Watercop Opinions?

[Stinger]

Hopefully I haven't posted this twice (got interupted and computer went into suspend mode, and I'm retyping it now).

I'm curious how many folks out there are using Watercop and what your opinion is on it? I searched the forums, and didn't see any info on it. I looked into buying the starter kit when we built our house a few years ago, but money was tight and other things were much more important.

I just came across a great deal on the starter kits at a local home improvement store that is going out of business, and bought a few of the kits and some sensors. I'm going to hook on up and put a sensor in every location that has a sink/toilet or shower, but I was just curious if the Watercop was still the best solution out there.

I may post a follow up message in the for sale forum, as anyone interested before I list them on Ebay can have a unit for $179.00 plus shipping (starter kit with 3 sensors) and $16.00 for each additional sensor.

 

[Digger]

Does the water cop allow for intergration with an alarm panel? So if a water sensor hooked to the panel trips then a set of dry contacts on the panel could trip the watercop and shut the house down?

 

[miked]

I'll comment on something similar to WaterCop. We added a washer/dryer to a closet upstairs, and I didn't want to go through the expense of adding a drain and sloping the floor. Therefore, I put a unit similar to WaterCop onto the water outlets by the washer/dryer, and stuck the sensor under the washer. If it detects any water, the water outlets automatically shut off. It's actually a very simple design -- there are two serpentine leads that are just barely not separated. Water would cause them to short, causing valves to close. We haven't had any water leakage issues (knock on wood), but the system seems pretty foolproof to me.

WaterCop, from my understanding, extends this further, where it'll shut off all the water to your house. The only problem I see is that if you put the sensors too far away from the water inlets of the house, there's still quite a bit of water downstream "in the system" that can flow through the leak point.

 

[Mike C]

Guys, I am using the WaterCop with an HAI Omni panel.

 

[Digger]

I already have several flood sensors hooked to my M1 panel. I get instant notification to my cell phone (tested it just today). Once teh zone trips it beeps the keypads, announces the location of the flood, and sends a text message/email to my cell phone. My cell phone went off about 5 seconds after I tripped the alarm. The ethernet module works very well for this application.

Now if I had a watercop I could shut the water off that fast as well.

 

[Stinger]

So I take it from the postings, it's still the primary solution that will shut off water automatically?

Now I just need to find a plumber.

 

[Stinger]

Just an update.. The plumber finally came out to install the valve for the Watercop and it's up and running. I installed a lot more sensors than I originally planned! So far:

(1) Sensor in Utility room with Main water line and water heater
(1) Sensor under the basement bar sink cabinet, and one on the floor outside of the cabinet (hidden from sight).
(1) Under the Kitchen Sink Cabinet
(1) Under the the dishwasher
(1) under the Fridge for the water line
(1) under the downstairs bathroom sink cabinet
(1) under the downstairs bathroom toilet
(1) on the floor near the washer water line

I still have the second floor which will need another 7 sensors. Of course I got these dirt cheap, so that allowed me to go crazy.

It definitely works, my wife was getting water from the fridge line tonight and wasn't paying attention and the water overflowed and fell to the ground. The alarm for the waterhound went off, and off went the main water line!

Next step is to get it integrated with my Stargate, which will allow me to turn back on the water from anywhere in the event spills occur again!

I also should mention that Dynocorp's customer service is beyond excellent. I've had two dealings with them to date. The first was to exchange my 1/2" fitting for a 3/4" fitting. They sent me the 3/4" immediately and just asked me to return the 1/2" when I had a chance. The second was for a couple sensors that immediately alarmed when I added batteries. Very odd, and they said they hadn't seen it much, but that it could be bad soldering. They told me to send them back and they would check them out and replace or fix them. I offerred to include the receipt, but they replied that they trusted me.

I've still got 5 (1/2") left if anyone is interested (see for sale forum).

 

[Mike]

It sounds like you were able to swap out one size for another, but if that were not the case for some reason, is the 'WaterCop Ready Brass fitting' the difference? Meaning if I had 3/4 or 1" piping, would one of those ($25) be all that was required?

 

[Digger]

Mike,

I beleive you are correct. I bought a unit from Stinger but havent had the time to put it in.

We have a few at work that we are using in a test fixture (without the RF boards) to test another product. We will be putting the other product through 6000 cycles of on and off next week. The watercop will be part of the test fixture so it will also be tuned on and off as well. I am sure it will be fine since I think my company tested the watercop itself a few years ago.

Its a great product except for the pricepoint of $360 retail in my opinion (do opinions qualify under the new terms of use?). But the deal from Stinger made it worthwhile for me to buy it. If it saves me from one flood over the years it will pay for itself.

 

[Stinger]

Mike - The brass fitting is the only difference at all on the unit. I recommended those interested in the units I am selling can just buy the other fittings if they needed a 3/4" or 1" for $25-$27 off of ebay and they would still save a good deal of money.

It appears that you might not even have to do that as when I called Dynacorp, they sent me a 3/4" replacement for the 1/2" that I had for no charge and just asked that I send back the 1/2". Very good customer service!

I do agree on the pricepoint! The $359 retail price, along with $39-$59 per sensor is extremely high. I understand the pricing is probably based on the fact that avoiding one problem would shadow this cost, but it's always hard for me to spend that kind of money just to avoid a problem that may never occur! Thank goodness for the home improvement store closing near me!

I called State Farm yesterday and asked if they gave a discount for these types of units, and the agent said she knew they were in discussion about doing it, but she'd have to check to see what progress has been made. Considering this technology has been around for well over a decade, I wonder what is taking them so long!! If I get a homeowners discount on this, it'll pay for the unit in under 2 years I'm sure.