lot of people wouldn't necessarily know the difference and might end up starting a fire or something without meaning to.

[-] crank0271@lemmy.world 3 points 1 week ago

Just listen for the moaning to stop

[-] deathbird@mander.xyz 4 points 1 week ago

Cool. Would love to dee this done for all the "Smart" appliances.

[-] NotJohnSmith@feddit.uk 2 points 1 week ago

Interesting read, really like their writing style.

I've got one coming and really can't figure out any meaningful benefit to having the WiFi enabled

[-] MIXEDUNIVERS@discuss.tchncs.de 2 points 1 week ago

i like it

[-] Mohamad20ZX@sopuli.xyz 1 points 1 week ago

Nox King Knows What’s He’s Doing

this post was submitted on 28 Jul 2025
202 points (100.0% liked)

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