Frequently Asked Questions About the ZSE44 Temp | Humidity XS Sensor
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INSTALLATION INQUIRIES
Can the ZSE44 be installed outdoors?
- Yes BUT make sure to keep it away from direct rain and sun. Mount the sensor on your covered porch or under an eve.
How do I mount the ZSE44 sensor?
- Add the ZSE44 Mounting Bracket to your cart to use for outdoor installations.
Can I use the ZSE44 to monitor fridge / freezer temperatures?
- No. The ZSE44 is meant for monitoring the air temp and humidity of rooms inside or directly outside your home (under a covered porch or eve) where the temperatures would typically only be on the extreme ends of the sensor's operating temp for a short period of time, compared to being in a smaller, enclosed area where the temperature is always cold and humidity constant, and where Z-Wave signal can also be blocked due to any thick glass or metal elements.
What is the operating temperature of the ZSE44?
- 40° – 90° F
What are the dimensions of the ZSE44? How big is the device?
- 2.2” x 1.3” x 0.2”
What is the wireless range of the sensor?
- Z-Wave devices work best in a mesh network, so even though the sensor has a range of up to 300 feet line of sight, this means 300 feet with other Z-Wave signal repeating devices between where the hub is and where the sensor will be installed.
- It is the hub that decides the communication route to each device. The more signal repeating (non-battery powered) devices included on your network, the stronger it is and easier it is for the hub to reach devices that are further away.
- Environments with a lot of glass or metal elements, large furniture, and thick walls can also be very disruptive to Z-Wave signals.
What is the warranty coverage for the ZSE44 sensor?
- Zooz 500 series devices are covered by a 12 month warranty. Zooz 700 and 800 series devices are covered by a standard 1-year warranty and by an extended 5-year warranty if registered within 30 days of purchase. Please register your device here and review the full warranty policy here.
Where can I find the ZSE44 device manual?
PRODUCT FUNCTIONALITY INQUIRIES
What kind of battery does the ZSE44 use / need?
- The ZSE44 sensor is powered by a single CR2450 battery.
- We recommend using Energizer, Panasonic, or Maxell brand batteries which are confirmed to work well in the sensors.
- Our technicians have confirmed that at this point, Duracells are not providing power to the XS sensors due to the extra bitter coating on these batteries. You can try wiping the battery with alcohol to remove the bitter coating, allowing it to dry fully, then inserting the battery.
What is the battery life of the ZSE44?
- You should get around 12-14 months out of the ZSE44 XS sensor with normal use.
Can I use rechargeable batteries?
- We don't recommend it. Rechargeable batteries usually decrease in max voltage with time, so you may see a shorter battery life if using these. The Z-Wave chip manufacturer also requires all Z-Wave devices to report low battery at 2.6V and many rechargeable batteries are not full 3V when charged so it may seem like the battery is empty even at full charge.
What voltages should the battery report for 100% and when there is a low battery alert?
- 3.2V - 3V is a full battery (100%) and the Z-Wave chip manufacturer requires all Z-Wave devices to report low battery at 2.6V.
How do I get the most battery life out of my ZSE44 sensor?
- We recommend pairing Z-Wave devices to your hub without security (if your hub lets you choose during inclusion). S2 security adds an additional layer of information to communicate with your hub which can drain the battery quicker than you'd like, in rare cases.
- The battery is also likely to drain quicker if the sensor's settings are programmed to report changes to the temperature and humidity frequently.
Why is the battery level fluctuating so much? / Why was the battery drained a lot during set-up?
- This sensor runs on a coin battery with smaller capacity than the lithium CR batteries used in other sensors, so you may see the battery readings fluctuate from low to higher readings when the sensor is awake during programming and testing. The battery will usually go back to its stable reading within a few hours so always allow a day or two after you see the first lower reading before checking on the actual battery life left for your device.
I replaced the battery in my sensor and now it's not powering on or responding at all.
- Check the battery brand. Our technicians have confirmed that at this point, Duracells are not providing power to the XS sensors due to the extra bitter coating on these batteries. You can try wiping the battery with alcohol to remove the bitter coating, allowing it to dry fully, then inserting the battery. Otherwise, our technicians have confirmed that Energizer, Panasonic, and Maxell brands work in the sensors; would you be able to give one of those brands a try?
What is the standby power for the sensor?
Unfortunately, the min/max is not a concrete value we can provide here. It is dependent on distance to the hub, number of repeaters/hops, report type, chip settings, power transmission, etc. This is why the battery life on the sensors is an estimate. 3.2V is a full battery, and anything below 2.5 will register as a dead battery on the sensor, as the Z-Wave chip requires at least 2.6V.
