WARNING - STHM not alerting on Leaks or Smoke -

General Discussion
#1

Hi, I just wanted to warn everyone that i have found a flaw with the STHM that means it will NOT alert in the event of a water leak or fire (smoke) even thou the sensors detect the event correctly.
I have notified ST support but I dont know if they will respond.

Basically in the early hours of today one of my water detectors picked up a leak ( it was very minor condensation ) but STHM failed to respond to the settings I had selected and only sent a notification to the phone. It did not sound the sirens , use the delay response etc. as per my settings.

So this morning I decided to test the system with water and smoke ( I did check all the settings beforehand and they were all set correctly) and the same thing STHM failed to respond only issuing a notification which in fact arrived silently on the phone so no audible warning at all. Luckily I use Nest which alerted via the app and loud audible warning across all devices… But STHM was totally useless and didn’t not work. I’m using iphone XR on IOS 13.5.1 in case anyones interested.

This is the new STHM in the new app so I am quite concerned that my house isn’t as protected as I thought. So the reason for this post is to suggest that anyone using the new APP with STHM check your systems (carefully of course) as its no good relying on something that doesnt appear to be working.

Any feedback on finding would be good .

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#2

Do you have any lights triggered? Asking out of curiosity because I set off my sump pump sensor recently and it successfully turned my lights blue throughout my house. I didn’t set my siren up to trigger, though.

#3

@andrew_newton Does this affect the new apps SHM?

#4

Ironically, I had an alert this morning for my washer’s drain but I was notified and the appropriate switches were turned off and valves closed:

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I test STHM on a monthly basis, and I’ve always been notified.

#5

Hi, yes I do have it set to trigger lights and sirens but nothing happened. I think it was working about a month ago but not anymore.

#6

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I too had an alert this morning and everything happened exactly like I have it set to. I was able to dismiss before the alarm sounded, so I can’t say that would have happened, but all the lights turned on and my wife and I both received text messages.

#7

SHM is the Classic app feature. (SHM = Smart Home Monitor)

STHM is the similar, but different feature in the new V3 app. (STHM = SmartThings Home Monitor)

Confusing, but it is what it is. :thinking:

This thread is about the feature in the new V3 app.

#8

I am really interested to know which brand main water valve you are using?

#10

Totally agree this is about STHM in the new app

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#11

I’m using a Leaksmart water valve on my main line. It shuts off based upon STHM rules, as well as other automations. To relieve pressure in the water lines after its shut and prevent that remaining/trapped water from still leaking, I have a old Orbit zigbee timer valve on an outside spigot that opens at the same time. It drains all the remaining water out to the yard.

#12

@andrew_newton, do you have any notification blockers? How about other users with access to your location, did they get notifications?

#13

Sorry, I though this was about the classic app and just wanted to make sure it didn’t affect the new app… apparently it does, so that means it affects me.

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#14

Hi

I get notifications from the app and from all other apps so don’t think it’s that … I think it’s my STHM as this us not the first issue I’ve had with it .

Don’t think the migration from classic app worked … so just letting everyone know in case they have the same experience

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#15

You could try uninstalling STHM and reinstalling it. Yes, you would lose all your current settings that you have and would need to set everything up again.

#16

It doesn’t mean it will affect you. It could be isolated to a single user. As always, you should test things after setting up to ensure everything works.

#17

Yes I think an un- install and reinstall is a good idea but the point here is that if it can happen to one user it could happen to others and if you have an important alert such as a fire you want to know about it and a silent notification to a phone is not sufficient. So my post is also questioning the new STHM and it’s reliability as a home monitoring solution. Hence why I have Nest that doesn’t rely on ST. I will try the reinstall as I agree it maybe a fix and agreed a weekly or bi weekly test is a good idea.

Just wish ST would make the code more reliable and work .

#18

Everybody has their own priorities, but from my perspective smartthings just isn’t qualified as a security system. And it doesn’t have UL listing for that purpose. All its notifications require that the smartthings cloud be operational and that the hub have access to it. (UL listed security systems have to have cellular communications on a battery backup.)

I’m not saying the issue you’ve run into shouldn’t be fixed, obviously it should. I’m just saying that smartthings shouldn’t be your primary security system for anything.

And that’s not just my opinion: the company says so themselves in their product usage guidelines:

Data accuracy and consistency from SmartThings sensors, including those provided by SmartThings directly, resold by SmartThings, or supported by SmartThings, is not guaranteed. Therefore, you should not rely on that data for any use that impacts health, safety, security, property or financial interests.

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