HomeKit Weekly: Eve Water Guard can potentially save thousands in home repairs

Bradley Chambers | Mar 13 2020 - 9:00 am PT

Water leaks are undoubtedly something that can really damage a home. As I mentioned a few weeks ago, we had a water leak in our kitchen that caused our hardwood floors to warp a tad. Particularly with hardwood floors, a water leak can be disastrous. HomeKit enabled water leak detectors are the perfect way to be notified immediately in the event of a water leak. This week, I am going to review the Eve Water Guard to see where it fits within a HomeKit home.

HomeKit Weekly is a series focused on smart home accessories, automation tips and tricks, and everything to do with Apple’s smart home framework.

Eve Water Guard is different than the Fibaro HomeKit Water Leak Sensor as it is required to be plugged in. Both products have their place, though. I currently use the Fibaro under my kitchen sink, but I use the Eve Water Guard to cover my washing machine. Our washing machine is right off our living room, so if it began to leak while it was running, water would be standing on hardwood floors within seconds.

Installation Process

Eve is a first-class citizen when it comes to HomeKit products. They don’t operate their cloud service. They want to get their products into the Home app, and you will manage them all from there. Installing the Water Guard took about four minutes from unboxing to setting it up in the Home app.

Once I scanned the HomeKit QR code, I plugged it into the outlet above my washing machine and draped the external cable between my dryer and washing machine. The entire length of the cable detects water so that you can place it almost anywhere.

I paired it with an Eve Energy to create an automation that will turn my washing machine off if the Eve Water Guard detects water. By cutting power to the appliance immediately, I hope I can limit the damage a water leak can do. Thanks to HomeKit, you can use any smart outlet that supports Apple’s smart home framework. One of the reasons I am using the Eve Energy model in this scenario is that I want to track how much money we are spending on washing clothes throughout the year.

Automation setup

To set up the automation I described above, go to the Automation tab in the Home app. Tap’ A Sensor Detects Something’. Find the Ever Water Guard. On the next screen, make sure Detects Leak is checked. On the next screen, find the smart outlet you want to trigger when a leak occurs. Make sure the outlet is set to be powered off, and then you are finished.

Wrap-up on Eve Water Guard Review

A lot of people will compare this product to the Fibaro HomeKit Water Leak Sensor since they both detect water leaks. There are enough differences between the two to have both of them in your home. The Eve Water Guard is great for covering a large area if you have a power outlet available (such as a laundry room). Since the cable is skinny, it can easily be hidden.

I find the Fibaro beneficial if you have a place where a power outlet isn’t available (it’s battery-powered). There is no power outlet under our kitchen sink, so the Fibaro is a great fit there.

Overall, the Eve Water Guard is an excellent addition to your HomeKit setup. I love the flexibility of being able to cover a large area while still hiding the 6.5-foot cable. It can be purchased at Amazon. Don’t forget to grab a HomeKit enabled outlet to go with it.