Here is a link with the specs for the chip, which show the current draw depending on frequency and other factors : https://www.silabs.com/documents/public/data-sheets/zgm230s-datasheet.pdf
What type of humidity sensing element is used in the ZSE44? Is it capacitive or resistive?
- The ZSE44 uses a SHTC3 digital humidity and temperature sensor. The sensor covers a humidity measurement range of 0 to 100% RH and temperature measurements range of -40 C to 125 C with a typical accuracy of +/- 2%RH and +/- 0.2 C.
What is the reporting temperature range for this device?
- The sensor should be able to detect temperatures up to 120-135 F, but the specification of the Z-Wave chip requires environments of no more than 104 F. This is why we list the operating temperature at 104 F.
- The same applies for all Z-Wave sensors we know of since they shouldn't be installed in environments that often exceed 104 F.
What is the difference between the reporting and operating temperatures for the ZSE44?
- Reporting = the values the sensor can detect and report to your Z-Wave hub.
- Operating = the temperatures the sensor can continue functioning in.
What is the smallest change in temperature that the unit can detect and then report?
- The smallest interval the sensor can report a change for is one degree. You can adjust the threshold of the sensor's reporting via the advanced settings.
Will the ZSE44 act as a signal repeater for other Z-Wave devices in my network?
- No. Battery powered devices will not act repeaters. Your Z-Wave hub decides which devices to use to reach other Z-Wave devices. Any non-battery powered Z-Wave device will act as a signal repeater; it would be up to your hub whether or not it will be used in a communication route.
Z-WAVE INQUIRIES
Do I need a Z-Wave hub to buy this device?
- Yes. The ZSE44 sensor is a Z-Wave device which would need a Z-Wave hub in order to receive temperature and humidity reports and customize advanced settings.
- To control or monitor any of our Z-Wave devices remotely through your smart phone, you'll need a compatible Z-Wave hub. These devices require a central controller that communicates with them and sends commands. Once you have a controller, you would download that controller's dedicated app on your phone and control your connected devices through that app.
Is the ZSE44 sensor compatible with my hub?
- You can find a list of compatible hubs for a given device under the Works With section on the product's page. Here is the list of hubs compatible with the ZSE44.
Will this sensor work with my alarm panel?
- Alarm panels like Alarm.com will typically only support single switches, door locks, select thermostats, and any authorized items on their list. We would recommend reaching out to your alarm panel company to verify compatibility and to get the latest on any device integrations they may be working on.
- To our best knowledge, most alarm panels don't support binary sensors so the ZSE44 won't display correctly in their interface. There is nothing about the Temp | Humidity Sensor that we could change to improve compatibility with alarm panels, since this is a limitation of the hub and how it supports binary sensors. It would be up to your alarm panel to integrate the device, as it follows Z-Wave protocol and has been Z-Wave certified. There is nothing we can change on our end to have the device be recognized correctly. Read more about alarm panel compatibility here.
Where do I find all of my sensor's advanced settings?
How do I add the sensor to my Z-Wave hub?
- SmartThings Installation articles
- Hubitat Installation articles
- Home Assistant Installation articles
- Z-Wave System Installation articles
How can I tell what firmware my ZSE44 is running on?
- The firmware that your sensor is shipped with should be printed on the back of the device where the model specifications are. If your hub supports and properly integrates the device, you should also see the firmware listed in your Z-Wave interface.
- Firmware that is listed as 1.01 (or any other value with a 0 in the middle) in the sensor's change log may display as 1.1 in your hub.
How do I update the firmware of my ZSE44 sensor?
- Some Z-Wave hubs have a built-in firmware updater that you can use. Otherwise, we recommend using the PC Controller tool on the Simplicity Studio Software as described here. You will need to register your device in order to have access to Zooz firmware files.
How long does the update take? How do I know when it's finished?
- Firmware updates should usually take anywhere from 5 to 15 minutes depending on connection quality and how much information needs to actually be updated on a given device.
- If it is taking longer than that, please try to bring the hub / controller closer to the device that is being updated.
Where can I find the history of changes and firmware updates for the ZSE44?
What series Z-Wave chip does the ZSE44 use?
- The ZSE44 uses a 700 series Z-Wave chip. We are in the process of updating this model to the new 800 series Z-Wave chip so it should be 800 series by the end of 2023.
Is the ZSE44 available in other Z-Wave frequencies?
- The ZSE44 is currently available in 908.42 MHz (US, CA, MX), 921.4 MHz (AU, NZ), and 868.42 MHz (EU) frequencies.
Check out the Zooz Knowledge Base for more info about the ZSE44 sensor (and all of our devices)! If you can't find your answer there, reach out to us!
