You can check roof and gutters without going up on the roof. Being retired going on the roof is dangerous. Darling wife that is why I need a drone. That is the the best idea I have to convince her. The water sensors will help our vacation home when we are not there.
Nice video. Just what I need to monitor cottage and home. Also looking at cellular data internet for backup since power and cable internet are unreliable.
I think that is possibile to use one of these sensor if you're trying to detect distilled water, but with a simple hack: between the 2 diodes just put a thin quantity of salt. In this way, if there is a leak, the distilled water will touch and dissolve the salt, this will make the water conductive and the sensors will work normally
Thorough, concise...what more can you ask for, great video. I have a few aquara leak sensors and home assistant and have had no issues with then, basically no setup.
i have found you can use flood sensors for other purposes. My two favorite uses are using the Aqara sensor as a rain monitor (connected a simple rain sensor board in a 3D printed housing), to alert us to bring in the washing when it rains and I use one as a sensor with extended terminals to alert me to empty the dehumidifiers when the reservoir is full. Both are controlled through Homeassistant.
@@TheHookUp I don't know about the board but I have heard of using a pair of wires secured into a gutter. The wire is run the the sensor pads in a non-wet location. The board may be a simple connection interface between the wire and the bottom of the Aqara sensor.
Glad to see my choice of the Govee was a winner. The alarm is loud enough that anyone inside would instantly know something is wrong. I have 10 sensors in my house and for the money is the best insurance policy to mitigate a water leak.
Note: The Aqara has adjustable contacts, so you can have them off of the ground or flush. The contacts are just hex-head screws that you can back out (toward the ground) for earlier triggering.
I have about 10 YoLink sensors throughout the house. They have already saved my finished basement from a sewer backup. I am also heavily in Home Assistant but for water sensors, I put reliability and accuracy way high above HA integration. Saying that, YoLink will definitely benefit from having API access to their other sensors and systems.
They claim they are working on local (as well as cloud) but not holding my breath. While I was blown away by the LoRa, I didn't go with them because their shut-off was only the crappy little off the shelf one that didn't work with our larger/hard-to-turn but now they have their new valve trigger that you can use with Bulldog so I would have gone with them (and still might as the Guardian by Elexa idiots software is joke).
Great video! I use the YoLink water sensors and their battery powered water shut off controller. Even there is power outage, without internet, the YoLink leak sensor detects water, it can directly trigger the water shut off controller to shut off the water.
A couple years ago a friend had a massive water leak at his house and that incentivized me to implement a water monitor at my house and at a rental. I ended up buying a Sonoff RF, 433 MHz RF water sensors bought at Aliexpress, and a WiFi solenoid valve. All integrated in Home Assistant for monitoring, notifications, and automated shut-off. I have been extremely happy with my system, it has detected small leaks, and automatically shut-off the valve after notifying me.
Awesome video and very thorough with respect to just about every feature of the devices people could ask for. I'm probably going to go with the YoLink as the sensor will be monitoring a condensate drain in the attic. Wifi to the attic may be an issue for devices that depend on it. An added bonus is the temperature monitor included and I believe the Yolink app has the battery strength indicator in it as well.
Great video and awesome overview of these products. I would love to see a video on the water shutoff valve to complement this. Not the whole home as much as something that can be integrated into a hub. Keep up the great work.
Sprinkle some salt around the sensor if used near a purified water source such as an RO filter. That will increase the conductivity of the water. Alternatively, soak a piece of paper towel in salt water, let it dry then place the paper towel under the sensor. If it gets wet or even slightly wet while wicking up water it will trigger the alarm.
always enjoy your videos...very informative. have you used or reviewed any automated valves for laundry machine hook ups? would be interested in your thoughts on the options.
I purchased the Shelly water sensors and found it was easy to set up with the home wifi, however, I could not figure out how to make it report to my cell phone when I was away from home. It would be nice to see a video of how that process could work. I looked online and really didn't see any good help for the app or the away reporting. I did think the app was not very user friendly. My wife then purchased the Govee sensors and she was able to make it report to her phone while away. I was impressed with that because she normally gives that kind of stuff to me to work out. By the way she was not able to get the Shelly sensors to report while away either. lol Thanks for the video.
A few more comments (from my own survey of moisture sensors): 1: Some of these sensors, in addition to their moisture-sensing function in Zigbee or Z-Wave, have an "identify" feature which causes the LED on the device to flash. This is great for devices like moisture or motion sensors which you're likely to have many of the same model and are portable. The Aeotec's offer this as a capability when interrogated by your hub, but I couldn't get it to actually flash the LED. The only one which actually identified itself for me was the Smartthings sensor (which also has prongs underneath and a little basin on top, like the Yolink). 2: ThirdReality makes a zigbee one which also emits an audible alarm (for waking you up or making it quicker to find the leak).
I'm rocking the aqara sensors works great with home assistant and deconz I'm actually surprised how well it works. Thankfully I had them, there was a slow leak under my sink and I was alerted.
Awesomely thorough video as always. It's like you read my mind this week! I'm on the lookout for a new leak sensor to put under my aquarium. Replacing a recently-purchased Sensative Z-Wave Plus Strips Drip. I'm surprised that one did not make it into your round-up, since it's got a unique form factor and foam padding at the base to conduct water to the sensor. Unfortunately, the foam padding is its Achilles' heel. It stays wet for days! Hence, I'm replacing it. Thanks for helping me sort out my other choices.
