How it works: Devices

How Safehous Works

Leaks happen.
Floods don’t have to.

How Safehous finds water problems and shuts them down. Explained in plain English.

Woman checking the Safehous Leak Controller app on her iPhone at home

Every system does three things.

Every Safehous system does the same three things, whether it protects a single family home or a 200 unit condo building. Everything else is just detail.

1

Watch the water

Sensors watch water two ways. One kind listens inside the pipe. The other kind sits on the floor and feels water that has already escaped.

2

Shut it off

When a leak is confirmed, a motorized valve on the water line turns itself off. Nobody has to be home. Nobody has to find the shutoff.

3

Tell somebody

The system sends an alert to your phone within seconds. In a condo building, it can also alert the front desk or building manager.

The hardware

Five devices.
Each with one job.

Every piece of a Safehous system, what it does, and where it lives.

Safehous FL-1000 in-pipe flow sensor
FL-1000 · In-Pipe Flow Sensor

Hears what your pipes are hiding.

A stethoscope for your water line. It sits inside the pipe and knows when water is moving. Water running at 3 AM with the house asleep is the signature of a hidden leak, and this catches it before a single drop reaches the floor.

What it doesMeasures water moving through the pipe and flags flow that should not be happening.
Why it mattersCatches leaks inside walls, under slabs, and behind cabinets.
Where it goesOn the main line, after the manual shutoff, before the plumbing branches.
Safehous WS-1000 point-of-leak sensor
WS-1000 · Point-of-Leak Sensor

The first drop never gets a second.

A small puck that sits on the floor. Two contacts underneath complete a circuit the instant water touches them, and the alert is already on its way. A rope version snakes behind appliances where a puck cannot fit.

What it doesDetects actual water on the floor and alerts immediately.
Two stylesPuck for open spots. Rope for behind the washer or under the water heater.
Where it goesUnder sinks, behind toilets, at the water heater, dishwasher, and laundry.
Safehous ASV-1000 automated shutoff valve
ASV-1000 · Automated Shutoff Valve

Off. Before it is everywhere.

Your water shutoff with a motor bolted on. When a leak is confirmed, it rotates closed in seconds, whether you are home, asleep, or on another continent. Open or close it from the app any time, with a manual override on the valve itself.

What it doesCloses the water line automatically on a confirmed leak.
You stay in controlApp control plus a physical manual override.
Where it goesDownstream of the flow sensor. Sizes from ¾ inch to 2 inch.
Safehous valve and sensor controller
Local Brain · Valve & Sensor Controller

Decides locally. In seconds.

The decision maker. It listens to every sensor, applies your rules, and sends the close command. It lives on your wall, not in the cloud, so the valve still closes even if your internet is down.

What it doesConfirms sensor alerts against your rules, then commands the valve.
Why it existsA decision this important should not depend on Wi-Fi.
Where it goesWall-mounted near the valve, plugged into a standard outlet.
Safehous IG-1000 LoRa internet gateway
IG-1000 · LoRa Internet Gateway

One box talks to the internet.
Nothing else has to.

The translator. It hears every device on the property over long-range radio and passes alerts to the Safehous platform and your phone. Your sensors never touch your Wi-Fi.

What it doesBridges every sensor and controller to the outside world.
The big benefitOne internet connection to manage instead of twenty devices on a network.
Where it goesOne central spot, on ethernet or 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi. One covers a typical home.
The Wireless Part

Meet LoRa.
The radio that won’t quit.

LoRa is short for Long Range. It is a radio signal built to do one thing well: send tiny messages very far, using almost no battery.

Think of it like a walkie talkie, not a video call. Wi-Fi is built to move huge amounts of data a short distance. LoRa is built to move a tiny amount of data a very long distance.
It goes through walls. LoRa uses a lower radio frequency than Wi-Fi, and lower frequencies pass through concrete, brick, and floors far better. That is why it works in basements and mechanical rooms.
Batteries last years, not months. A leak sensor only speaks up when something happens or when it checks in. Sending that little message costs almost no power.
Your sensors are not on your Wi-Fi. Change your router password, swap internet providers, or reset the network. The sensors do not care and do not need reconfiguring.
SIGNAL REACH Wi-Fi short range, high data LoRa long range, tiny data, low power Sensor LoRa Gateway INTERNET CLOUD Your phone

The one thing people get wrong: LoRa is not the internet. LoRa is how the devices talk to each other inside the property. The gateway is the only device that touches the internet, and it is what carries the alert out to your phone. If the internet goes down, the sensors still talk to the controller and the valve still closes. You just get the notification once the connection returns.

Interactive Demo

Break a pipe.
Watch what happens.

Pick a property type, then trigger a leak and watch exactly what the system does, second by second.

Single Family Home

One water main, one shutoff valve, sensors at every fixture that can flood. A leak anywhere means the whole house shuts off.

