Home Knowledge Base¶
What This Is¶
This is the primary documentation for our home and property.
It explains:
- What systems exist
- Where things are physically located
- How those systems normally work
- What to do when something stops working
The goal is not to document everything in extreme technical detail. The goal is to make the home understandable, maintainable, and recoverable by someone who did not build it.
Who This Is For¶
This documentation is written primarily for:
- My wife
It is also intended to be usable by:
- Family members
- Contractors or technicians
- A future version of myself who no longer remembers details
If something here is confusing, incomplete, or hard to follow, that is a documentation problem—not a reader problem.
How This Documentation Is Organized¶
The documentation is organized by real-world systems, not by technologies or brands.
At a high level, you will find sections for:
- The physical structure of the duplex
- Electrical power and solar
- Home networking and internet
- Servers and automation
- Sprinkler and drip irrigation systems
- Rooms, outlets, and fixtures
- Accounts, backups, and recovery procedures
Each major system generally has:
- An Overview page (what it is, what it does)
- One or more detail pages
- A section on failures and recovery
Where to Start When Something Is Broken¶
If something is not working and you are not sure where to begin:
- Identify which system is affected (power, internet, water, etc.)
- Go to that system’s Overview page
- Look for sections titled “Failure”, “Recovery”, or “What to Check First”
- Follow steps in order
- Stop if anything feels unsafe or unclear
This documentation is not intended to replace professional help when it is needed.
Important Safety Notes¶
- This documentation may describe electrical, mechanical, or plumbing systems.
- No procedure here should be followed if it feels unsafe.
- When in doubt, stop and call a professional.
Safety always takes priority over restoring service.
How This Documentation Evolves¶
This documentation is a living system.
It should be:
- Updated when systems change
- Corrected when something is unclear
- Expanded when a missing explanation causes confusion
Open questions, uncertainties, or future improvements are tracked in:
99 - Open Questions & TBD
A Note on Credentials and Secrets¶
Passwords, secret keys, and sensitive credentials are not stored here.
Instead, this documentation explains:
- Where credentials are stored
- How to access them safely
- What they are used for
This separation is intentional.
If You Are Reading This in an Emergency¶
Take a breath.
This documentation is meant to help you. You do not need to understand everything at once. Start with the relevant overview and proceed step by step.