I'm being lazy here and asking you lot rather than trying it myself! .......
Shelly says their Shelly1 relay fits in a socket box behind the switch/socket - true in the UK or not?
I'm using one already but it's not controlling a socket. I want to change the way I control two electric heaters which are currently on Tapo wifi sockets but this does not allow remote control if the internets is down. Using a Shelly1 I can have a RasPi control them via curl request on the local network and it would be nice to put the Shelly behind the socket plate if possible.
Depends how deep the back box is Shirley?
I’ve got Shellys behind most of my light switches, very few of them fit as-is with Wagos and whatnot, so I 3d printed extensions which work well.
IMO relays in the sockets are a bad idea. What if someone unplugs the heater & plugs something else in? Better IMO to wire the relay inline I.e. in between the socket & device, using a junction box. IF the relay is up-to-spec for a heater, otherwise use a contractor as well. (Kind of surprised the Tapo one is, they are somewhat crappy! How long have you been using it for!)
very few of them fit as-is with Wagos and whatnot, so I 3d printed extensions which work well.
Yeah I thought that might be the case.
What if someone unplugs the heater & plugs something else in?
Very true and I had thought of that which kinda led to this question.
Better IMO to wire the relay inline I.e. in between the socket & device, using a junction box
Yep, I think this is the way to go.... then the heaters can be anywhere.
Kind of surprised the Tapo one is, they are somewhat crappy! How long have you been using it for!
I've got a few that I've been using for about 12 months but they're not used that often TBH - at this house only on Agile Octopus plunge pricing..... the Shelly's are for another place where electric is the only form of heating so they will probs get used more.
I think I'd like to change all my wifi switches over to Shelly relays eventually as the control is much better and hopefully they're better made also.
You will need to terminate both legs of the ring circuit into the relay, then take a 4mm from the relay to the socket, as you're effectively turning that small part between Shelly and socket into a radial circuit (I'm assuming you have standard 2.5mm ring circuits). That'll take up a fair amount of whatever room you have in the backbox, which may not be much anyway.
Sounds like something external twixt socket and heater may be the way forward.
I can't help with heaters but I've got my shellys wired into the ceiling bit of the light fittings since there was more space than the switch box. They are brilliant bits of kit once you get them in which can be a faff.