I reached out to sensative multiple times about both their contact sensors and leak sensors but never heard anything back. Their supply also appears to be dwindling everywhere, I wonder if they are on their way out?
Aeotec water with dock has 2 inputs which allow for a water rope sensor is the best I've found. Got one rope that runs along the length of the washing machine waste pipe and the other under the kitchen sink. It's already paid for itself a few times already!!!
I placed my Shelly Flood sensor on a paper tissue with a little salt. The sensors become much more responsive, only a little bit of moisture triggers the alarm. Of course, this only works in areas that are supposed to be dry.
Thanks for the video. If you had to start devices integrations and you were looking also to integrate other devices like door sensors, would you go with YoLink or Aqara? Would be a no brainer if YoLink was already integrated with HA, but I'm hesitating between those two. Planning for 3-4 water sensors, 2-3 door/window sensors and probably 2-3 motion detectors. Thanks!
Wow, that’s a lot of info packed in there. I appreciate it. I need to monitor several different basements. Im leaning toward the YoLonk right now. My plan is to connect them to a portable WiFi hotspot. Like the Franklin T9 or something like that. It’ll be plugged in, but the battery in the hotspot will act as a backup. I’ll repeat that setup for each location. Can I have multiple locations with labels with any of these? For instance, I would like to get an alert that says something like “leak detected on Oak Street” or something similar, so I know which house has the issue. Thanks for any help.
In Europe im Homematic IP for my heating system. And they have a great water detector that can be coupled with my house alarm also from Homematic. If there is a leak you can't miss it as the siren goes on in the house. Bonus they also have smoke detectors.
I have the Shelly ones and they are ok but their range, whilst good in open(ish) areas such as under a sink is good, for compact hidden areas such as under a dishwasher they flat out stop working. I have 3 of them and despite having a fairly extensive WiFi network I can only assume that (for my house at least) the extremely enclosed spaces under appliances are effectively WiFi black spots. Yet to try with a ZigBee device in these areas though so thanks for the video! 😃
Are you running battery? I am curious how far you can run wires for sensors without picking up noise. (maybe 1 ESP in kitchen for fridge, dishwasher and sink).
In Australia, the few flood sensors tested in this video that are actually available here cost between $55 - $100 each. I'm not sure I'd call that cheap for a device that only tells me if there's water leaking. I can certainly see why smart home take up is slower in Australia.
I’ve had the Fibaros for over a year. Easily the best one of the group you discussed. Not only is it Z-wave which integrates into HA easily, it allows for an external sensor. So I can plug in those conductive wires and extend the length of the sensor. For example, I have the sensor under the kitchen sink and run a wire from the sink sensor to the dishwasher next to it. Since it’s impossible to get a sensor behind the dishwasher, squeezing a wire through the side works perfectly. Also saves buying an extra sensor
If you add an additional wire sensor to the unit does it work in conjunction to the sensors on the box or does it turn the box sensors off? Thanx robert
I want to like the Shelly Flood but I hate batteries... the Fibaro can be connected to an external power source, so that's a win for me. I think I would add one underneath the washing machine, it has already happened once that it started leaking water and it's not a disaster because that room has a floor that can handle water, but it would be nice to get a notification. Great idea, thanks for the comparison!
You need water sensors at every location you have water, connected to a shut-off, not just under the washing machine. One cracked toilet hose connector and your house will be destroyed if you don't have it.
Low WiFi signal will significantly decrease battery life so make sure to have good coverage. Also make sure to set a static IP this way it's awake for shorter periods of time. Having to wake up and have a few handshakes to get a new ip address every ____ time will drain in the long run. About the feet, you can add plastic or rubber feet if needed without any warranty issue. If you don't want feet on a product that has them, removing them probably won't sit nicely with the warranty.
If you have soft water or reverse osmosis water just make a salt water solution and soak a paper towel let the paper towel dry fold it into sensor sized square and put it under the sensor on a flat surface. As soon as water touches the paper towel it will remoist the salt and will be conductive the alarm should set of imediatly.
Very nicely done. A little surprised you didn't include the D-LInk line of water sensors. (i.e. DCH-S161). I think they've got less integrations but given the included audible alarm and remote sensor that gets into tight spaces it seems like it'd be among the top ones out there. ("seems like").
Hi guys , I did not understand do the sensor only work and send alert when you are on the wifi ? Or some solution exist to receive an alert when travelling for example ?
I just recently purchased some Merkury water leak sensors from Walmart on Clearance and some from Ebay. They're wifi / Tuya based and have a CR2 battery. The thing that makes these great is they cost between $5 - $14 per unit. The other thing that makes these great is that with the Tuya v2 integration (beta), they connect to home assistant. They also come with a sensor extender in which you can place a sensor without touching the floor.
Zooz just released one: www.thesmartesthouse.com/products/zooz-z-wave-plus-700-series-titan-water-valve-actuator-zac36 Or you could go with the Moen flo which also works with HA without a subscription (cloud based integration though): czcams.com/video/5KPKhRwqoAA/video.html
Eve has a water leak sensor that uses an attached cable instead of pins. The head unit plugs into a wall outlet and has a very loud alarm and blinking red light when it detects a leak. You can even plug in extension cables to it to increase the amount of area coverage that you want monitored.
