I set up my wyze climate sensor yesterday. I put a sensor inside the kitchen freezer and inside a freezer I have in the garage. They seem to communicate with the hub just fine.
The only wish for improvement is that notifications could occur at a lower temperature. Currently notifications can be sent if the temperature rises above 32°F, but I can’t set a lower notification temperature.
The sensor seems to register my freezer temperature correctly at -1°F (-18°C ) just fine, which below what’s listed on the specifications. The specs mention detection and operation temperature lower limit is 0°C (32°F).
Since I’m using the sensor at a temperature below its specified operating temperature I wonder if it will affect its long-term longevity or if the cold will affect its battery life?
Just an update. I had put the climate sensors inside two freezers. Both of the sensors gave low battery warnings after 8 days in the freezer. When I put the sensors back to room temperature, the low battery warning resolved, I think that although the sensors work fine in the freezer, the cold temperature affects the battery’s ability to release energy and triggers the low battery warning.
I haven’t been using the sensors in my freezer because both sensors kept giving low battery warnings, and there isn’t a way to turn off the push notification warning unless I disabled push notifications for all the other alerts as well. The low battery warnings would pop up multiple times each hour and were distracting. I think if there is a way to disable push notifications specifically for low battery warnings, while keeping notifications for other alerts, I would try leaving the sensor in the freezer to see how long the battery lasts. I’m think the low battery warning occurs because the cold temperature slows down the chemical reaction of the battery and drops its voltage, but perhaps the overall battery life would be OK? After I took the sensors out of the freezer due to the low battery warning, they have been running at room temperature without any low battery warnings. For me, if having the sensor in freezer reduces the battery life from 1 year to 3 months for example, , the extra cost of a battery replacement every 3 months may be worth it. Using 4 batteries a year would be about $5, and would be worth it to prevent loosing the contents of my freezer.
Wyze support - could you perhaps add an option to disable low battery warnings?
I am also testing cold temps with the sensors in northern Minnesota currently. I placed three sensors in my pole shed and inside the camper (in the shed) to monitor humidity levels.
My test case if the batteries do not like the cold is to take a double AA battery holder (with fuse) with the black/red leads and solder it to the connectors inside of the 2032 coin cell battery compartment and see what happens. This will 100% void the warranty, but may allow the sensor to function longer when it gets real cold.
They need a wired probe option. A wired temp probe could plug in to the sensor, like a small headphone jack, a thin wire would connect to the sensing element at the other end. I have an oven thermometer alarm that works this way. The element inside the freezer, the Wyze sensor outside. A thin, flat wire would not interfere with the gasket seal if the gaskets are in good shape. I have used such an wired sensor probe successfully in freezers and ovens. Another option is drill a small hole through the freezer door, insert the probe wire, seal the wire in with silicone. Other options may apply, but it starts with having a wired remote element that plugs in to the climate sensor.
It’s hot here in Texas, I have a climate sensor in the attic. Although the temperature during the day is above the high rating, everything seems to work fine. Until the temperature gets to 128 degrees, then the Android app thinks the temperature is-127 degrees, obviously a simple bug in the app. Has anyone else seen this?