EBV105-HCM Z-Wave Water Valve, Smart Home, No Plumbing, 3/4" (Medium)

The media could not be loaded. I have 100 gallons of water in my attic (two 50 gallon electric water heaters), and despite the fact that I maintain them regularly, the idea of a water leak in the pipes resulting in flooding the house out is worrisome. This actually happened to one of my neighbors the week after they bought their house.Unfortunately, I don’t have room in my garage to move the water heaters there, so I have been searching for a simple-to-install system that detects water (if present), and shuts off the main water valve; ideally making use of my existing home automation system, which is Wink-based.At the time of this review (December 2015), there are no flood sensors and main water valve controllers that are Wink-supported, although there are systems that work with Wink, and others that don’t. These include:a) The WaterCop Leak detection system and valve. This system will detect leaks and shut the valve off, but doesn’t link into Wink - so I cannot automatically shut off the electric water heaters when the main valve is closed (to prevent the elements from burning out). It is also rather pricy. And requires plumbing to replace the main water valve.b) The FortrezZ Wireless water valve. This is a z-wave valve that pairs with the Wink hub as a binary switch. And the Wink app can be used to turn it on and off. Presumably, Wink Robots that make use of flood sensors can be used to control the valve. This valve is also pricy, and like the WaterCop requires plumbing to replace the main water valve.c) The Waxman leakSMART water valve. This is a Zigbee water valve that comes with its own leak detectors. Currently, it isn’t compatible with the Wink hub, although there are rumors on Wink forums that it will soon be officially supported by Wink. Nevertheless, it suffers from the same issues as the WaterCop and the FortrezZ - pricy and requires plumbing to replace the main water valve. Also, this is a Zigbee device and based on the wavelength use and range, I’ve had issues with controlling outdoor Zigbee devices with the Wink hub.Several reviews on home automation websites indicate that it is desirable to create a bypass circuit when the main water valve is replaced by a motorized valve in the event the latter fails - I haven’t seen a single report of the FortrezZ failing, but read two reports of the leakSMART getting stuck in the closed position.The EcoNet Controls EBV105 valve shutoff system intrigued me for several reasons, including: 1) It installs over an existing ball valve, meaning there is no plumbing required. Further, online videos indicated there was a simple clutch to disengage the controller from the motor - making it easy to manually control the valve if necessary; 2) The installation looked very simple; 3) It pairs with multiple z-wave controllers as a binary switch; I have other non-Wink supported binary switch pair just fine with the hub and be controlled by the Wink hub; and 4) The price point was substantially lower than the other three systems.On the negative side, a Canadian reseller (AARTech) specifically describes this product as being incompatible with the Wink hub. However, with Amazon Prime, if it didn’t work, I could always send it back.I also needed Wink-compatible flood sensors, and there are multiple reports online indicating that the Aeon Labs Aeotech Z-wave water sensors - DSB45-ZWUS work with the Wink hub. I found five of these sensors online at a very good price and when combined with the price of the EBV105, the total was still about 50% that of any of the other three systems described above.The EBV105 arrived with a 12V/1A power supply and the hardware needed to mount it to 1/2”, 3/4”, and 1” pipes. The instructions combined with online videos were very clear. It paired with the Wink hub as a binary switch. The only thing to note during pairing is that it really has to be very close to the Wink hub (less than 3 feet away). And while pairing, push the button on the face of the controller as fast as you can. It took me three attempts to pair it. The first two times, I was too far away from the hub. Being close was key. After pairing, I tested whether the valve would work when it was outside the house, separated by one brick wall and several internal walls from the hub. My water main is just outside my garage and I do have two z-wave switches inside the garage - so the closest z-wave relays to the EBV105 are just one brick wall away.I also tested whether the EBV105 could be controlled by Wink Robots that acted based on the Aeotech water sensors detecting water. This also worked perfectly. So I mounted the EBV105 on my existing ball valve. The mounting looks simple on their online videos. It took me more time (about an hour) based on the limited accessibility I have to the side and behind the ball valve. I did have to use one spacer plate (provided with the EBV105) to center the controller on the valve (FYI - my pipes are 3/4”). After mounting, it has worked flawlessly. I have a second Wink Robot that automatically shuts off my water heaters when the valve is in the closed position, i.e. the EBV105 is off.It has only been a day, but I’m very satisfied with this system. The EBV105 is relative inexpensive, is powerful enough to move the lever on a fairly tight ball-valve, and integrates well with the Wink hub.

The device paired easily with my SmartThings controller as a binary switch. I used the medium size U-Bolts included in the mounting kit to fasten the EBV105 to my ¾” solder type valve. My valve is in a bit of a tight space and It took a few tries to get the mounting just right. The first few tries left the motor struggling to complete the open/close strokes and it did not completely close the valve. Once I got it right, the open/close movement was smooth and it open and closed completely. I plan on adding water sensors to the system and use the EcoNet SmartThings app to automatically shut off the valve in case of a leak. The mounting kit is a little overly complicated, but otherwise a great product.

The media could not be loaded. This product COULD have been easily 5 stars... but sadly they stopped short of being great. Another 10bucks worth of a stronger motor/gear-box.Overall - great product idea, the Z-Wave integration was easy, fast and without complications (not the norm!).So, what's wrong? The motor is dismally weak. I mean: really really weak. Other reviewers are spot on (refer to "Doggie Bear "Opie"" and the torque wrench measurements)Well, in my case, it did indeed not work (see video of the puny motor mightily struggling to close the valve.. until it got stuck in a whiney-never-ending motion). Oh, and the packaging did not include the "Lever Pins" so I had to improvise.Another $100 -one plumber visit later- installing a new Home Depot valve, and it's finally working.Please, if you DO consider purchasing this one here, DO test if you can move your existing lever with utmost ease, using your pinky, all the way. IF NOT, then buy another product or call the plumber...

After my new house flooded from third floor down when a brass Pex plumbing fitting corroded and failed prematurely costing $30K. I decided to put flooding sensor under each Pex manifold and in the basement, so I could be alerted to a leak and use this valve actuator to automatically shut off the water if I am not home.Good: Connected via Zwave to my Samsung Smart Things Hub, and it does close valve automatically when flood sensors are activated via Leaks routine. Decently long power cord. Install was fairly quick, but I am an engineer with many tools.Bad: While this has a better mounting to valve than others listed on Amazon, it still moves, and the clamps are not round so when tightening to a valve that isn't perfectly round it rotates the bracket putting the actuator out of alignment with valve handle (see pics). There are Phillips screws on the brackets, and they strip out far too easily when tightening it down. They should have used bolts instead of screws. The screws under the actuator to mount the actuator bracket to the valve bracket are very hard to reach with a screw driver too. The part that moves the valve handle is too flimsy, bends slightly when moving valve handle, and should be adjustable in length to allow the actuator more leverage on valves; the motor sounds like it is struggling. Installation instructions are poor, and the install was frustrating due to the screws and misalignment issues.

Great idea, great design, but terribly underpowered motor. What a waste of a great design! If this had a stronger motor, then it would actually work. As it is, it does not get the job done.