I'm also using the Aqara leak sensors under my Hot Water Heater, HVAC Air Handler, Refrigerator, Dishwasher, Washing Machine, and Utility Sink. I will probably get more and put them under my other sinks, next to the toilets, and under the Master Bathroom Garden Tub. Since they are so inexpensive, they add a layer of insurance that can't be beat. A major water leak can cost thousands of dollars. I just wish I had these when my water line going to my refrigerator broke and flooded my house over 20 years ago.
One thing you missed is the ability for direct association with zwave. I have fibrao directly associated with a plug on a solenoid. If a tap bursts then irrespective of hub or WiFi the plug will turn off the supply saving me a ton of hassle!
That's true. The Yolink can also do device to device communication over LoRa. As I said in the video though, I think most of the applications of these sensors are for non-supply based flood issues: Drain side leaks, weather, AC condensation, etc.
I use SmartThing sensors and love them. ...but recently while literally 2 hours after disembarking on a cruise, I got a water alert from my water heater! TL;DR; it was a false alarm that a friend was able to verify after 3 stressful hours. Not sure what caused the false alarm (I received 8 more of them that week) That sensor is now in a drawer where there have been no more alarms. Its replacement under the water heater has had no alarms. Long story short: This tech is a blessing and a curse!
Another great video. QQ, I can't really find Zooz water sensor with the exception of your link which is sold out. Is it new or am I just not looking hard enough? Also is the Shelly easy to connect to Home Assistant?
Yes, the Zooz sensor is brand new. This was from the first production run I believe. The shelly integrates automatically, connect it to your network and home assistant will find it.
I would beware the Shelly sensor personally. I bought 4 of them and all 4 totally died on me within a week. Shelly's response was to send me 4 more, 3 of which promptly died on me again within a week. I've had no problem with other Shelly products, JUST their leak sensor. No clue why.
Too bad the D-Link products were not included. They have an AC powered option, cable sensors (more coverage) and double sensors. I would've been interested to see them compete in your otherwise great review.
You forgot the Honeywell Lyric flood sensor (Honeywell-RCHW3610WF1001-Wi-Fi-Water-Detector). Great battery life, comes with sensor cord, works on wireless and is not too expensive. I got two in my basement and it even graphs humidity and temperature.
Great video! Now I'm rethinking buying a sensor or building my own ESP8266 based sensors. The Zooz would be the best option for me, but it's out of stock on the site you provided. Did a quick search but I can't find a site that sells them.
I have a question/vid suggestion for you I have recently been considering different security cameras for my house and i need your help. Coult i use something like a nodeMCU or home assistant or whatever to control a PTZ camera based on motion. I would need it to move based on where motion is (like if the motion moves left it will move left, gets further away and the camera zooms in, etc.) and it would need to move back to a stationary position when there is no motion and just try and keep all the motion in frame for cheap using a protocol like MQTT? It would basically make it a very high FOV stationary camera.
That's actually not super difficult to do, and you could make it as simple or complicated as you want. Almost all PTZ cameras let you send an HTTP command to go to a specific preset. Something like the shelly motion can send an HTTP command on activation, so it could trigger the camera directly. If you are talking about analyzing in image for motion tracking a moving subject with a NodeMCU that's basically impossible. Auto tracking is extremely difficult to do well and companies that have perfected it employ large teams of engineers who work tirelessly on their auto tracking algorithms.
@@TheHookUp Thanks for replying! I said NodeMCU because i had no idea how to do it. I think i might just be able to set up motion zones and have them do that, i dont need a tracking algorithm or anything.
By the way there is a new version of the aqara flood sensor available that uses BLE instead of zigbee. I bought it by accident but I would not recommend it. Range is down and the housing is bigger.
I'd be really interested in your views on DIY water sensors. For a long time, I have thought "it can't be difficult" to make my own sensors with an Arduino. Wired, non-battery. I know corrosion is something to be aware of, but surely it can't be hard?
I think you'd need to ask yourself the "Why". For instance, the Govee sensors are like $12 each and can be used fully local with an RF bridge. They have multiple sensors and a very loud alarm. I think you would be hard pressed to make a DIY sensor with that kind of functionality for $12. If you are looking for something specific that can't be purchased off the shelf for a reasonable price then I think DIY is very doable for this type of device.
@@TheHookUp Totally agree, price doesn't bother me. And I'm all for buying into a system if it's good. It's more the fact I'd like them to be controlled by a single central wired controller (i.e. not dependent on battery). I just dislike the idea of hiding 15-20 little devices around a large house and having to pull the fascias of baths and cupboard kickboards to change batteries...
@@TheHookUp I was thinking: centralised installed arduino, with a CAT6 cable installed, 7 lines to IO pins and the 8th to ground. Then basically daisy chain 7 sensors down the cable. Not sure about cable lengths yet (mine will be up a central stairwell of a 5 storey house!) but may just do some testing on it. Haven’t tested the concept yet.
@@MatSmithLondon You could use an Arduino but its more complex. You need to detect that each sensor is actually connected correctly (so easy for them to get ripped out in a cabinet under a sink). Each sensor needs a resistor across its contacts so you can detect that it isn't open circuit or short circuited. This needs to be a high enough resistance valve (say 500K) so that you can still also detect the presence of water. You could still do this ~as you describe and scan the sensors sequentially.
@@TheHookUp The Flo by Moen leak detector is my go to sensor. Had to reboot it two or three times in the initial setup, likely for firmware updates. Other than that, it works reliably, plus it will shut off the water via the Moen Flo device for added security if the Moen Flo shut off device hasn’t detected the leak yet. You also get temperature and humidity data. Notifications of water leak, low battery, temp, and humidity.