Kitchen Sink POL BURST LINE Bathroom POL Laundry POL Water Heater POL INSIDE WALL PINHOLE LEAK · NO WATER ON FLOOR HOUSE PLUMBING CITY WATER FLOW NEVER STOPS FL-1000 ASV-1000 CTRL Sensor · Valve · Controller GATEWAY INTERNET YOUR PHONE
What just happened
1
Second 0
A supply line under the kitchen sink lets go. Water starts pooling on the cabinet floor.
2
Second 1
Water touches the point-of-leak sensor. It sends a wireless alert over LoRa. No Wi-Fi needed.
3
Second 2
The controller receives the alert and confirms it against your rules. Decision made locally, in the house.
4
Second 5
The valve motors closed. Water to the entire house stops. The puddle stops growing right there.
5
Second 6
The gateway pushes the alert out. Your phone buzzes: leak at kitchen sink, water shut off.
1
2:00 AM
A pinhole opens in a copper line inside a bathroom wall. Water seeps into the wall cavity. Nothing reaches the floor.
2
2:00 AM
Every floor sensor stays dry. This is the leak a floor sensor can never catch. Without in-pipe sensing you find it months later, from a stain on the ceiling below.
3
2:05 AM
The FL-1000 notices water is still moving through the main line. Everyone is asleep. Normal overnight flow is zero.
4
3:00 AM
Flow has now run without stopping past your configured limit. The controller confirms a leak and closes the valve.
5
3:00 AM
Your phone gets the alert: continuous flow for 60 minutes, water shut off. The drip stops at one gallon instead of ten thousand.
Main water line
Branch line
Sensor or valve
Controller
Gateway and alerts

Multifamily / Condo

Every unit gets its own sensors, valve, and controller. A leak in one unit shuts off that unit only. Neighbors keep their water, and the front desk sees it immediately.

BUILDING RISER Unit 301 Water on FL ASV CTRL Kitchen · Bath POL NORMAL Unit 302 Water on FL FLOW NEVER STOPS ASV CTRL Kitchen · Bath POL BURST LINE IN WALL SEEPING TOWARD UNIT 202 BELOW NORMAL WATER OFF Unit 303 Water on FL ASV CTRL Kitchen · Bath POL NORMAL GATEWAY RESIDENT APP + Front desk Each unit has its own sensor, valve, and controller. One leak shuts off one unit.
What just happened
1
Second 0
A toilet supply line fails in Unit 302 while the resident is at work. Water starts spreading across the bathroom floor.
2
Second 1
The sensor behind the toilet gets wet and alerts over LoRa, straight through the concrete.
3
Second 2
Unit 302’s own controller confirms the alert. It only controls Unit 302.
4
Second 5
Unit 302’s valve closes. Units 301 and 303 keep full water pressure. No building wide shutdown, no angry neighbors.
5
Second 6
The gateway sends it out. The resident gets a phone alert and the front desk sees Unit 302 flagged on the dashboard, so somebody can respond even if the resident cannot.
1
Day 1
A pinhole opens inside a wall in Unit 302 while the owner is away for the week. Water seeps into the wall and starts tracking down toward Unit 202.
2
Day 1
Every floor sensor in the unit stays dry. This is the leak that normally shows up as a ceiling stain in the unit below, weeks later, as a six figure claim across two units.
3
Minute 5
Unit 302’s flow sensor sees water still moving. Nobody is home and nothing should be running.
4
Minute 60
Flow passes the configured limit. Unit 302’s controller closes Unit 302’s valve. Units 301 and 303 never notice.
5
Minute 60
The resident and the front desk both get the alert. Staff can enter and address it while the owner is still on vacation, and the unit below never finds out the hard way.
Building riser and unit supply
In-unit plumbing
Sensor or valve
Unit controller
Gateway and alerts
Side by Side

One system.
Two very different homes.

Single Family Home

One owner, one water main, one decision maker.
One flow sensor and one valve on the main line protect the whole house.
Floor sensors go at every fixture that can flood: kitchen, baths, laundry, water heater.
A confirmed leak shuts off the whole house. That is fine, because it is your house.
Alerts go to the homeowner. Add family members or a property manager if the home sits empty.
One gateway covers a typical home, including detached garages in most cases.

Multifamily / Condo

Many owners, shared walls, shared liability.
Each unit gets its own sensor, valve, and controller so shutoff stays inside that unit.
Floor sensors go under sinks, behind toilets, and at in-unit laundry and water heaters.
A leak in one unit never shuts off a neighbor. This is the whole point in a stacked building.
Alerts go to the resident and to building staff, so an empty unit still gets a response.
Gateways go in mechanical rooms or corridors. LoRa reaches through concrete floors, so a building needs far fewer than you would expect.
Common Questions

Questions, answered.

The in-pipe flow sensor watches water inside the pipe, so it catches hidden leaks in walls and under floors before water ever appears. The point-of-leak sensor sits on the floor and catches water that has already escaped, like a burst supply line under a sink. You want both, because they catch completely different failures.
No. Sensors talk over LoRa radio, not Wi-Fi. Only the gateway needs an internet connection, by ethernet cable or 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi. That is one connection to manage instead of a dozen.
Protection keeps working. The sensors, controller, and valve all talk to each other locally, so a leak still triggers a shutoff. You just will not receive the phone notification until the connection comes back.
Floor sensors run on batteries and keep working. The valve holds whatever position it was in, so if your water was on it stays on and if it was closed it stays closed. Ask about battery backup options for the controller if outages are common in your area.
The system is tuned during setup to learn your normal water use, and rules like how long water can run before it counts as a problem are adjustable. Long showers, irrigation, and filling a tub are accounted for. You can also reopen the valve from the app in one tap.
Yes. Most installs are retrofits. A licensed plumber cuts in the flow sensor and valve at the main line, which is a short water shutoff. Floor sensors and the gateway just get placed and paired, no wiring required.
Residents manage their own unit through the app. Building staff see device status and alerts so they can respond to an emergency, and their access is scoped by the building’s own policy. The system exists to stop water damage, not to monitor what happens inside a home.
It depends on your plumbing, not on a package. The count comes from your pipe size, how many separate supply lines you have, how many fixtures you want covered, and whether you want whole property shutoff, zone shutoff, or both. We size it after looking at the property.

Ready when your water isn’t.

Tell us about your home or building and we will map out a protection plan sized to your plumbing.