For some reason, it is so common that when we talk about smart home devices for beginners, we mean all sorts of light bulbs, buttons, strips and other things whose benefits can be felt immediately.
But we must speak differently. One of the first, if not the first smart home device that is worth buying is leak sensor.
No other device, even the only one in the apartment, has such a huge potential for saving your money, nerves and time. If every apartment had a leakage sensor under communications and household appliances, the frequency of “floods” among neighbors across the country would be reduced significantly.
As with all aspirations for a better life, you have to start with yourself. I installed several sensors at home and want to tell you how they can be usefulwhich one is best to choose, how to connect and configure it in a smart home. And most importantly, how to make sure that the leak stops faster than you yourself can react to it.
Why is a leak sensor useful in Russia?
The easiest way to use the sensor is to place it under the washing machine.
Instantly detects leaks. The sensor will react to contact with the liquid long before it gets somewhere else – for example, it leaks out of the bottom of the washing machine and becomes noticeable to you. No person will be able to detect a leak earlier than a sensor installed directly under leaking communications and household appliances.
Will notify you and all those responsible about a leak. The notification will immediately come to all users of your smart home, reducing the time between the event itself and decision-making.
Stops the leak automatically. Thanks to the signal through the smart home chain to other devices, such as a motorized ball valve or smart sockets and relays, the sensor’s activation will lead to the shutdown of the water supply, as well as to the shutdown of all devices – both in the area of potential contact with the liquid and those which may cause a leak.
Prevents costly damage both the apartment and the neighbors. Instant notification and quick response either from automation and other smart devices, or from you personally, will allow you to avoid panicky incoming calls and messages in the LCD chat about “you are flooding them.” The amount of money for subsequent repairs and compensation after a flood can become astronomical, but you won’t have it in the first place should.
Which leak sensor to choose
Aqara Smart Home Kit – Leakage protection.
The Russian smart home market is rich in leak detection and elimination systems. These devices are popular for hopefully obvious reasons. In order not to talk about hundreds of them, I will describe below the three most common options for resolving the issue.
Most advanced: Aqara Smart Home Kit – Leakage Protection. Includes the M1S Gen 2 smart home center, T1 leakage sensor, single-channel T1 relay with neutral, two ball electric drives and additional accessories for connecting and placing the kit. This is a complete set of devices that notify the owner about a leak in a multi-stage manner. But the main thing is that there are two ShEPs at once, ready to automatically shut off the water supply riser even in the absence of an Internet connection. Here’s our review, by the way.
It is worth noting that the Aqara kit is not the only solution to the problem of “full cycle” leaks. Even a separate article is not enough to describe the multi-level systems for stopping leaks and responding to them available in the Russian Federation. Just among the quality solutions, this option is a win-win. Unless the installation should be done by a professional, and the price is steep: up to 29 thousand rubles.
Water leakage sensor Yandex.
The most adequate: Water leakage sensor Yandex. A simple-looking, compact device that is placed or attached to an area of probable water leakage: under a washing machine or dishwasher, under radiator pipes and water risers, under a bathroom, and so on. Operates up to 2 years from a standard CR2032 battery, supports Zigbee 3.0.
Fully integrated into the Yandex smart home ecosystem: when triggered, you will receive not only a notification, but also (if desired) an incoming call to your phone directly from Alice with a warning. Don’t miss it for sure. By itself, it is not able to stop a leak, but it can and ideally should work in a “team” with other devices through scenarios – ShEP, smart sockets and lighting. Worth everything 2000 rubles.
Noname leakage sensor, there are thousands of them and they cost the same – around a thousand rubles.
The most budget: any noname sensor is cheaper than 1000 rubles. For example, here such. Their operating principle is no different from sensors in “boxes”, like Yandex’s above, they just come in other forms. If there is Zigbee 3.0, and the reviews are generally positive, then you can take it at your own peril and risk. Just remember that without the support of a large manufacturer, no one can guarantee effective operation. There are also no guarantees that automation and scripts will work correctly.
In the future I will discuss installation and configuration Water leakage sensor Yandex. But these instructions, with minor modifications, are valid for most other sensors.
How to connect and configure a leak sensor in a smart home
Before installing the sensor anywhere, it must be connected to your smart home control system. I am a user of the Yandex ecosystem, in which such problems are solved through the House with Alice application (App Store or Google Play) – it’s convenient, you can command by voice through the Yandex Station speakers or manually from the program from anywhere in the world. Accordingly, I will also provide instructions for it below.
