Good evening, everyone.
I'm trying to automate my well that runs on 240 volts. I'm not an electrician, but it has a switch that shuts it off and on. The switch looks like a regular light switch with two wires in and two out.
Is there a Zigbee or Zwave switch that works good with HE that's made similar?
Thanks for the help.
Hi there,
I have no direct experience with this, but you may need to be careful with the # amps your pump pulls when starting up. With that, you may want to check out something like this:
Cheers!
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Where are you located in the world? North America? Or elsewhere?
If you are in North America, this GE switch may work.
https://www.amazon.com/120-277VAC-Electric-Compatible-Certified-14285/dp/B00YTCZZF0/
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I second the GE/Enbrighten z-wave indoor/outdoor smart switch. I have one installed outside to control outdoor lighting. It also handles 240 volt loads. It has a weatherproof NEMA 3R enclosure and is easy to install and wire up.
If you go to the bottom of the Amazon page and click on the spec sheet you will see that it is rated for 2hp at 240 volt. It is not cheap but it is a heavy-duty switch that should handle your well pump, assuming the pump is 2 hp or less.
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Sinopé RM3250ZB Electrical Load Controller – 50A – Zigbee
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07CGJ6XH2
You might be able to use a Third Reality overlay switch. I have used them quite a bit on paddle-style (Decora) switches. Work fine with HE. Note that I had trouble with a toggle switch so I changed it to paddle.
Zigbee Smart Switch, Gen3.
https://www.amazon.com/Amazon-Zigbee-Switch-Compatible-Studio/dp/B08TVZK8D6/144-3981687-5937402
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Im doing a similar thing, Will be installing my 240V pump soon. Im going to use a Z-WAVE device, ZOOZ Zen17. Each relay will be one leg of the 240V. My pump will draw < 10A. It also has 2 contact inputs for float switches or what ever.
Thanks everyone. I'll check them all out.
Thanks for this suggestion. I had totally forgotten that these devices existed. My well pump has a 230V double pole toggle switch in a work box. I was looking into cobbling together a contactor and 24v control to turn it off when a leak is detected. This should fit and if it works it will do the job and no issues with conduit and code.
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I would go with this Zigbee 240v switch. I have both the z-wave Enbrighten and this one in different locations and the Sinope gives me no headaches.
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If you are commenting on my comment above the Sinope is plan B if the Third Reality mechanical overlay doesn't work well. I'm starting with KISS.
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I am just commenting on my experience with both units.
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Hope you will have a valve also, just turning the pump off will not help that much with a leak, before all the pressure in the system is down to 0 (or low enough for the leak to stop), you will most likely have 4-5 gallons of water that leaked out, depending on the size of your water tank/bladder.
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I had high hopes for the Third Reality overlay switch. It does not have enough power to flip the toggle on my double pole switch even though it looks like a typical light switch. I'm going to give plan B, the Sinope load controller a try. I do love that Amazon makes returns so painless.
Yeah, as mentioned above, I had to convert my switches to paddle style (Decora) to get it to work.
@rcjordan I did see your comment. I've ordered a Leviton 20 amp double pole "quiet" switch that should easily handle the load. My guess is that you are correct. The "slide" mechanism should be able to depress the switch without much difficulty. It's worth a $20 returnable try. The first one of the Third Reality switches was DOA with a non functioning motor. Second one has a motor that runs as expected but stalls trying to flip the toggle. Sliding up the ramp likely requires much less force. I'll update in a couple of days when the Leviton switch arrives. I am glad I am not in the "have to hire an electrician club" for basic stuff.
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I've got a control valve on the output of the pressure tank. I want to stop the pump from running if there is a failure from the well pump to the output of the pressure tank. The basement could get about a foot of water before the pressure switch shorted out.
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That is one thing I never thought about, going on my todo list right now 
I'm new around here, moving from an insteon setup to HE. As part of my old setup I had my sprinkler pump controlled by something like this: 240V Load Controller — Insteon
I know it's wifi so not exactly what you're looking for, but in my research I learned you can use a Shelly 1PM to trigger a contactor with a 240v coil. See this video: Save money by automating your EXISTING water heater (using a contactor) | #EnergyChallenge - YouTube
I thought about using a Zooz Zen51 to do this since I wanted z-wave, but when I spoke to their tech support they told me I could not use the 240v in the enclosure to power it (even though it says in the specs it's 120-240v). They told me I would have to run a 120v circuit to power the relay separately from the 240v powering the pump.
We have an old watercop valve for main supply cutoff as well as an Aeotec switch on the pump. The leak sensors shut both of them off. Also, we have a Zen34 by the door, so we shut them down when we leave the house.
