Homeassistant

Skill: homeassistant

Purpose

Apply safe, explicit, maintainable rules to Home Assistant automations, scripts, templates, integrations, and configuration.

Safety First

Do not create automations that can cause unsafe physical behavior.

Be careful with:

• heaters;
• boilers;
• locks;
• gates;
• relays;
• pumps;
• power circuits;
• battery charging;
• high-current loads;
• water valves;
• garage doors;
• alarms.

Use failsafe defaults where appropriate.

Inspect First

Before changing Home Assistant config, inspect relevant files when present:

• configuration.yaml
• automations.yaml
• scripts.yaml
• secrets.yaml references only, not values
• packages
• blueprints
• template sensors
• existing entity IDs
• helpers/input entities
• dashboard files if relevant

Do not invent entity IDs.

Do not hardcode secrets.

Automation Rules

• Avoid loops caused by state changes.
• Debounce noisy sensors.
• Handle unknown and unavailable.
• Use explicit conditions.
• Avoid hidden time assumptions.
• Consider restart behavior.
• Consider mode: single, restart, queued, parallel.
• Document non-obvious triggers and safety conditions.
• Avoid automations that depend on fragile friendly names.

Templates

• Handle missing/unavailable states.
• Avoid exceptions from unavailable attributes.
• Prefer explicit defaults.
• Keep templates readable.
• Avoid complex business logic hidden in templates when a helper/script is clearer.

Entity and Naming

• Preserve existing entity IDs.
• Avoid duplicate entity IDs.
• Use domain-meaningful names.
• Keep related automations/scripts/packages cohesive.

Validation

Prefer actual validation when available:

ha core check

Or project-specific container/supervisor validation commands.

Report exact commands and results.

If validation cannot be run, explain why.

Shared Cross-Ecosystem Style

Apply the shared engineering style from:

• ../../engineering/05_design_principles.md
• ../../engineering/06_responsibility_model.md
• ../../engineering/07_complexity_budget.md
• ../../engineering/12_naming_bible.md

Language-specific idioms control syntax and ecosystem details, but they must not weaken the core rules: small cohesive units, explicit boundaries, honest validation, no dumping grounds, and no fake placeholders.