1. Remove the sensor from the box. If it is wireless, then it should have a battery compartment – usually at the bottom.
2. Remove the cover and check the presence and correct installation of the battery. Put everything back the way it was before you. If the battery had a “tab,” remove it.
3. Open the application Home with Alice. If you are not prompted to add a new device, click on “plus” in the upper right corner, select Smart home deviceand then to the menu Yandex click on Sensor.
The process of adding a Yandex sensor to the Home with Alice application.
4. Put the sensor into pairing mode. U Water leakage sensor Yandex this is done like this: press hard on the “drop” image and hold your finger on it for 5 seconds.
5. Follow on-screen prompts in the app Home with Aliceuntil the sensor is added to the smart home system.
Options for placing a leak sensor. Pay attention to the napkin: when in contact with metal, the sensor may give false positives, so it is better to place something under it.
The sensor can now be installed. It can be placed under water pipes, radiator, washing machine, dishwasher, bathtub and so on. If you have a country house with a heating and/or water purification system, sensors will be very useful there too.
When placing the sensor, try to choose a place where, in the event of a leak, contact with water may occur first – that is, the closer to the junctions and communication nodes, the better. I also recommend placing the device so that it is “flooded” long before the water reaches the wires, sockets and any electrical equipment in general.
What commands and scripts do I recommend?
Charge level check command:
Alice, what is the charge level (name of the leak sensor)?
Sensor status check command:
Alice, what’s wrong with the leakage sensors in my house?
Scenario options for automating notification of leaks in the house.
Scenarios:
Switching off electrical appliances during a leak. Useful for sensors placed under large appliances (washers, dryers, and dishwashers). To do this, you need a smart socket or relay, to which the electrical appliance you are using must be connected in advance. In the section Scenarios applications At home with Alice We create a connection between these two accessories and set up the operating conditions:
◆ if the leakage sensor is triggered, the smart socket turns off
Shut off water in case of leakage. For the scenario to work, you need to install an electric faucet, to which a smart relay will then be connected. In the section Scenarios applications At home with Alice we create a connection between these two accessories and set up the operating conditions.
◆ if the leakage sensor is triggered, the relay turns on
The relay will shut off the electric valve, eliminating the leak. Let me warn you that when placing a leakage sensor in the area of cold and hot water communications, it is necessary to install a tap on each so that in the event of a leak, the water is definitely turned off. Both taps can have one relay.
The call function from Alice is available only to subscribers Yandex Plus.
Call and SMS from Alice during a leak. A subscription is required for the script to work. Yandex Plus. It includes 20 SMS and 20 calls per month, and no more than 5 SMS and 5 calls are available per day. In the section Scenarios applications At home with Alice we create a connection between these two accessories and set up the operating conditions.
◆ if the leakage sensor is triggered, you receive a Push notification
◆ an SMS is also sent or a call is made from Alice
For calls from Alice it is better to use water leakage sensors Yandexdirectly connected to Yandex smart home. Sensors added here from other ecosystems from other manufacturers may not support this feature.
Voice and light notification of leakage. You need a Yandex Station column and smart lighting (strips, light bulbs). In the section Scenarios applications At home with Alice We create a connection between these two accessories and set up the operating conditions:
◆ if the leakage sensor is triggered, the lights begin to blink (and/or change color to red)
◆ also Yandex Station reads aloud the text “Leak sensor triggered (location)
Is it worth buying
The more such sensors there are under everything that could theoretically leak in the house, the calmer your soul will be.
If you still don’t have a single leak sensor in your apartment or country house, then you love risk and don’t spare your wallet.
A smart leak sensor is a thing in itself. It is invisible, independent and will not require anything from you except replacing the battery once every year and a half. And if it works, that is, fulfills its purpose, then will pay for itself more than tenfold.
By equipping the main communications and household appliances that consume water with such sensors, and then adding additional smart devices to this combination, you can sleep peacefully even far from home. If something happens, the damage will be minimized automatically, and unpleasant consequences will be stopped even faster than you could react to the situation yourself if you were nearby.
Of all the smart home sensors on the market, the leak sensor takes first place in terms of usefulness and return on investment. He may never touch water in his life, and that’s great. But if he does, you will be immensely grateful to him. So are your neighbors downstairs. And along with them – all those whom you will not have to call to eliminate numerous consequences.
More about smart home:
How to make any radiators (batteries) in Russia smart, so as not to twist them with your hands to set the temperature
It lights up on its own in the kitchen, in the bathroom too, and reacts to guests. Why do you need a smart tape in your home?
The washer says it’s finished! Why do we need smart sockets in the house and what scenarios do I recommend?
Source: www.iphones.ru
