Favorite z-wave plus in-wall outlet/receptable?

[kohai]

I finally found a use case for adding a z-wave outlet.  What's the best z-wave plus outlet?  GE?  Leviton?  This will be outside but in one of those weather protected-ish boxes. 

I want to monitor when my sump pump turns on.  I have a z-wave water sensor added to the pump so I know when the water level gets too high (e.g. sump not running) but then I realized I can swap the outlet and also track power usage to see when it does run.  If my sump is running, it means we've had a serious amount of rain in a short amount of time.

Now that I think more about this, I guess I'm also needing one that is beefy enough to handle a sump pump motor and has to provide power usage data.  That may limit the field.

[glacier991]

I don'T think this will be as easy as you hope. I am not aware of a duplex outlet that reports power usage. Others may I suppose. I have a plug in device ( not a duplex recepticle nor weatherproof) that I use to report power usage. That in itself would need to be integrated into your programming to do anything. I will be interested what the gurus here have to suggest.

[kohai]

Due to the weather cover over the plug, I don't have room to use a plug in device.  Maybe I'm happy to just know when it's not running due to my water sensor being tripped at a certain water height.

Update: it does look like Enerwave makes an outlet with one outlet having usage tracking.  Enerwave Z-Wave Plus Outlet/Light Switch/Dimmer Switch

[mwester]

If you do go this route, there's a few considerations.  (I abandoned this approach, and selected a current sensor instead of a controllable outlet/plug.)

First, it's controllable.  So, something could happen to turn the outlet off.  And that would turn off your sump pump.  Of course, that'll ONLY happen when you are away, and unable to fix it -- even if you have the portal to be able to remotely log in and turn in back on, Murphy's Law dictates that this will happen while you are somewhere without your cell phone, or without wifi, or your ISY will end up off-line temporarily, or whatever.  I addressed this by having a program run every 15 minutes that ensured the outlet was turned on.  That's good, but it requires that the ISY be functioning, and I really felt that there was a distinct possibility that whatever horrible error (runaway program? Failure?) led to the ISY turning off the outlet might also lead to the ISY being unable to run the program to turn it back on, so that made me pretty nervous.

Secondly, I grew worried about the relays (and fuses) in the Insteon devices.  I had a kitchen switchlinc that clicked nicely when the paddle was depressed or when it got the appropriate on/off message -- but once in a while, the lights wouldn't actually turn off.  I suspect that the relay contacts fused or something, so that while the mechanism moved (and clicked), the flexible contacts were still welded closed.  This got me worrying greatly about the reliability of the tiny relays in the devices when powering a motor -- if the contacts welded with nothing but the power-supply for a set of low-voltage LEDs, what would happen to those contacts with a 1/4 HP sump pump motor startup draw???  I replaced it (temporarily) with an Insteon Synchrolinc device -- so it was set up where I could monitor current draw without the switching relay... I had erroneously guessed that the Synchrolinc used a current transformer, but it turns out I was quite wrong -- it uses a resistor in the neutral, and worse, it's FUSED!  I discovered this when a larger pump motor I was monitoring blew that internal fuse, resulting in a high-level alarm in the septic tank (NOT a good place for a high-level!)...

The end result: now NO devices that protect my home from water/flooding/backups use any Insteon or Z-wave devices directly for switching.  I use current transformers to sense current draw (connected to IOLinc devices).  In the one case where I need to be able to control the device (to protect from a float-switch failure that leads to the pump never turning off), I use an IOLinc controlling a commercial relay designed specifically for high-power motor loads, wired such that when there's no power to that relay, the pump has power to run (i.e. it takes an active control by the IOLinc to turn off the pump -- e.g. fail-safe).

By-the-way, in case the reader of this feels this is over-reacting, let me point out that the NEC (National Electric Code) has a specific exemption to the requirement for GFCI outlets in basements near water for Sump Pumps -- because the probability of a pump failure due to a false trip of the GFCI is far higher than the protection added by said GFCI.  So if the powers-that-be recognize the critical nature of sump pumps, it's foolish for any of us to "automate away" our protection.

[kohai]

@mwester

Fantastic reasoning.  I do have a GFCI on this line which did go out at one point and was replaced as well as I had trouble with this wiring and just had the electrician rerun the power line to remove an in ground splice.  I like your reasoned approach about tracking it other ways than putting something in-line that could cause it to not run.

[brians]

I did something similar in my septic lift pump in basement to monitor when the pump comes on. I have an older switchlinc relay with sense. I used an AC mult splitter from the float switch - plugged in pump as normal but also a cord with the hot wire going to the switchlinc sense wire mounted in a little electrical box. 

I have a program which times the pump duration (eg If greater than 12 seconds I know something may be wrong Ike clogged or failire) and emails if issue. It also emails if hasn’t been used in past 24 hours and also emails me each night how many times it has been used. 

Reason is I have had three incidents in past 8 years - one failure, one clog (flushed a paper towel or something) and one being a plumber who forgot to plug it back in while doing work. 

Since those switchlinc relay with sense don’t seem to be available is there a z wave device that can report back when senses AC?

I also just installed a Watercop Z today and am just waiting for isy module to arrive. My leak sensor in lift pump area ( also other areas in home) will trigger a program to shut off main to prevent flooding basement. 

[kohai]

1 hour ago, brians said:

I did something similar in my septic lift pump in basement to monitor when the pump comes on. I have an older switchlinc relay with sense. I used an AC mult splitter from the float switch - plugged in pump as normal but also a cord with the hot wire going to the switchlinc sense wire mounted in a little electrical box. 

I have a program which times the pump duration (eg If greater than 12 seconds I know something may be wrong Ike clogged or failire) and emails if issue. It also emails if hasn’t been used in past 24 hours and also emails me each night how many times it has been used. 

Reason is I have had three incidents in past 8 years - one failure, one clog (flushed a paper towel or something) and one being a plumber who forgot to plug it back in while doing work. 

Since those switchlinc relay with sense don’t seem to be available is there a z wave device that can report back when senses AC?

I also just installed a Watercop Z today and am just waiting for isy module to arrive. My leak sensor in lift pump area ( also other areas in home) will trigger a program to shut off main to prevent flooding basement. 

Good question, I wonder if this would work:   Aeotec Home Energy Meter Gen5, Z-Wave Plus Smart Electricity Usage Monitor, Report Real Time Power Consumption, 2 Clamps, Each Detects up to 200 amps

[lilyoyo1]

The smart switch 6 by aeotec has energy monitoring. I use it without any issues.