Been using tp-link smart plugs for a moment. Not really had any problems with them but i want to move to something such as z-wave or a ZigBee. Something that is totally local and does not require a different app on my phone.
Been using tp-link smart plugs for a moment. Not really had any problems with them but i want to move to something such as z-wave or a ZigBee. Something that is totally local and does not require a different app on my phone.
I have a few Hue ones. Two of them have been switching inductive loads for 4 years now without failing. Got some IKEAs for switching small things as well as strenghtening the Zigbee network. I got some Levitons for strenghtening the Z-Wave network and a couple of Zooz for power metering applications.
Keep in mind that most of these can’t be used with heavy inductive loads without failing prematurely. Inductive loads produce sparks in the switch relay and the relay contacts will degrade as a result. You can use cheap plugs for small non-inductive loads. As long as they’re certified for safety in your country, they shouldn’t catch fire when they fail. For inductive loads or heavier things, like your 1400W espresso machine, you also want it to be proven high quality.
But yeah, the vast majority of my home automation stuff is Zigbee and Z-Wave, fully local / offline.
I use severeal of these Zigbee plugs that are announced to manage up to 3600 watts but your comment made me rethink my choices as I use them on washers and my espresso machine… https://de.aliexpress.com/item/1005005734493134.html
Yeah. I buy plenty from Ali but I generally avoid power grid electric devices. Flaws in those are much more likely to result in home fires than some low-power electronic device that doesn’t plug into the wall. If you need cheap smart plugs, I’d get something sold locally, certified in your country / EU. IKEA’s plugs should be cheap. Either way, every legitimate power plug I’ve seen either has a disclaimer written somewhere that prohibits inductive load use or it’s got a secondary, lower wattage rating for those. Or it says it handles inductive loads at the standard current.
With all that said, if you’re educated enough in electricity, you could crack one open and inspect it yourself for safety. It’s entirely possible they’re using the expensive relays. 😄
E: I tried checking my own homework just now and I can’t find Hue or IKEA saying anything about inductive loads on their websites anymore. I feel like I’m going crazy. I swear I’ve seen it written on IKEA plug and on their website. Maybe the all updated their stuff to use better relays? I don’t know. Either way your espresso machine is a resistive load so it doesn’t fall in the sparky category.
Out of curiosity, what does failure of one of these things look like? I’ve got one that’s running my window air conditioning unit. It draws about 600 watts while it’s running, but when it very first starts up, it pulls about 1700 watts instantaneously and then immediately drops.
That is still within the 15 amps the plug is rated for with a margin of about 100 watts.
As far as I know the switch stops connecting or disconnecting. But besidss that I don’t know what the failure mode of a worn relay looks like. E.g. whether it could overheat and melt due to a poor connection because of worn contacts. You should read more on that.
Okay, that’s good to know. If it’s just that the switch doesn’t disconnect or connect, that’s fine, because even if it fails in a connected state, the air conditioner itself only pulls about 5 amps while running, and the plug itself is rated for 15 amps.
It only pulls anywhere close to that when it’s very first starting up and only for a brief moment.
thank you very much for your reply! They worked fine for 2 years now, I hope they wont fatally fail. In the future I will switch to known brands :)