Storage heaters smart switches

Hello,

I am looking for a way to remote control the storage heaters in my house. They are connected to a switch in the wall, and I do not mind to remote control the power level but just the on/off.
So what I am basically looking for is a smart switch that I can substitute to the one attached to the wall (13A should be enough but I am not sure). Any suggestion for a good and cheap product?

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@JDRoberts, could you help here? Which switch/relay is rated above 13A? I cannot remember but does Fibaro or Qubino has a 16A one?

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Need your country. Regulations are different in each!

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I am in the UK

@kecco182
As you point out storage heaters are typically hard wired in to a wall plate which has a fused switch in the wall. They are not normally plugged in via a standard power socket.

From a purely technical point of view it would be possible to disable temporarily the electricity to that circuit, replace the special wall plate with a standard plug wall plate and then use a Zigbee or Z-Wave smart socket to control the power to the storage heater.

However not only might you need a qualified electrician to sign off this alteration from a safety point of view but as @7andy points out there maybe special regulations governing how a storage heater is supposed to be connected meaning this approach might not be allowed.

Therefore the first step would be to consult an electrician or storage heater supplier for advice.

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My son is all electric with storage heaters and this the way he’s gone with Homeseer. Works fine for him, not sure he’d got a qualified electrician in tho’…

@kecco182 did you get any further with this? I’m going along the same path but am struggling to find non-socket relays rated at 13A or above.

@7andy do you know what relay your son used with Homeseer? I had a quick look at their site and it all seems to be lighting / relatively low-power.

No I am sorry. Changing the socket is probably against the rules of the house renting. I was thinking to build up an external automatic switcher with 3D printed pieces and Arduino, I will let you know.

I don’t know of any all-in-one switches for the specification. But the Aeotec heavy duty in-line relay should work fine and is available on both the UK and US Z wave frequencies.

It’s expensive for a reason: higher load switches need more safety features and better quality materials. I doubt if you could make one yourself that would meet local fire safety codes.

You can put the Aeotec in a junction box inside the wall (It doesn’t have to be right at the switchbox as long as it’s on the same circuit branch) or on the wall.

image

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I want to make an automatic button presser, such as the SwitchBot:

I tried to buy one but is not strong enough for the UK wall switch, so I want to create a more suitable one. It should not be dangerous in any way.

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What’s the force requirement in kilograms?

How to Determine Force Required to Push a Door or Button or Lever

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I did not check that yet, I am quite busy at work. I will let you know as soon as I do it.

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