It is wifi-only and does not connect directly to the shut-off, meaning if you have wifi issues you house floods. They also eat batteries. Not a reason not to test them of course.
I am leaning towards the Govee after watching your video. What happens is if the Wifi is down, will the alarm still work but it will not notify me in my email?
I gave them a shot but their shut-off was the off-the shelf, weak version and they had a janky wany of directly connecting them. Sensors seemed ok and the lora is the real deal but I returned them as the shut-off couldn't power through our system.
We have YoLink hubs with temp & water sensors in two different locations. The sensors are great! The Hubs are NOT! Although the hubs are directly connected via Ethernet cable to our networks they still go offline numerous times in a single day. It’s so bad we have had to turn the alerts off. The system has been rendered useless because of the malfunctioning hubs. I’m looking for another system. Hopefully the Shelly will work.
Yes, but cloud push only: www.home-assistant.io/integrations/yolink/ From what I understand a Yolink local hub will be coming out within the next month or two.
Please do lawn mowers. I plan on moving to a brand new house soon and I want to apply most of what I see on your channel (along the way depending on budget). Lawn mowers have gotten cheaper but while I thought they were very similar to vacuums I found out they have a bunch of specific characteristics to them. Best channel for smart home stuff by miles.
Me as I watch: Ok I'll get the... Oh wait no...I'll get the... No.. maybe the.. no... Shit just tell me which one to buy this is confusing. Lol Thank you for all the info though. It will help me decide.
I have ten wifi water leak sensors throughout my home, but they constantly go offline and won't reconnect unless I pair them again. I have a great MESH wifi network around my whole home, so no idea why? I'm now considering the zigbee sensors. Does each zigbee water sensor perform as part of the MESH network? Or is that only hard-wired devices?
@@TheHookUp from my research, I don’t think these zig bee water leak sensors serve as part of the mesh network as they are battery powered. Only mains plugged in devices serve as part of the mesh network. Explanation starts at 2:00 in this video: czcams.com/video/YEtyuDxon7A/video.html
edit: dismiss this message. I just read someone suggested the same before. D'oh! If you have extremely soft hard-to-detect water, wouldn't be a possible workaround to just place a fair amount of table salt around the sensor? That could be an interesting test to do with distilled water giving subject for a short video, just out of curiosity.
Eh... say im on holiday and its middle of the night and im sleeping... if the watersensor goes off at home (huge leak going on).. the alert need to also call my mobilephone.... a simple email / sms / push alert wont be enough!
7:43 Totally justifies my purchase of a drone, right? RIGHT?!?
You sound like me talking to my wife when I bought my drone a year ago ;-)
Yes. Absolutely.
You can check roof and gutters without going up on the roof. Being retired going on the roof is dangerous. Darling wife that is why I need a drone.
That is the the best idea I have to convince her.
The water sensors will help our vacation home when we are not there.
Nice video. Just what I need to monitor cottage and home. Also looking at cellular data internet for backup since power and cable internet are unreliable.
Do you have a video on your solar setup,, if yes, please provide the link… if no, please make one 👍🏻
I think that is possibile to use one of these sensor if you're trying to detect distilled water, but with a simple hack:
between the 2 diodes just put a thin quantity of salt.
In this way, if there is a leak, the distilled water will touch and dissolve the salt, this will make the water conductive and the sensors will work normally
Excellent ! You combined about 10 separate videos into one ! Good job and thanks !
Thorough, concise...what more can you ask for, great video. I have a few aquara leak sensors and home assistant and have had no issues with then, basically no setup.
i have found you can use flood sensors for other purposes. My two favorite uses are using the Aqara sensor as a rain monitor (connected a simple rain sensor board in a 3D printed housing), to alert us to bring in the washing when it rains and I use one as a sensor with extended terminals to alert me to empty the dehumidifiers when the reservoir is full. Both are controlled through Homeassistant.
Both good suggestions. Can you elaborate on what a "rain sensor board" is?
@@TheHookUp I don't know about the board but I have heard of using a pair of wires secured into a gutter. The wire is run the the sensor pads in a non-wet location. The board may be a simple connection interface between the wire and the bottom of the Aqara sensor.
Glad to see my choice of the Govee was a winner. The alarm is loud enough that anyone inside would instantly know something is wrong. I have 10 sensors in my house and for the money is the best insurance policy to mitigate a water leak.
Note: The Aqara has adjustable contacts, so you can have them off of the ground or flush. The contacts are just hex-head screws that you can back out (toward the ground) for earlier triggering.
Thanks for testing all of these. Mucho appreciated.
I have about 10 YoLink sensors throughout the house. They have already saved my finished basement from a sewer backup. I am also heavily in Home Assistant but for water sensors, I put reliability and accuracy way high above HA integration. Saying that, YoLink will definitely benefit from having API access to their other sensors and systems.
does it allow to be used without internet? Means can I query data directly from the gateway device?
They claim they are working on local (as well as cloud) but not holding my breath. While I was blown away by the LoRa, I didn't go with them because their shut-off was only the crappy little off the shelf one that didn't work with our larger/hard-to-turn but now they have their new valve trigger that you can use with Bulldog so I would have gone with them (and still might as the Guardian by Elexa idiots software is joke).
