I have a zooz dimmer i previously tried to install, but swapped for a different one. Is there a way to power it up to exclude and rest it without actually installing it so I can verify it is in fact good before paying an electrician? I will be having an electrician installing several others, and want him to install this one too if it's still good. Just do not want to waste time with trial and error while he's on the clock. I still have time to order a new one before he comes.
If I understand what you want correctly, you can just power up the light srip, put it in exclude mode, and then run an exclusion on the hub. You should see an "unknown device excluded" message when the exclusion occurs.
That is what I was thinking, except this an in wall dimmer, not a light strip. I was trying to figure out if there is a safer way to power it up to exclude it before actually installing it.
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Ahhh...I don't have any great ideas for that other than hooking it up normally to a switchbox (of course not closing things up/putting on the cover plate) and doing the exclusion. You do have to be careful of the exposed wires...if you're not comfortable w/that stuff then you may need to wait for the electrician. I guess you ran into problems w/it the last time you tried to install it and that's why you're concerned it may be DOA?
Maybe give it to a nearby friend who's into HA, let him install it in his home, and if it works, tell him you changed your mind and want it back. 
Sort of. That is why I wanted to try and power it up to see if it is in fact doa, or it was installer error. I had issues with that install. I got it installed, but it took four tries working with Zooz support.That is why I'm having an electrician come to do the rest. Wiring is one of my weak spots, especially if it more complex that just swapping a switch one for one. Most of what I need to do involves three and four way switches. I just didn't want to waste the time while he's here .
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The electrician should be able to determine the switch health very quickly, so I wouldn't worry about it too much in terms of being a time-waster.
Just get something like this and a pair of connectors, either wirenut or Wago and plug it in.
https://www.amazon.com/Creative-Hobbies-Silver-Replacement-Repair/dp/B084SPV7Y1/
For many In-Wall devices, there are screw terminals and the bare wires work well. For those devices with their own wires attached, the wirenuts or Wago make for easy connecting. Then when I'm done, the wirenut/wago goes onto each wire and I throw it into my tool box for next time.
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I knew someone would have a good solution.
And now I can have extra wall switches all over the house.
I have tuned my process over the years to make adding a new device as painless as I know how. When I get a new device, I add it to one of my development hubs, test it and then remove it from the hub. That wire makes the process of verifying a new device simpler. I don't have to mount it in-wall, I have it near to hand in order to do the include 'dance' and to verify it works once added.
If you feel the edge of the wire, one side has a ridge... that's neutral and should be wired to White on the device. It's a temporary solution and should never be used for anything but a couple minutes worth of verification.
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That looks exactly like what I was half thinking about, I just wasn't sure how safe it would be. Actually I was thinking about cutting the end off an extension cord. But this gives me a clearer idea what to do!
To make it safer, grab something like this as a test box: Ericson 1-Gang Outlet Box w/o Coverplates, Dual-Side, Standard, Yellow (Ericson 6030) | HomElectrical.com
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Doesn't that kind of take all the fun out of it?
FWIW any old PC power cable or similar appliance cable with a a standard US 3 pin plug on one end will typically have 3 wires Black/White/Green inside, cut off the IEC C13 at the PC end, strip it back a bit and you have a grounded cable for your device.
Or, skip the wire strippers:
https://www.amazon.com/Replacement-Power-Extension-Pigtail-125VAC/dp/B0BJ9HNR1S
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This is what I ended up doing, it worked great! I was able to get the dimmer excluded and reset without any issues! Thank you everyone for the suggestions! Because of all of your suggestions i was also able to add to my tools and knowledge for future projects!
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