Power Circuit Monitoring for Power Loss

I can't say for sure but I believe I remember reading on here somewhere that it does repeat, even when on battery

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This is awesome thanks @agnes.zooz - We've had several power outages lately and I'm getting tired of waking up to a house full of bright lights :star_struck:

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@agnes.zooz, do you know what the time resolution on the device is? We get power flickers that are 0.5 to 1 second. Enough to turn the lights. I have tried other devices that take a full 3 seconds to report.

The relay opens as soon as there is no power, so that's pretty instant, definitely within a second. How fast the signal is sent from the Ecolink sensor to your hub will depend on the Z-Wave network strength and whether there are any communication issues on the way but again, HE is usually very fast so I wouldn't think it would take more than a second to get the update. I always recommend trying it out in your particular environment because it's challenging to predict the exact behavior of a wireless connected device.

I recently purchased one of these devices because it was cheap and seemed to work well for reporting a power outage. Using the HE hub's built-in driver, the device reports the following:
Screen Shot 2020-08-18 at 11.05.29 AM
So, the battery level is for the device's internal battery, and the powerSource attribute can be either "mains" or "battery". This attribute seems to be triggered instantly when I pull the device from the power outlet and vice-versa.

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Can you explain in more detail how to use this Ring device as a power detector? Do you just add it to the Zwave network and then look for the messages?

Here's the rule I use to monitor and react to a power outage:


I don't have my hub, Wifi router, or cable modem connected to a UPS, so this rule is somewhat meaningless now, but it does show how to monitor and react to the Ring Extender broadcasting a "changed" message.

Eventually, I plan to put my hub on a UPS and when this rule detect a power loss, it will issue a shutdown after 2 hours.

Cool, thanks. I had to buy a Gen 2 since Gen 1 out of stock now and it's $10 more, but I'll give it a try. I only need to monitor at a specific outlet right now.

I live in an area where we don't normally get power outages or dips in power that would cause electronic hardware to shutoff or reset. If I did, then I would certainly have my important devices on a UPS. However, I understand that the Hubitat HE hub database could get corrupted if you don't do a graceful shutdown, so that is why I bought this Ring Extender to be used in conjunction with a small UPS for my hub.

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I used @bcopeland driver for the Ring Range Extenders, and toggled a setting to create a virtual switch (Enable power fail virtual switch)

Then I just created a notification. I created a different notification that the power came back on.

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[quote="magasser, post:131, topic:7971, full:true"]
I used @bcopeland driver for the Ring Range Extenders, and toggled a setting to create a virtual switch (Enable power fail virtual switch)

[/quote]
I need an ELI5 for this part, getting and installing the driver. My Hubitat is up and running now. Also can you verify inclusion/exclusion procedure is a single button press?

I found pairing the Ring Range Extenders VERY difficult. It took me hours of trial and error. To get the V2 one into exclusion. you have to press and hold the front button for approx 2-3 sec and release it. It will fast flash green and should exclude easily. The pairing is another story. Pressing and holding the front button the same way can get it to pair- it should pop up with the S2 security settings. I tried so many times I honestly can't remember what actually worked to pair it though.

I believe this was the driver I used- not the one built in to the Hub driver library.

I got it excluded no problem, and put the driver code in (do I need to do anything other than just paste it in a new driver and save?). It hangs on inclusion. I'm prompted to enter the security code, do that, and then it says Found Z wave device and just hangs on "Initializing"

Pro Tip - the tiny hole on the back side is a hardware reset using a paperclip

Yeah they both exclude super easy. The pairing part for some reason is a bear. I think I eventually got them both (V1 and V2) to pair without entering the key but I can't be sure because I did it so many times. If I remember right, it paired after a hub reboot. Once it pairs you're golden. If you can trace what works for you, by all means share. It may be that you really don't even need to exclude. For me, nothing else was really even difficult to pair- just the range extenders. But they were pretty vital so I just kept trying till they did. Once paired they worked fine.

I did it! I had the same issue with it hanging on Initializing (this time I selected security 0), but then went to the hub settings...zwave details and hit refresh and repair a couple of times and it started working.

I have my test rule logging an event when this happens. I see you setup text notifications which is what I want, but I don't see this option in my rule actions. What do I need to install/configure for that?

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I use Twilio to get sms messages. You could wait and see if maybe Hubitat will include sms messages in a paid service before you pony up $20 for Twilio. If money is no object- do it and switch to hubitat sms if they add it back in. I also use Pushover to get notifications on my phone as well- that's free.

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In your rule you have a 10 minute delay for both outage and restoration, is there a particular reason you decided on a delay for these notifications?

I believe I had that 10 min delay just in case the power dips briefly but not enough to shutdown the hubitat hub. I've since changed this rule to look like this:

What I have now is a UPS Battery Backup which powers my WiFi Router, Cable Modem, and Hubitat Hub. If the power goes out in my house, this Hubitat rule will send me a PushOver notification which I will see on my smartphone. I also have a virtual switch called "Home AC Power" which will be turned on or off based on the home power situation (I use this switch in a dashboard to verify the home power status). I also have a statement in the rule to turn on my porch and garage coach lights when power is restored between sunset-30 mins and sunrise, because I've noticed that sometimes my outside lights are not turned back on after a power restoration.

Note, I recently had a power failure this week when a car crashed into a power box and this entire system was tested. My UPS was able to power the WiFi Router, Cable Modem, and Hubitat Hub for 2 hours before it shutdown. I have a different rule that shutdowns the Hubitat Hub after 2 hours of power failure, so that worked out well.

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Thanks for that, the 10 min delay was tripping me up a bit. And making testing hard without having to wait :slight_smile:

Does your home AC power virtual switch initiate any shutdown of any kind of the HE, or is it simply a status indicator?

Just a status indicator. When I get a Pushover message that my home has lost AC power, I like to do a quick check by visually seeing if this indicator switch is on or off in my dashboard.