CES 2018 – Guardian by Elexa

Near the end of the last day of CES, we stumbled into the Guardian kiosk in the Z-Wave pavilion. Having seen quite a few leak detection/water control devices over the previous week I wasn’t holding out much hope. As it turns out, what they have to offer is a really neat approach to solving this problem.

Unlike the other water shut off devices, the $399 Guardian is easy to install. You place it over the valve and tighten the clamps. It learns the necessary amount of torque when you close it manually as part of the setup process. The water sensors use a proprietary version of the LoRA protocol which they claim will reach 1000’. The device itself currently communicates via Wi-Fi, but there is a Z-Wave bridge ($100) planned so it will integrate with home automation controllers (HAC) supporting that radio. Also planned, is a fully documented (HUZZAH!) API via IP and RS-232; which depending on your geekdom and/or tolerance for writing code could make the Z-Wave bridge redundant.