water shut-off valve and water detector recommendations?

[analog river]

USA

USA based

[thin comet]

https://www.getzooz.com/zooz-zac36-titan-water-valve-actuator/ with any/multiple leak detectors

[fossil bear]

I have one of these ... well made outstanding value has local water sensor, and optional battery power back up. I use Third Reality water sensors (11) in place in all areas where pipe/valve leaks may occur. I experienced a leak. My insurance agent said that are only two types of homes. Those that have had leaks, and those that will have leaks. The hassle of the damage repair, the remediation to prevent mold and getting 10 cents on the dollar to replace damaged furniture, rugs, was unpleasant.

OH yeah, measure the pressure in your plumbing and adjust the pressure regulator to make sure you're within spec

[thin comet]

Same with addition of real time water pressure sensors coming into the house and out from whole house water filtration and softener. With water leaks, best to have a closed loop so main water is shutoff in case of a leak. Notifications do very little if no one is home 🙂

[analog river]

Did you add the extra sensitivity parts to the sensors?

[fossil bear]

The metal strips? Yes. Make sure the long one makes contact with the floor and is close to the short strip. These will tend to wick water and increase sensitivity

[muted axle]

cheap water detect sensors are available, but the problem is that most if not all are battery-powered. You can use SensorNode with a water-detect sensor and never have to replace batteries. https://tnbtechnologies.com/sensornode

[fossil bear]

I have an automation that checks the battery status of all battery powered devices and alerts me when they're running low. Most Zigbee and Z-Wave device batteries last at least a year, usually longer. Mains powered sensors fail when there's a power loss unless they include a battery backup. Providing mains power to sensors is often inconvenient.

[fossil bear]

Yep, If any sensor detects a leak the shutoff command is sent to the Zooz Titan and messages are sent to the family

[strong garden]

My setup is quite simple:

• For water sensors (under cupboards, behind toilets, washing drip pans, AC drip pans): https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09VBS48ZN/
• On my main water valve: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B097QZTD19/

I don't know what is your setup but to make the solution wholesome, I have

• Zigbee USB Controller: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0BFHBPW4C
• Turnkey Smart Home Hub with Home Assistant: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DJPLG65B

Whenever I get a leak detected, Home Assistant tells the valve to turn off, sends a message to everyone's phone (that "this" sensor detected a leak) and plays a MP3 file of water dripping for 30 seconds over my home speakers. I also have a Moes Controller button that "resets'" the valve after I push it

It does need some configuration in Home Assistant but it was a fun project

[muted axle]

Unless your system mains tend to fail often, seems like a lot of trouble for something that hardly ever happens. If mains fail, you need your HA system backed up, and even so, many things simply won't work. On the other hand, I have dozens of devices in my home setup; if they were all battery powered, I'd be changing batteries every week. I prefer a configuration which rarely fails, and takes little or no effort to maintain.

[fossil bear]

@muted axle I looked at your device. It might be handy in some situations but running power to toilet rooms and under sinks is very inconvenient. I've had 35+ battery powered sensors of various types running for over a year and haven't changed a single battery. I prefer ZIgbee or Z-Wave over MQTT . I have created my own custom sensors using ESP32-S3 devices over MQTT. I run those using 2500 mah lithium batteries those devices are not near AC power. With the new ESP32-C6 that supports ZIgbee I'm working on redoing those to use Zigbee to lower the power requirements. I'll never use AC wired sensors. I see no need.

[muted axle]

Clearly you have the skills to do a lot of custom work, and yes in those cases you cited, you may not have power available. My product is aimed at people who do not want to design, configure, and build their own devices. I have one under my kitchen sink which does already have power for garbage disposal. If you have Lithium batteries yes those can last, but my comment was about 'std' battery powered devices. If you press them into service on the same day, yes you may not have to change batteries for months, but on average, 12 sensors with '12 mo battery replacement cycles' will fail once each month over the long haul. I, personally, will always opt for mains powered devices wherever practical.

[fossil bear]

Only my custom ESP32 devices use Li-poly rechargeable batteries because they use power hungry Wi-Fi. All the commercial sensors use standard AAA or coin cell batteries

That will change when I convert them to ZIgbee I expect the 2500 mah batteries to last three years maybe longer. I won't know until I profile the power use and tune for optimum

[muted axle]

Zigbee w/2500 mah batts should be cool!

[fossil bear]

Yeah