Do I need a monitoring panel, or will a cheap Wi-Fi sensor do?

When a Wi-Fi sensor is enough

• You want one or two temperatures.
• There is dependable Wi-Fi where the sensor sits.
• Losing what is being watched would be a nuisance, not a disaster.
• You do not mind changing batteries.

If that is you, buy the sensor. It will cost far less than a panel.

When a panel earns its price

• No Wi-Fi at the site. Milk houses, pump houses, camps and walk-ins in steel boxes are hard on Wi-Fi. A panel has its own cellular connection.
• Outages matter. A panel has a battery and tells you the power is out. A Wi-Fi sensor goes quiet with the router.
• More than temperature. Vacuum, tank level, pressure, whether a compressor or pump is running, whether a door is open.
• Many points. Eight or more sensors on one screen, drawn to match your site.
• You may want control later. The same panel can run pumps, setpoints and wash cycles. A sensor cannot.

What stays the same either way

Any alarm is only as good as its setup. Set a delay so normal swings do not trigger it, send alerts to more than one person, and test it twice a year by warming a sensor in your hand.

Not sure?

Tell us what you want watched. If a sensor from the hardware store will do the job, we will say so.