Great video! I use the YoLink water sensors and their battery powered water shut off controller. Even there is power outage, without internet, the YoLink leak sensor detects water, it can directly trigger the water shut off controller to shut off the water.
The only power outage I would worry about is the death of those batteries...
A couple years ago a friend had a massive water leak at his house and that incentivized me to implement a water monitor at my house and at a rental. I ended up buying a Sonoff RF, 433 MHz RF water sensors bought at Aliexpress, and a WiFi solenoid valve. All integrated in Home Assistant for monitoring, notifications, and automated shut-off. I have been extremely happy with my system, it has detected small leaks, and automatically shut-off the valve after notifying me.
Great review - compact and informative!
Love your vids. Thanks for your work!
Going with YoLink because I'm not interested in smart assistant integration, just leak notifications. Lot of great info in a short video. Thanks!
Does the hub make noise if a leak is detected?
I have the Govee sensors. Your review was spot-on.
Awesome video and very thorough with respect to just about every feature of the devices people could ask for. I'm probably going to go with the YoLink as the sensor will be monitoring a condensate drain in the attic. Wifi to the attic may be an issue for devices that depend on it. An added bonus is the temperature monitor included and I believe the Yolink app has the battery strength indicator in it as well.
Great video and awesome overview of these products. I would love to see a video on the water shutoff valve to complement this. Not the whole home as much as something that can be integrated into a hub. Keep up the great work.
There are lots out there, most are RF or Z-Wave.
amazing pro quality review, thanks!
amazing work!
Just an update for this video. Yolink now is integrated with home assistant. I have a few and it works pretty good with home assistant.
Awesome review! Waiting for that YoLink integration!
Me too!
Sprinkle some salt around the sensor if used near a purified water source such as an RO filter. That will increase the conductivity of the water. Alternatively, soak a piece of paper towel in salt water, let it dry then place the paper towel under the sensor. If it gets wet or even slightly wet while wicking up water it will trigger the alarm.
always enjoy your videos...very informative. have you used or reviewed any automated valves for laundry machine hook ups? would be interested in your thoughts on the options.
Thanks for the video
I purchased the Shelly water sensors and found it was easy to set up with the home wifi, however, I could not figure out how to make it report to my cell phone when I was away from home. It would be nice to see a video of how that process could work. I looked online and really didn't see any good help for the app or the away reporting. I did think the app was not very user friendly. My wife then purchased the Govee sensors and she was able to make it report to her phone while away. I was impressed with that because she normally gives that kind of stuff to me to work out. By the way she was not able to get the Shelly sensors to report while away either. lol Thanks for the video.
A few more comments (from my own survey of moisture sensors): 1: Some of these sensors, in addition to their moisture-sensing function in Zigbee or Z-Wave, have an "identify" feature which causes the LED on the device to flash. This is great for devices like moisture or motion sensors which you're likely to have many of the same model and are portable. The Aeotec's offer this as a capability when interrogated by your hub, but I couldn't get it to actually flash the LED. The only one which actually identified itself for me was the Smartthings sensor (which also has prongs underneath and a little basin on top, like the Yolink). 2: ThirdReality makes a zigbee one which also emits an audible alarm (for waking you up or making it quicker to find the leak).
Wished you had reviewed the Aeotec, but I did learn a lot. Thanks
I'm rocking the aqara sensors works great with home assistant and deconz I'm actually surprised how well it works. Thankfully I had them, there was a slow leak under my sink and I was alerted.
Awesomely thorough video as always. It's like you read my mind this week! I'm on the lookout for a new leak sensor to put under my aquarium. Replacing a recently-purchased Sensative Z-Wave Plus Strips Drip. I'm surprised that one did not make it into your round-up, since it's got a unique form factor and foam padding at the base to conduct water to the sensor. Unfortunately, the foam padding is its Achilles' heel. It stays wet for days! Hence, I'm replacing it. Thanks for helping me sort out my other choices.
I reached out to sensative multiple times about both their contact sensors and leak sensors but never heard anything back. Their supply also appears to be dwindling everywhere, I wonder if they are on their way out?
Aeotec water with dock has 2 inputs which allow for a water rope sensor is the best I've found. Got one rope that runs along the length of the washing machine waste pipe and the other under the kitchen sink. It's already paid for itself a few times already!!!
I use the Aqara sensors with HomeSeer 4 and they work great.
Thank you. 👍🏻
I'll be getting the dome or zooz depending which come in stock first.
I placed my Shelly Flood sensor on a paper tissue with a little salt. The sensors become much more responsive, only a little bit of moisture triggers the alarm. Of course, this only works in areas that are supposed to be dry.
Thanks for the video. If you had to start devices integrations and you were looking also to integrate other devices like door sensors, would you go with YoLink or Aqara? Would be a no brainer if YoLink was already integrated with HA, but I'm hesitating between those two. Planning for 3-4 water sensors, 2-3 door/window sensors and probably 2-3 motion detectors. Thanks!
Wow, that’s a lot of info packed in there. I appreciate it. I need to monitor several different basements. Im leaning toward the YoLonk right now. My plan is to connect them to a portable WiFi hotspot. Like the Franklin T9 or something like that. It’ll be plugged in, but the battery in the hotspot will act as a backup. I’ll repeat that setup for each location. Can I have multiple locations with labels with any of these? For instance, I would like to get an alert that says something like “leak detected on Oak Street” or something similar, so I know which house has the issue. Thanks for any help.
