I'm currently working on a project that captures sensor data from my garage. I want to send that data to my Raspberry Pi located in my basement (the data being sent is very small). The distance from my garage to basement is about 20m and there is only one wall that is in between my devices which is the garage wall. The only experience I have with wireless communication devices is the HC-06 module, but its range is too short for this project. I was thinking of using the HM-10 module, since it has a communication range of 100m in the open. However, would it still work for 20m and through one wall? If not, would something like Zigbee work?
Is Wifi an option ? You could add an extra Wifi Access Point. The ESP32 is the easiest board to connect sensors to a Wifi network.
The next best thing could be drilling a hole and a cable of 20 meters.
LoRa is meant for long distance. That should work.
The other options depends on the wall. A steel reinforced concrete barrier can spoil the fun.
There are different versions of HM-10 and I don't know much about them, but one thing is absolutely clear - my HM-10 has the same performance as an HC-05, and both are well short of 20m, irrespective of the wall.
It can't be hard to test WiFi coverage, WiFi repeaters are very cheap and may bring other benefits, and you may find that an ESP-01 does all you need.
MoeMan:
However, would it still work for 20m and through one wall? If not, would something like Zigbee work?
Zigbee would not be my first choice unless you already have other Zigbee devices in your home. On the other side Zigbee is not limited to the 2.4GHz band. Zigbee is also available for Sub GHz which offers a longer range. But you will have to investigate what hardware is available and what kind of software support.
If you can power your board WiFi is a easy to use option. WiFi will not work for long running from a battery.
Additionally the ESP32 is available with antenna connectors. This would allow you to get a directional antenna and improve the connection if your wall should contain a lot of metal.
For small amounts of data I would recommend MQTT protocol. It needs a MQTT broker which is a central node. You can run the broker software on your Raspberry Pi. This looks a little bit like an overkill but if you think you might extend your application with other sensors or home automation this will be a good solution.
If you just want to connect the Raspberry Pi and one ESP32 you can just send TCP packets.
Since this is a fun project, why not simply try it. More then likely it will work. Even if it is a reinforced wall the signal will probably go around it, maybe over the top under the floor. Just try it and you will know.