John J Posted Sunday at 08:42 PM Report Posted Sunday at 08:42 PM I have a Reiff system on my M20J (standard system). Has been working fine using a 50ft 12 gauge extension into GFCI. I recently obtained WiFi at the hangar and went for a smart plug for on/off from anywhere. So far I've tried two - Kasa Smart Plug HS103P3 and Tapo P400M. Both are rated for 15A and 1800W. For some reason preheating won't occur through them (after many hrs engine at ambient) despite the extension cord LED indicating power at engine when plugged in as usual. I'm confident both plugs were switched on the full time. I've also retested system plugged directly in with same extension which works fine. Has anyone else experienced this, and what do other people use for their smart plug? Thanks!
Ragsf15e Posted Monday at 07:47 PM Report Posted Monday at 07:47 PM 23 hours ago, John J said: I have a Reiff system on my M20J (standard system). Has been working fine using a 50ft 12 gauge extension into GFCI. I recently obtained WiFi at the hangar and went for a smart plug for on/off from anywhere. So far I've tried two - Kasa Smart Plug HS103P3 and Tapo P400M. Both are rated for 15A and 1800W. For some reason preheating won't occur through them (after many hrs engine at ambient) despite the extension cord LED indicating power at engine when plugged in as usual. I'm confident both plugs were switched on the full time. I've also retested system plugged directly in with same extension which works fine. Has anyone else experienced this, and what do other people use for their smart plug? Thanks! I’ve been using a ge cync smartplug on mine and haven’t had an issue. In fact, I have it connected to both the engine heater and a heat lamp to melt a troublesome icey spot that can block my hangar wheels. It seems to handle a significant draw just fine. You’re sure that the switch turned on? I might plug a lamp into it and switch it on and off a few times (remotely) to make sure…
John J Posted Wednesday at 02:43 PM Author Report Posted Wednesday at 02:43 PM Problem solved...it was the extension cord (50ft 12 gauge cord with LED end). Cord worked fine on its own with preheater, but would not with any smart plug in the loop. Not sure why. Switched to a basic cord with no LED end and now setup works fine. BTW in the process I upgraded to a great smart relay. It shows power consumption and has bunch of nice features. https://us.shelly.com/products/shelly-1pm-gen3 1
Rick Junkin Posted Wednesday at 03:44 PM Report Posted Wednesday at 03:44 PM 1 hour ago, John J said: Problem solved...it was the extension cord (50ft 12 gauge cord with LED end). Cord worked fine on its own with preheater, but would not with any smart plug in the loop. Not sure why. Switched to a basic cord with no LED end and now setup works fine. BTW in the process I upgraded to a great smart relay. It shows power consumption and has bunch of nice features. https://us.shelly.com/products/shelly-1pm-gen3 @John J Thanks for the Shelly point-out. I've been casually looking for a Wi-Fi switch for the inside and outside lights at my hangar (I occasionally have a senior moment and forget to turn them off) and the Shelly products look like a good fit. I need to look closer to see if these meet commercial code, and possibly go with the smaller "mini" to install behind the wall switches if the current draw is low enough. Thanks again! BTW, I use Kasa Smart Plugs for other things in the hangar with great success. I'm a little paranoid about leaving battery chargers on constantly so I use the smart plugs to turn them off from home after a suitable charging time.
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