We’re excited to share the link to the invisible Z-Wave Plus door window sensor. Strips by Sensative is now available at TSH only and at 10% off with STRIPS10 coupon during the pre-order period. Limited quantities are on the way, we expect to ship by September 29th.
Here are just a few features of this cool new sensor:
Mounts easily between door/window and frame with adhesive tape
Built-in battery which lasts 10 years
Developed and made in Europe
Z-Wave Plus meaning greater range and quick communication
Weatherproof - install it outdoors!
Check out the listing, there are videos and more info. We’ll be happy to answer additional questions!
I’m in UK and have one of these installed on my garage side door.
It has been working faultlessly for the past 6 months.
It was found easily and it uses a stock ST DTH.
Have a look at this thread for more info. ST Staff are talking to Sensative about a bespoke DTH for it from what I can see. But like I said, it does work OK with the stock ST ZWave door/window contact sensor.
I have 3 up and running with ST in the UK. They integrate very well with a stock handler, and seem to be very reliable.
I had one issue with one of them as it was slightly recessed into the top of a bifold door. This was rectified by using a bit of Sugru to elevate it above the metalwork. It now works flawlessly.
I’m thinking these might be good for in our mailbox due to the low profile and weather resistance. I currently have a Fibaro door/window sensor, but it seems to have completely died, plus the battery cover keeps popping off. I don’t have a strong enough Zigbee mesh to use a ST sensor.
Unfortunately, my mailbox isn’t tall enough for the Strip to mount vertically. I would have to mount the Strip horizontally (with the square end near the mailbox opening and the round end inside the mailbox. Then the magnet would be mounted on the mailbox door, and would open and close perpendicular to the end of the Strip.
Could anyone who has this product already do a quick test to see if this way of mounting would work?
Wouldn’t it be a lot cheaper to use a cheap z-wave motion sensor in the back of the mailbox? That would be cheaper and more protected from the weather…unless you just want an excuse to buy one of these…then I totally get it.
I thought most motion sensors used heat to determine that there’s motion, which I would assume could trigger false-positives as mailboxes aren’t exactly insulated. If I’m wrong about that I would certainly prefer that solution…
What the PIR sensors measure is a very small change in heat moving across the field of detection. So there is a motion component. Positioning the motion sensor so it’s facing straight out to the mailbox opening is the worst position for it, though. It’s much better if it’s on the side or the top of the mailbox facing down so that the act of putting mail into the box will cross the plane of the sensor.
Another popular option is to put a tilt sensor on the mailbox door. Again, the transmission will be sent when the door is open.
Many people do use motion sensors or tilt sensors with mailboxes, the trick is just getting the Z wave signal or zigbee signal out of the box and back to the house. But if the plan is just to send a signal when the mailbox door is open, it may work just fine depending on the exact angles and distance.
If your mailbox is metal, you’re going to have a lot of issues with the contact sensor because the metal around the magnet part will magnetize overtime and that confuses the sensor. It would probably start reporting that it was always closed. So i’m not seeing the sensative strips as a good match for a metal mailbox application.
My own preference would likely be for a tilt sensor on the door first, as that’s just simpler. After that, a motion sensor just inside the box facing across.
Z wave plus has a longer range, but zigbee travels somewhat better through rain.
10 year battery life but the battery is not replaceable. I guess 10 years is a long time but what if it fails before that? $59 is alot of money to replace a battery.
So these actually fit between the edge of the door and the door jam? What if the door fits too snugly? Doesn’t seem like there is much space to fit anything in there. Any closeup pics of it in a closed door with ruler?
That’s what we thought, @Keo! But then we talked to Strips makers and they made a good point that if you use a different Z-Wave Plus door sensor for 10 years and you spent $45-$49 on it initially, you’ll probably get close to $60 including battery cost depending on the amount of activity the sensor needs to handle. It’s very likely that Strips will go way beyond 10 years on the battery. Tests show up to 15 years when Strips is within direct range of your controller and up to 12 years when communication is routed through 1 repeater.
The sensor is also covered under standard 1-year manufacturer warranty.
Bottom line, there is a good chance that this sensor is the last door window sensor most of us will buy for their current home or apartment for at least 10 years. No other Z-Wave device today comes close to this promise.
My first thought was also savings on batteries in the long run. My worry is a 1 year warranty on something that has a fixed battery that should last that long. If it made it to 5 years and died, I would be upset. Battery longevity is variable based on temp, humidity, usage obviously.
Outside these won’t last as long, inside, who knows. Voltage drop on this LiMnO2 battery could be measured and extrapolated over the year or two this has been in development, but that’s not a 10 year test. Does this chemistry drop off like LiPo? Does it have the same runaway hazard as other Lithium batteries? That could be a problem in real hot conditions and direct sunlight.
I’m all for testing one of these, but not with a 1 year warranty, if it was 3 or 5 I’d probably give it a go. There are situations where this would be a perfect fit and the extra cost may be worth it either way, but I don’t see any in my immediate future.
This is the sexiest Z-wave open close sensor in existence, I have two, they just work, no faffing around, they are hidden, no strange device handlers, everyone should get one.
