Has anyone used Hubduino to build an actuator strong enough to close a 1/4 turn ball valve?
Any servo recommendations if I was to try building one?
90 degrees of rotation can be done with a linear actuator.
It won't be a cheap proposition though.
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It might be cheaper to just buy a water shutoff device:
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I like this option. Coupled with a good locally sourced ball valve it could make a robust shutoff.
Those linear actuators would be perfect. They have some on amazon for half the price, and some on Aliexpress for under $20.
Be careful using a linear actuator to 'turn a handle' through a circular motion. At some point, you will end up either pushing or pulling on the pipe, which could lead to fatigue and an eventual mechanical failure (i.e. cracked pipe and flooding of your home.)
The purpose-built valve actuators apply a circular torque to the valve and only turn 90 degrees.
If you match the lever attachment points chord length across the 90 degree arc to the actuators travel you're good to go.
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Yeah, I was thinking about that. One of those actuators has a 330lb force, if it didn't stop, that's going to certainly mess some things up. Plus, there's the issue of determining when to stop the actuator when the valve is fully open or closed. What I was thinking is to make a square thing with a wheel on it. The actuator would be connected to it with springs so it could go past the normal stop point without bending anything or getting jammed, and it would convert the linear motion to rotational.
I could either 3d print it, or I have a bunch of aluminum and tooling in my garage to make it out of metal.
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Check out the US Solid motorized ball valves. Hubduino could definitely control these:
My water pressure is between 85 to 95 PSI, so for me to be comfortable with a "safety" valve on my water main. I would only use a known valve brand. These run between $14 and $26 on a plumbing supply site.
I also would not use an actuator with plastic gears. I know ball valves that sit open all the time will tend to have a little "stiction" when first starting to move. The actuator would have to reliably overcome this.
Just my thoughts.
Which valve brands would you recommend? I have a Dome Actuator waiting for me to stop being lazy and install a decent quality ball valve on my 1" supply line.
I've not done a lot of research on ball valves. I would start with Kitz or maybe Nibco. When I was looking for under sink shutoff valves I found Dahl to be good but I don't think they make this type of valve.
I would be interested to see how the Dome works for you. I see a number of "not enough torque" in the reviews.
If you end up using an NPT style, I would use Loctite 565 for the threads instead of tape.
UPDATE:
In my web searches I found a few comments that cited the powersupply as limiting the available torque. I don't know anything about the dome powersupply but if you run into low torque issue you might start there.
John
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If you're serious about a water shutoff valve this is the one you want in zigbee:
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Some actuators come with Reid Switches that allow you to set a stop. Otherwise, you can wire up some fail safe stops with contacts that cut the voltage to the motor, requiring you to physically interact with the unit to pull it out of the "stop".
Based on my limited experience with actuators, I'd definitely use a safety stop in all situations, especially when dealing with pipes and valves...and the potential to flood my house! Talk about messing up the WAF for future projects....
That just looks cool. Who cares what it does, I need one! 
Have you used one of these Mike?
Yes, sinope sent me their entire product line. It's a very nice unit.
That's it, its officially on "the list" a long with the Pi 4 & Prusa Mk3....
Lol
Nice stuff. Canadian company too. They're offering a contest to win a HEM as well if anyone is interested
My Dome actuator closes slightly too far, i.e. it keeps churning past the valve stop point. It's just for emergencies, so I put it on an outlet and when it starts to close then RM begins a timer and cuts power after 20 seconds.
I should say, that's what I did before it stopped closing at all. Now, it just closes about 20° and quits. Hoping Dome will respond to me.
I use this with an old transformer and a zigbee outlet for my water valve outside. They may make 1/4 inch ones out just but adapters. Motorized Ball Valve- 3/4" Brass Ball Valve with Standard Port, 9-24V AC/DC and 2 Wire Auto Return Setup by U.S. Solid https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XX6XYD8/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_fLNlDb561DD9X
