240V power monitoring for air conditioner recommendations

Devices & Integrations Connected Things
1

It’s August 2026, United States market. Looking for a power monitoring device for one branch circuit to measure energy consumption with SmartThings. The branch circuit has a 30A air conditioner (condenser unit). I would like to be able to get “actionable insights,” which means: see immediate power consumption, see instant power consumption over various points in the past month, see energy consumption over a particular time period, and see (via power spikes and troughs) when the condenser is turning on and off. Nice graphs and such. Any suggestions?

There appear to be two approaches: 1) a clamp-style meter that you clip to the branch circuit in the electrical panel; 2) a power monitoring device with optional switching capabilities inline in the circuit. Any connectivity option is okay (Zigbee, Z-Wave, Wi-Fi, Matter).

For #2, Aeotec used to make a “Heavy Duty Switch” Gen5 https://aeotec.com/products/aeoteo-heavy-duty-switch/ that uses Z-Wave Plus. I think it is discontinued but still available in the market.

I am not aware of currently available #1 options (one set of clamps on a 240V branch circuit) that are designed to integrate with SmartThings. Are there current options?

What are the best ways to get energy log data out of SmartThings, to build fancier and longer-term graphs and visualizations?

I also do not know if SmartThings is really the platform that I need for this task. Would I be better off with some Wi-Fi energy meter product in its own ecosystem? I am only looking to monitor one branch circuit, not the whole home. I do not want a product involving many different CT clamps on many circuits (hence, not that interested in Emporia Vue, for example…unless that really is the best/only option).

2

Hi @SeanTek,

I’m using this ZooZ High Power relay for my AC, it is working ok for me. Zooz Z-Wave Long Range High Power Relay ZEN78 800LR - The Smartest House

In the past I had the Aeotec Heavy Duty Switch Gen5, but after a while, it stopped responding to Z-wave commands. I would reset it, it would work for a few days and then stop again. It never had any firmware updates, so I gave up on Aeotec.

Thanks

3

Hi, did you splice this inline to your AC power cord? Or did you mount an outlet to it?

4

I installed the ZEN78 inline with the AC power supply.

The AC power cable originally goes directly to my outdoor condenser unit. I disconnected the incoming power cable from the condenser and installed the Zooz ZEN78 in between the power supply and the equipment.

I made new electrical connections/connectors as follows:

AC power supply → Zooz ZEN78 → evaporator unit