Yes. I have EXACTLY this same problem, and the solution is to get a Ring Range Extender 2, which has an internal battery for power fail. Only issue is that it won’t report power fail unless it is paired securely. Just set up a rule as below:
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A Ring Alarm Range Extender plugged into same circuit would work. When it switches from mains to battery, create an alert. I have a Gen 1 that are less than$20 if you can find one. Gen 2s are $25.
I realize this is not exactly what you asked, but the simpler solution may be to replace the GFCI with a non-GFCI single outlet, and label it "Non-GFCI - Refrigerator only". I cannot say whether that complies with code where you live, but it does comply with code where I live.
In our house, the outlets in the garage are on the same circuit as the outlets on the patio, which do require GFCI protection because they are outdoors (even though they are in waterproof boxes with a hinged cover).
I have my fridge pluged into a power monitor socket and a rule if its not had a power change in 40min.
Had the breaker changed now and its not since tripped, either it was on its way out or just to sensitive
what do you by paired securely?
You are right. I was assuming a GFCI outlet rather than GFCI breaker. Another case could be if your garage outlet was GFCI protected by being downstream of your patio GFCI, and there were no other outlets downstream of the garage outlet, you could still make the garage outlet non-GFCI.
In my case, it is a GFCI outlet and it is the first outlet in the circuit with other outlets that are outside. Therefore it cannot be changed, Also the Gen 2 Range extender is out of stock. Go FIGURE!
When you pair (Z-Wave include) the Ring Range Extender, you are given a choice as to how it should be paired, securely (and, if so, the type of secure pairing) or insecurely. The Ring Range Extender will still function as a repeater if paired insecurely, but won’t report mains/battery power source.
Do you need the Ring Alarm base station to use the extender? If so, I don't have that.
Well, depending on how often you are in your garage you could do this.
Get a cheap nightlight and an extension cord.
Plug the light into the cord and that into the plug in question. Stick the light on the freezer.
Light is on means you have power.
Light off means you don't.
It's not smart, but when it comes to the cost of losing a freezer full of food, reliability is #1.
And if you have a camera in the garage you can check on the freezer remotely.
No. I got an old Ring Hub off eBay, but only to update Ring Extender firmware if I ever have to.
you can also use this if the ring is out of stock
Hi Mike
I had a similar situation where a circuit where the fridge is tripping from time to time.
Therefore, I have used one of the ideas posted by an experienced user on the forum to set a nofication based on the monitoring a smart plug where the fridge is connected. In essence the rule ( nofication) is checking every 30 minutes if it is a change and if no change will trigger an alarm.
Sorry, I forget to mention that the rule is monitoring the power meter reading (attribute) of the smart plug ( Aeotec Gen 5). I've tried to set the delay lower then 30 minutes to make it more responsive but I've end up with false alarms. Hence, I've reverted to 30 minutes and all OK. Apart of the smart plug ( and the nofication rule) I did not used any other hardware/rules. I'll try to find the original post where I have copied this rule.
Thank you so much. I received my Ring Range Extender 2 yesterday and set it up in about a 1/2 hour. This work exactly the way I wanted it to. Thank you so much. for your help.
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Has this changed over the past few months? I just added two of these extenders without any security and tested this. Both report power source correctly.
Back last year, when I tested after buying 6 for our home, it didn’t work unless paired securely, which is what @bcopeland reported, too. Last December, @dennypage, who wrote nice drivers for them and Aeotec repeaters, did extensive testing, and something appears to have changed about December 2020.
So, yes, they appear to work fine now with no security. Must have been something in the Hubitat Z-Wave code.
Edit: You do have to put a rule to refresh them after a power fail because Hubitat, when it comes back online after a power fail, misses the “return to mains” event when the Ring comes online.
Here are my rules:
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