In Europe im Homematic IP for my heating system. And they have a great water detector that can be coupled with my house alarm also from Homematic. If there is a leak you can't miss it as the siren goes on in the house. Bonus they also have smoke detectors.
I have the Shelly ones and they are ok but their range, whilst good in open(ish) areas such as under a sink is good, for compact hidden areas such as under a dishwasher they flat out stop working. I have 3 of them and despite having a fairly extensive WiFi network I can only assume that (for my house at least) the extremely enclosed spaces under appliances are effectively WiFi black spots. Yet to try with a ZigBee device in these areas though so thanks for the video! 😃
Great video!
I made one from a RF magnetic door open/close sensor. ;)
Wow care to elaborate ?
I made my own with ESPHome and a few soil moisture sensors. They work great even with an RO water spill.
Are you running battery? I am curious how far you can run wires for sensors without picking up noise. (maybe 1 ESP in kitchen for fridge, dishwasher and sink).
@@leecyrille no, I'm powering a D1 mini with a POE splitter. I have the sensor wires run about 10ft
Once YoLink finishes their offline hub with an API I'm all in. You can't beat the range espically for things like monitoring sheds.
In Australia, the few flood sensors tested in this video that are actually available here cost between $55 - $100 each.
I'm not sure I'd call that cheap for a device that only tells me if there's water leaking.
I can certainly see why smart home take up is slower in Australia.
I’ve had the Fibaros for over a year. Easily the best one of the group you discussed. Not only is it Z-wave which integrates into HA easily, it allows for an external sensor. So I can plug in those conductive wires and extend the length of the sensor. For example, I have the sensor under the kitchen sink and run a wire from the sink sensor to the dishwasher next to it. Since it’s impossible to get a sensor behind the dishwasher, squeezing a wire through the side works perfectly. Also saves buying an extra sensor
I tend to agree with you that the Fibaro is the most powerful sensor. It's quite a bit more expensive than the others though.
If you add an additional wire sensor to the unit does it work in conjunction to the sensors on the box or does it turn the box sensors off? Thanx robert
Seeing as my entire downstairs just got flooded from a water leak, this is timely!
I want to like the Shelly Flood but I hate batteries... the Fibaro can be connected to an external power source, so that's a win for me. I think I would add one underneath the washing machine, it has already happened once that it started leaking water and it's not a disaster because that room has a floor that can handle water, but it would be nice to get a notification. Great idea, thanks for the comparison!
You need water sensors at every location you have water, connected to a shut-off, not just under the washing machine. One cracked toilet hose connector and your house will be destroyed if you don't have it.
Hello :) Wich one do your recommand me for my RV ? I'm kind of confuse and hard to decide. Thanks.
What do you think of the ring flood and freeze sensor?
Low WiFi signal will significantly decrease battery life so make sure to have good coverage. Also make sure to set a static IP this way it's awake for shorter periods of time. Having to wake up and have a few handshakes to get a new ip address every ____ time will drain in the long run.
About the feet, you can add plastic or rubber feet if needed without any warranty issue. If you don't want feet on a product that has them, removing them probably won't sit nicely with the warranty.
The simplisafe water sensor is my personal favorite
I’d love to see a video on smart fire alarm systems, haven’t seen one from this channel, unless I failed to notice.
How deep can the water be and they still work? I have a basement that had 18" at one time
when are you going to have the remote that doest home assistant ?
If you have soft water or reverse osmosis water just make a salt water solution and soak a paper towel let the paper towel dry fold it into sensor sized square and put it under the sensor on a flat surface. As soon as water touches the paper towel it will remoist the salt and will be conductive the alarm should set of imediatly.
Very nicely done. A little surprised you didn't include the D-LInk line of water sensors. (i.e. DCH-S161). I think they've got less integrations but given the included audible alarm and remote sensor that gets into tight spaces it seems like it'd be among the top ones out there. ("seems like").
I have that one and love it. I did agree though that more integrations and it'd be better than these. Wi-Fi is nice for compatibility though.
Hi guys , I did not understand do the sensor only work and send alert when you are on the wifi ? Or some solution exist to receive an alert when travelling for example ?
How does the inkbird plus compare to the other water sensors?
I just recently purchased some Merkury water leak sensors from Walmart on Clearance and some from Ebay. They're wifi / Tuya based and have a CR2 battery. The thing that makes these great is they cost between $5 - $14 per unit. The other thing that makes these great is that with the Tuya v2 integration (beta), they connect to home assistant. They also come with a sensor extender in which you can place a sensor without touching the floor.
Have the Shelly and the contact legs have corroded so going to try the govee
That seems bad, what kind of environment are they in? I was under the impression they were brass, so they should be pretty corrosion resistant.
Great video. Thank you. You said some sensors have no sound alarm. Does the hub have a siren on the yolink?
Yolink has one hub with a speaker (and one without) and a separate siren
d1 mini with arduino rain sensors, esphome or tasmota, the cheapest route, they work very well, very flexible setup, no battery to change
Great video. Thanks. Now, I need to find a main shut off valve for north America that works with home assistant.
Zooz just released one: www.thesmartesthouse.com/products/zooz-z-wave-plus-700-series-titan-water-valve-actuator-zac36
Or you could go with the Moen flo which also works with HA without a subscription (cloud based integration though): czcams.com/video/5KPKhRwqoAA/video.html
@@TheHookUp Thanks
As always..(see what i did there ;-) ) great video, clear and to the point..
