Have you or your friend experienced a broken water pipe, water accumulation in the kitchen or bathroom? Water is the most common cause of property damage, even if you do not live in an area prone to flooding. It can come from a variety of sources: water heater failure, pipe bursts, broken water supply lines under the sink, clogged toilets, or even split hoses connected to the washing machine. Just as smoke detectors must be installed in every bedroom and common area of your home, it is best to install water leak detectors in areas where water damage may begin to occur.
Repairing leaks before major water damage occurs can not only save a lot of money but also reduce personal property losses and unnecessary safety issues. You only need to spend a budget of tens or hundreds of dollars in advance, and you can avoid losses of tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of dollars. This is the function of the water leak sensor. There are various types of water leak sensors on the market. Do you have any doubts about how to choose a suitable water immersion sensor? This article will introduce you to some of the water leak sensors with the best feedback from users and their most suitable applications.
What is a water leak detector?
The water leak detector is a sensor that detects whether there is a water leak in the measured range. Once there is a water leak, it will immediately send an alarm to prevent the water leakage accident from causing related losses and harm. Water leak sensors are widely used in data centers, communication rooms, power stations, warehouses, archives, and other places that need to be waterproof.
The water leak detectors detect and prevent water accumulation and flooding caused by broken pipes and equipment failures. The water leak detection system consists of sensors, monitoring host, and monitoring platform. The sensor is placed in areas where leakage often occurs, such as near the faucet and under the water heater.
If the installed water leak detector system detects moisture in a location that should be dry, it will trigger a water sensor alarm and send an alarm message to the user. At the same time, control the relay installed near your water supply main, close the water valve, and cut off the water flow in time to prevent more serious damage caused by water leakage when you are not at home. Finding the problem in time and taking measures is the correct way to guarantee your house and property.
Water leak detectors are divided into contact water leak detectors and non-contact water leak detectors.
Contact water leak detectors working principle
Use the principle of liquid conduction for detection. Normally, the two-pole probe is insulated by air, when the probe is immersed in water, the sensor outputs a dry contact signal. When the water touches the sensor probe, the main control chip accurately judges the state by calculating the magnetic field changes and makes processing. The main control chip adopts the chip imported from the United States, the misjudgment rate is “0”, and it can be connected to a point probe, ordinary leaky rope, etc. It can even distinguish between pure water and tap water, and the default is to detect tap water.
Non-contact water leak detectors working principle
Use the principle of light refraction and reflection in different media cross-sections for detection. LEDs and photoelectric receivers are placed in the plastic hemisphere. When the detector is placed in the air, most of the LED photons are received by the photon receiver due to total reflection, when it is close to the surface of the hemisphere, the photoelectric receiver receives the light due to the refraction of light. The received LED photons will be reduced and the output will also change. It is suitable for deployment in general corrosive conductive liquid leakage locations.
What is the best water leak detectors?
To choose a safe and reliable water leak detectors, it must have the following functions:
Accurate measurement
Being able to accurately sense water is the most important indicator of a water leak sensor. Therefore, after you install a water leakage detector, first sprinkle a certain amount of water on the sensor according to the detection requirements to see if the sensor can work normally. Secondly, it is recommended that you choose the working principle of using alternating current to collect stagnant water, which can accurately distinguish whether flooding occurs.
With alarm function
The method of notification when a water leak is detected by the water leakage detector is also very important. It is best to choose a three-in-one device with a sound alarm, SMS notification, and platform alarm. In this way, in the event of a water leak, not only can people who support the current environment take timely measures, but also remind people who are not on-site or professionals to prepare in advance. Saving time is saving money.
With control function
For users who travel frequently and are not in the current environment, it is best to choose a water leakage detector with a control function. Link the controller with the main valve of the water pipe. Once the sensor detects the water leakage signal, the monitoring host sends a closing signal to the valve controller after receiving the signal, so as to cut off the water source in time. Keep your property safe.
Wiring installation
In order to avoid trouble, many users will buy wireless water leak sensors without installation. Compared with the wired water leak detectors, this kind of water detector has an unstable signal and often has power supply problems. If you use it at home and stay at home for a long time, then the wireless water leak detector can also meet your needs. If you are away for a long time and often monitor the situation of your home or warehouse through remote control, then for the sake of insurance, it is recommended that you choose a water leak sensor with a more stable signal and power supply.
Long using life
Water leakage monitoring is a long-term job, and the installation process is also time-consuming. Therefore, as far as possible, choose a water leak detector that has a long service life and can be reused. This will not only save you costs but also greatly save your time.
Maintenance-free
Regular inspection and maintenance of the water leak detectors are also a significant cost. The water leak detectors produced by Renke has a high degree of protection and is not affected by smoke and dust. The current working status of all equipment can be viewed through the PC platform, maintenance-free, and more convenient to use.
