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Aqara E1 thermostat setup

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Aqara temperature sensor setup

Introduction

The Aqara E1 thermostat can be easily installed on conventional radiators and allows control via Zigbee. With this we can save energy by setting up automations to stop heating when noone is at home/in a certain room and pre-heating some time before someone is expected to arrive.

Initial setup

  • On the old regulator open valves by turning to highest (5). Skipping this step will prevent screwing on the new thermostat.
  • Remove the old regulator.
  • Place suitable adapter on the Aqara E1 thermostat, if needed, tighten screw.
  • Screw on the E1; pay attention to have the display correctly oriented before completely tightening.
  • Now continue with the setup steps in the “Reset after replacing battery” below.

Reset after replacing battery

The thermostat uses 2x AA batteries, I usually replace them with fully charged ones once per year at the beginning of the heating period.

Z2M will show the battery level in its GUI, once there is a “battery low” warning you should replace it to keep the interruption minimal.

Steps

  • Go to Home Assistant and set Zigbee2MQTT (Z2M) to allow new devices to join.
  • Twist the E1 cover counter-clockwise and pull it off.
  • Replace the two batteries, this should put the the device into F11 mode as shown on its display. Note, the batteries are set up in series but both springs are placed towards the display side of the device giving us the following somewhat unusual battery configuration: 
    -===+ WW|
    +===- WW|
    For easier insertion make sure to place the display side end of the battery first.
  • Press the button (E1 display) three times, this will set it to F12 which will start the calibration.
  • Afterwards, press the button (E1 display) for 10s to enter pairing mode. Since the cover is still off you should see bright green flashing from the internal LED. This should automatically re-pair the device with Zigbee2MQTT within a few seconds.
  • Check function by changing the thermostat target temperature through the Home Assistant UI, the value on the UI should update ~1-2s after the change request.
  • Place the cover back on.
  • (Optional) Press the button (E1 display) for 5s to lock the device from manual changes from the device inputs (e.g. by kids, pets…).