diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 58ebf44..a0b6903 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -43,6 +43,29 @@ v2.0.0 is a ground-up rewrite. The package connects to the SPAN Panel's on-devic
 The `SpanMqttClient` connects to the panel's MQTT broker (MQTTS or WebSocket) and subscribes to the Homie device tree. A `HomieDeviceConsumer` state machine parses incoming topic updates into typed `SpanPanelSnapshot` dataclasses. Changes are pushed to
 consumers via callbacks.
 
+### Event-Loop-Driven I/O (Home Assistant Compatible)
+
+The MQTT transport is designed around the Home Assistant core async pattern — all paho-mqtt I/O runs on the asyncio event loop with no background threads:
+
+- **NullLock replacement** — paho-mqtt's seven internal threading locks are replaced with no-op `NullLock` instances at setup time, eliminating lock contention since all access is single-threaded on the event loop.
+- **`add_reader` / `add_writer`** — `AsyncMqttBridge` registers the MQTT socket with the event loop via `loop.add_reader()` and `loop.add_writer()`, calling paho's `loop_read()` / `loop_write()` directly from I/O callbacks rather than from a `loop_start()`
+  background thread.
+- **Periodic misc** — A `loop.call_at()` timer fires every second to call `loop_misc()` for keepalive and timeout housekeeping.
+- **Executor bridge for connect** — The initial TLS handshake and TCP connect are blocking operations, so they run in `loop.run_in_executor()`. Once the executor returns, socket callbacks are immediately switched from sync bridges (`call_soon_threadsafe`)
+  back to the async-only versions.
+
+This means the library can be dropped into any asyncio application — including Home Assistant — without spawning threads or requiring thread-safe wrappers.
+
+### Circuit Name Synchronization
+
+Circuit names arrive as MQTT retained messages that may land after the Homie device transitions to `$state=ready`. The client handles this with a bounded wait during `connect()`:
+
+1. After the device reaches ready state, the client polls `HomieDeviceConsumer.circuit_nodes_missing_names()` every 250ms.
+2. As retained name properties arrive, the consumer stores them. Once all circuit-type nodes have a name, the wait returns immediately.
+3. If names have not all arrived within 10 seconds, the timeout expires (non-fatal) and the client proceeds — circuits without names will use fallback identifiers.
+
+This ensures that the first `get_snapshot()` after connect returns human-readable circuit names in the common case, while never blocking indefinitely on a missing retained message.
+
 ### Protocols
 
 The library defines three structural subtyping protocols (PEP 544) that both the MQTT transport and the simulation engine implement:
diff --git a/src/span_panel_api/models.py b/src/span_panel_api/models.py
index aca0401..526c65c 100644
--- a/src/span_panel_api/models.py
+++ b/src/span_panel_api/models.py
@@ -60,7 +60,11 @@ class SpanBatterySnapshot:
     # BESS metadata
     vendor_name: str | None = None  # bess/vendor-name
     product_name: str | None = None  # bess/product-name
+    model: str | None = None  # bess/model
+    serial_number: str | None = None  # bess/serial-number
+    software_version: str | None = None  # bess/software-version
     nameplate_capacity_kwh: float | None = None  # bess/nameplate-capacity (kWh)
+    connected: bool | None = None  # bess/connected
 
 
 @dataclass(frozen=True, slots=True)
diff --git a/src/span_panel_api/mqtt/homie.py b/src/span_panel_api/mqtt/homie.py
index 70f2105..9a84d9a 100644
--- a/src/span_panel_api/mqtt/homie.py
+++ b/src/span_panel_api/mqtt/homie.py
@@ -328,14 +328,22 @@ def _build_battery(self) -> SpanBatterySnapshot:
 
         vn = self._get_prop(bess_node, "vendor-name")
         pn = self._get_prop(bess_node, "product-name")
+        mdl = self._get_prop(bess_node, "model")
+        sn = self._get_prop(bess_node, "serial-number")
+        sw = self._get_prop(bess_node, "software-version")
         nc = self._get_prop(bess_node, "nameplate-capacity")
+        conn = self._get_prop(bess_node, "connected")
 
         return SpanBatterySnapshot(
             soe_percentage=_parse_float(soc_str) if soc_str else None,
             soe_kwh=_parse_float(soe_str) if soe_str else None,
             vendor_name=vn if vn else None,
             product_name=pn if pn else None,
+            model=mdl if mdl else None,
+            serial_number=sn if sn else None,
+            software_version=sw if sw else None,
             nameplate_capacity_kwh=_parse_float(nc) if nc else None,
+            connected=conn.lower() == "true" if conn else None,
         )
 
     def _build_pv(self) -> SpanPVSnapshot: