Hi all… Apologies for the newbie question but I’ve looked everywhere and can’t seem to find exactly what I need.
I’m looking for a device which will allow me to tell if my outside security lights come on i.e. when mains voltage present on the live wire or not.
I have a similar question on the same theme… I have electric gates which have an output voltage (believe this is 12v) to indicate when the gates are left open (designed to wire in a ‘warning’ light). I would like to be able to see these in smart things to show status.
Ironically where I need these I have great WiFi coverage but Zigbee and Zwave currently out of range (although I can fit repeaters).
I’m based in UK. Any advice welcome!
Sure, you just need a device that has a radio that communicates with smartthings and has “dry contacts.“ (That’s what they are called in the US, I’m not sure if there’s a different term in the UK.) Dry contacts are dry because they don’t contribute to the current on their own. So they’re very useful for adding inline to an existing current branch and then having something happen when current comes through that line. There are even some devices designed specifically for that, but more often it’s a contact sensor or a tilt sensor that can also do this.
You will need to get a device specifically for Europe/UK, because of the voltage differences, and of course regional frequencies if it’s a Z wave device, but you will still have quite a few choices. 
See the following FAQ,
FAQ: List of devices with dry contact input from external sources
As far as the specific use case with the outside security lights, you might also be able to just use a battery powered lux sensor limited to the time between sunset and sunrise and then alert when the lux level went up. so just another option.
Thanks for the reply. I always assumed dry contacts were just, in effect, a switch to provide continuity (not have mains voltage running through them.
I did consider the lux sensor option also but my neighbours have a very bright light which might give me some problems.
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