May have to see what will work best in the new house and drop one under the dishwasher and washing machine. Thanks!
I kid you not, my neighbor has had to replace their entire downstairs hardwood flooring TWICE due to faulty dishwashers. What are the odds?
lora seem nice, if you could do something about that (is there some usb lora gateway?) and home assistant that would be awsome :)
Eve has a water leak sensor that uses an attached cable instead of pins. The head unit plugs into a wall outlet and has a very loud alarm and blinking red light when it detects a leak. You can even plug in extension cables to it to increase the amount of area coverage that you want monitored.
I'm also using the Aqara leak sensors under my Hot Water Heater, HVAC Air Handler, Refrigerator, Dishwasher, Washing Machine, and Utility Sink. I will probably get more and put them under my other sinks, next to the toilets, and under the Master Bathroom Garden Tub. Since they are so inexpensive, they add a layer of insurance that can't be beat. A major water leak can cost thousands of dollars. I just wish I had these when my water line going to my refrigerator broke and flooded my house over 20 years ago.
Agreed.
One thing you missed is the ability for direct association with zwave. I have fibrao directly associated with a plug on a solenoid. If a tap bursts then irrespective of hub or WiFi the plug will turn off the supply saving me a ton of hassle!
That's true. The Yolink can also do device to device communication over LoRa. As I said in the video though, I think most of the applications of these sensors are for non-supply based flood issues: Drain side leaks, weather, AC condensation, etc.
OK I am torn between the Yolink and Govee, opinions? I like the audible alarm of the Govee but like the battery life of the Yolink.
I’m gonna go with b-hyve bcuz the water system controller works all the time and I never have connectivity issues or app issue with it
You had lost me until you said “If you don’t have any idea of what those things are….” And that saved it! Thanks.
I use SmartThing sensors and love them. ...but recently while literally 2 hours after disembarking on a cruise, I got a water alert from my water heater! TL;DR; it was a false alarm that a friend was able to verify after 3 stressful hours. Not sure what caused the false alarm (I received 8 more of them that week) That sensor is now in a drawer where there have been no more alarms. Its replacement under the water heater has had no alarms.
Long story short: This tech is a blessing and a curse!
So can I use Govee for automations in Google Home?
Another great video. QQ, I can't really find Zooz water sensor with the exception of your link which is sold out. Is it new or am I just not looking hard enough? Also is the Shelly easy to connect to Home Assistant?
Yes, the Zooz sensor is brand new. This was from the first production run I believe. The shelly integrates automatically, connect it to your network and home assistant will find it.
I would beware the Shelly sensor personally. I bought 4 of them and all 4 totally died on me within a week. Shelly's response was to send me 4 more, 3 of which promptly died on me again within a week. I've had no problem with other Shelly products, JUST their leak sensor. No clue why.
@@Geoff_W Thanks for the heads up.
Too bad the D-Link products were not included. They have an AC powered option, cable sensors (more coverage) and double sensors. I would've been interested to see them compete in your otherwise great review.
You forgot the Honeywell Lyric flood sensor (Honeywell-RCHW3610WF1001-Wi-Fi-Water-Detector). Great battery life, comes with sensor cord, works on wireless and is not too expensive. I got two in my basement and it even graphs humidity and temperature.
Have you tested rings flood sensor
Great video! Now I'm rethinking buying a sensor or building my own ESP8266 based sensors. The Zooz would be the best option for me, but it's out of stock on the site you provided. Did a quick search but I can't find a site that sells them.
The Zooz just came out (like a week before I published this video), I imagine a restock will happen pretty soon.
any chance someone has compiled a spreadsheet comparing all features in one view ?
How do these handle larger quantities of water? Will any float and remain water tight, or will they be destroyed?
Most of them are waterproof, with the exception of the shelly and the Govee.
I have a question/vid suggestion for you
I have recently been considering different security cameras for my house and i need your help. Coult i use something like a nodeMCU or home assistant or whatever to control a PTZ camera based on motion. I would need it to move based on where motion is (like if the motion moves left it will move left, gets further away and the camera zooms in, etc.) and it would need to move back to a stationary position when there is no motion and just try and keep all the motion in frame for cheap using a protocol like MQTT? It would basically make it a very high FOV stationary camera.
That's actually not super difficult to do, and you could make it as simple or complicated as you want. Almost all PTZ cameras let you send an HTTP command to go to a specific preset. Something like the shelly motion can send an HTTP command on activation, so it could trigger the camera directly.
If you are talking about analyzing in image for motion tracking a moving subject with a NodeMCU that's basically impossible. Auto tracking is extremely difficult to do well and companies that have perfected it employ large teams of engineers who work tirelessly on their auto tracking algorithms.
@@TheHookUp Thanks for replying! I said NodeMCU because i had no idea how to do it. I think i might just be able to set up motion zones and have them do that, i dont need a tracking algorithm or anything.
Ring flood and freeze. Is there a reason you omit?
There are no sensors using Thread?
By the way there is a new version of the aqara flood sensor available that uses BLE instead of zigbee. I bought it by accident but I would not recommend it. Range is down and the housing is bigger.
I'd be really interested in your views on DIY water sensors. For a long time, I have thought "it can't be difficult" to make my own sensors with an Arduino. Wired, non-battery. I know corrosion is something to be aware of, but surely it can't be hard?
