2w ago

Where to sell home automation stuff?

Sorry if this goes against the community rules, I haven't included links or descriptions to anything just in case.

I have a few smart switches that I "tasmotified" and an air purifier that I re-flashed for ESPHome. I'm moving overseas and I feel like selling them on craigslist or facebook would be a pain if they end up in the hands of someone that's not into home automation.

I don't know if it would be ok to post them here or if someone knows of a more dedicated community where they would be a good fit. Would appreciate the help.

12 comments

I'm no mod or anything, but with the post count so low I, as a mere reader, would not mind seeing HA items for sale here as long as it's hobbyists and not businesses.
You'd almost certainly want to employ some of the posting rules used in the r/XXXXsales subs. Things like prepend your title with For Sale, location and item description. It would also make some sense to declare in your ad some guidelines to ensure a smooth sale like PP invoice and/or some verifiable reference to your credibility (ie - Heatware/ebay ratings). There naturally needs to be some sort of assurances on both sides of the transaction.
I very much miss the r/homelabsales sub, but I am never going back.
- That does invite a whole host of issues, and waters down the bit of content we do have.
  
  Yeah, especially since this community is likely spread among continents and overseas shipping being prohibitively expensive.
- I agree they have some interest, I learn that these devices even exist, whether I'm going to buy or not.
  I'm also not going to look for 1 or 2 interesting posts in amongst many more ads.
  Maybe if the seller just posts with their ebay / wherever link and we keep the selling elsewhere, then any discussions of whether they'll post to exotic locations aren't diluting here?
  Not sure if businesses will be more obvious that way...?

eBay is probably going to be your best bet. People going there looking for specific mods or firmware installs for all kinds of devices.
- I agree. Fleabay is probably the widest platform in terms of audience and specific items you can have.

I'd be happy to see ads from individuals here.

Thanks for all the replies! I'll try ebay probably. I kinda agree that posting buy/sell posts here might dilute the sparse content we have.
- Sorry for the slow reply. I'm not sure if you're even still trying to sell!
  Yes, selling posts might be a little problematic.
  As if we let one usual member who happens to be selling something to advertise, I'll probably end up with a modqueue full of adverts from people running a drop-shipping operation, and people saying "but you let that guy do it".
  Lets maybe have a little trial: As you've got a sensible reason for selling, I wouldn't object to a one-off post with details, your region, and maybe a link to whatever ebay sale you do.
  
  Thanks for your reply. I managed to sell some of the things already but I agree that it might be a pain to have the group full of selling messages, so for now I’m ok. I did get some good feedback.

Tindie?

Also think about more local options and forums that have buy and sell theads. E.g. in the Netherlands we have the tweakers forum, which would be an ideal place for this.

12 comments