Best water leak detectors for your
The current water leak detectors on the market can be roughly divided into home water leak detectors and industrial water leak detectors according to different places of use. Below I will introduce you three best home water leak detectors and two best industrial water leak detectors:
Home water leak detectors:
PRICE:20.7$
The Aqara water leak detector has a diameter of 5 cm and a thickness of 1.5 cm. The shell is made of anti-UV material. It will not fade after long-term use. The hidden button design does not need to be installed. It can be placed and used as needed. It can be used in toilets, bedrooms, warehouses, computer rooms, and other scenes.
Its working principle is to make use of the conductivity of water to make two probes form a path, thereby issuing an alarm. Low power consumption, a button battery can be used for 2 years, and the battery can be replaced. It supports IP67 waterproof. When it detects that the water level reaches 0.5mm, the water leak sensor will report the danger, the linkage gateway will send out a local sound and light alarm, and the mobile App will push reminders. After the water retreats, the alarm cancellation signal is issued synchronously.
Aqara water leak detectors not only monitor the water leakage alarm but also work with the Aqara wall socket to open the solenoid valve and directly close the faucet. Being able to find and solve problems will undoubtedly greatly increase the practicability of the Aqara water leak detector. When you go out and find that there is a water leak in your home and there is nothing you can do, it will undoubtedly make you even crazier.
PRICE: 52.99$
This water leak detector is one of the best-selling models on the Amazon platform. Its exterior light is exquisite and powerful.
Real-time Alerts: Connect the gateway to WiFi, and it will instantly send emails, App notifications & alerts to your phone when water leakage occurs even you’re not at home. Water sensors and gateway are paired right out of the box. Note: Doesn’t support 5G WiFi.
Loud Alarm with Mute: If WiFi is not temporarily available, our 100dB alarm is loud enough to be heard. Press the Mute button to silence the alarm when you find the leak.
Drip and Leak Alerts: The water sensor comes with 2 groups of backwater detector probes & 1 group of front probes for pipe dripping detection. Use the App to name each sensor with its location.
Connects to Multiple Sensors: The WiFi connection gateway has a stronger and more stable signal transmission & lets you connect with multiple sensors simultaneously (10 max).
IP66 Waterproof: The completely sealed IP66 waterproof design allows for extended use in high moisture areas.
PRICE:6.1$
Place the Leak Alarm in any potential flood spot – next to bathrooms, basements, kitchens, boats, garages or etc. When the Leak Alarm detects even a small water leak, it sounds like a very loud alarm and lets you know that you have a problem that needs your immediate attention.
Automatic operation. Once its three contactors touch water, it will sound immediately with a 110dB loud alarm. No buttons, no programming, just place it where you want to check water leakage.
Requires a 9-volt alkaline battery(not included)，and normally a new battery can last for 1 year.
Use by the water heater, sink cabinet, sump pump, washing machine, radiators, and more.
Made of durable ABS Plastics. It is specially designed to float in flood circumstances.
Industrial water leak detectors:
1. RS-SJ-N01-2
PRICE: 25.7$
This industrial-grade water leakage sensor is widely used in communication base stations, hotels, restaurants, computer rooms, libraries, archives, warehouses, equipment cabinets, and other places that require water to alarm. The water leak detectors use alternating current to collect the inductance parameters of the water. Ensure that the measuring electrode remains sensitive for a long time, avoids electrode polarization, has a long life, and reliable detection. The 485 communication interface standard Mobus-RTU communication protocol is adopted, and it can be connected to the on-site configuration system or PLC. With 1 relay normally open point output, it is convenient to connect to field equipment, standard DIN35mm rail installation, easy to install.
Working principle: Use the principle of liquid conduction for detection. During normal operation, the two-pole probe is insulated by air. When the probe is immersed in water, the sensor outputs a dry contact signal. When the immersion height of the probe exceeds the setting, an alarm signal is generated.
The protection level is IP65, and a relay can be added to control the main valve of the water pipe. The measurement data can be viewed through the free cloud platform provided by our company. Multiple flood sensors can be connected under one platform, and there is no limit to the number.
2. RS-SJ-DW-N01R01-1
PRICE: 159.4$
The RS-SJ-DW-N01R01-1 positioning water leak detector is a water leak detection device designed by our company for water-free environments such as computer rooms, which is convenient for real-time detection of water leakage in the computer room and rapid determination of water leakage points. After the leaking rope detects the liquid leakage, it can immediately send out an alarm and pull on the relay. The relay can be connected to an external sound and light alarm and display the leakage position on the LCD display.
The positioning water leak detectors adopt the standard Modbus-RTU protocol and can be connected to the integrated terminal for convenient unified management. This water leak detectors can be used as an independent operating unit or connected to other integrators such as PLC for collection, programming, and networking. The device has a small footprint and uses a 128*64 high-definition display LCD module. The screen can flash when the device alarms and the alarm information can be observed in time in dark places. The relay adopts the default on-off mode that can be selected independently, which is convenient to configure different sound and light alarms.
This water leakage detectors are mainly suitable for water leakage detection in important places such as data rooms, communication base stations, warehouses, library and so on.
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