I think you'd need to ask yourself the "Why". For instance, the Govee sensors are like $12 each and can be used fully local with an RF bridge. They have multiple sensors and a very loud alarm. I think you would be hard pressed to make a DIY sensor with that kind of functionality for $12. If you are looking for something specific that can't be purchased off the shelf for a reasonable price then I think DIY is very doable for this type of device.
@@TheHookUp Totally agree, price doesn't bother me. And I'm all for buying into a system if it's good. It's more the fact I'd like them to be controlled by a single central wired controller (i.e. not dependent on battery). I just dislike the idea of hiding 15-20 little devices around a large house and having to pull the fascias of baths and cupboard kickboards to change batteries...
@@MatSmithLondon interesting. How would you distribute them from a central controller?
@@TheHookUp I was thinking: centralised installed arduino, with a CAT6 cable installed, 7 lines to IO pins and the 8th to ground. Then basically daisy chain 7 sensors down the cable. Not sure about cable lengths yet (mine will be up a central stairwell of a 5 storey house!) but may just do some testing on it. Haven’t tested the concept yet.
@@MatSmithLondon You could use an Arduino but its more complex. You need to detect that each sensor is actually connected correctly (so easy for them to get ripped out in a cabinet under a sink). Each sensor needs a resistor across its contacts so you can detect that it isn't open circuit or short circuited. This needs to be a high enough resistance valve (say 500K) so that you can still also detect the presence of water. You could still do this ~as you describe and scan the sensors sequentially.
What about the Flo by Moen leak detector? It seems like a bit of an oversight given the Moen being evaluated in your whole home system.
It was one that I skipped due to a bunch of negative reviews that I saw.
@@TheHookUp The Flo by Moen leak detector is my go to sensor. Had to reboot it two or three times in the initial setup, likely for firmware updates. Other than that, it works reliably, plus it will shut off the water via the Moen Flo device for added security if the Moen Flo shut off device hasn’t detected the leak yet. You also get temperature and humidity data. Notifications of water leak, low battery, temp, and humidity.
It is wifi-only and does not connect directly to the shut-off, meaning if you have wifi issues you house floods. They also eat batteries. Not a reason not to test them of course.
I am leaning towards the Govee after watching your video. What happens is if the Wifi is down, will the alarm still work but it will not notify me in my email?
Correct, you will get the audible alarm, but no notification.
Went with Yo-link because I already had the door sensors and when one of those stopped working they replaced the unit quickly
How are you liking the door sensors? Got burnt hard by Wyze
I gave them a shot but their shut-off was the off-the shelf, weak version and they had a janky wany of directly connecting them. Sensors seemed ok and the lora is the real deal but I returned them as the shut-off couldn't power through our system.
@@Mike5Brown Been using one of them for about 4 months and so far no issues
Great video as usual. But please, slow down a bit :)
If you click on the "Gear" icon at the bottom of the video you can adjust the playback speed to suit your preference.
Where were the v1 and v2 SmartThings sensors? Hard to find I know but they are Zigbee and good to add to the list.
They are discontinued
Aeotec have taken them over
We have YoLink hubs with temp & water sensors in two different locations. The sensors are great! The Hubs are NOT! Although the hubs are directly connected via Ethernet cable to our networks they still go offline numerous times in a single day. It’s so bad we have had to turn the alerts off. The system has been rendered useless because of the malfunctioning hubs. I’m looking for another system. Hopefully the Shelly will work.
Year and almost a half later... Does Yolink have HA integration?
Yes, but cloud push only: www.home-assistant.io/integrations/yolink/
From what I understand a Yolink local hub will be coming out within the next month or two.
@@TheHookUp thanks for the update.
Please do lawn mowers. I plan on moving to a brand new house soon and I want to apply most of what I see on your channel (along the way depending on budget). Lawn mowers have gotten cheaper but while I thought they were very similar to vacuums I found out they have a bunch of specific characteristics to them. Best channel for smart home stuff by miles.
Me as I watch:
Ok I'll get the... Oh wait no...I'll get the... No.. maybe the.. no... Shit just tell me which one to buy this is confusing.
Lol
Thank you for all the info though. It will help me decide.
I have ten wifi water leak sensors throughout my home, but they constantly go offline and won't reconnect unless I pair them again. I have a great MESH wifi network around my whole home, so no idea why? I'm now considering the zigbee sensors. Does each zigbee water sensor perform as part of the MESH network? Or is that only hard-wired devices?
What brand?
@@TheHookUp Aqara
@@TheHookUp from my research, I don’t think these zig bee water leak sensors serve as part of the mesh network as they are battery powered. Only mains plugged in devices serve as part of the mesh network. Explanation starts at 2:00 in this video: czcams.com/video/YEtyuDxon7A/video.html
edit: dismiss this message. I just read someone suggested the same before. D'oh!
If you have extremely soft hard-to-detect water, wouldn't be a possible workaround to just place a fair amount of table salt around the sensor?
That could be an interesting test to do with distilled water giving subject for a short video, just out of curiosity.
Yep, I believe this would work just fine.
Yolink is where its at.
What happened to just old fashion loud noise instead high tech wifi?
Lora will go for miles!
Eh... say im on holiday and its middle of the night and im sleeping... if the watersensor goes off at home (huge leak going on).. the alert need to also call my mobilephone.... a simple email / sms / push alert wont be enough!
I wish ring was included
I simply have dumb no-name 9V water sensor alarms. They are the cheapest approach at under $5 each.