Smart Plugs: Never Reset Your Router Manually Again!

A smart solution for reliable home automation

Are you tired of your WiFi dropping out and constantly having to reset your router? In this video, we explore a clever fix using the Shelly Plus US Plug — a powerful smart plug that can run scripts even when your network is down!

Watch the Video

About the Shelly Plus US Plug

The Shelly Plus US Plug (Gen4) is a compact, feature-rich smart outlet available at ameriDroid.com. It supports Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and advanced scripting capabilities, power monitoring, and works seamlessly with Home Assistant and other smart home platforms.

Key features include:

• Power measurement and overheating protection
• Local control and scripting (even offline!)
• Compact design that fits standard US outlets
• Easy integration with Home Assistant, Alexa, Google Home, and more

Perfect for automating lights, appliances, or as shown in the video — keeping your router online without manual resets. Grab yours today from ameriDroid!

---

Alternative: Zigbee & Z-Wave Smart Plugs (Works Even When Internet Is Down)

Yes — this router watchdog can also be implemented in Home Assistant using non-WiFi smart plugs (Zigbee or Z-Wave).

Clarification on local control: Zigbee and Z-Wave devices communicate through their own mesh network. Even if your main router/Wi-Fi (and internet) is completely down, your Home Assistant server can still send commands to the smart plug via the Zigbee/Z-Wave coordinator as long as HA itself has power and the coordinator is directly connected to it.

However, for **this specific automation** (detecting the internet outage via ping), HA does need a working path to test connectivity — typically through the router it's monitoring. Once the outage is detected, the power cycle happens reliably via the separate Zigbee/Z-Wave mesh.

Here are great options currently available at ameriDroid:

• SONOFF Zigbee Smart Plug US (S31 Lite ZB) — Affordable and reliable Zigbee option.
• Aqara Smart Plug — Excellent Zigbee performance with power monitoring.
• Zooz 800 Series Z-Wave Long Range Smart Plug (ZEN04) — Premium Z-Wave with excellent range and energy monitoring.
• Shelly Qubino Wave Plug US — Reliable Z-Wave plug with power monitoring.

Tip for maximum reliability: Connect your Home Assistant machine directly via Ethernet to the router and use a dedicated Zigbee coordinator (e.g. Sonoff, ZBT-2) or Z-Wave stick plugged straight into the HA host.

Tentative Home Assistant Automation (YAML)

Paste this into your automations.yaml (or create via the UI). Adjust entity IDs and thresholds as needed.

alias: "Router Watchdog - Power Cycle on Internet Outage"
description: "Ping test and reboot router via smart plug"
trigger:
  - platform: time_pattern
    minutes: "/5"   # Check every 5 minutes
condition:
  - condition: template
    value_template: >
      {{ states('sensor.internet_ping') | float(0) > 1000 or states('sensor.internet_ping') == 'unavailable' }}
action:
  - service: switch.turn_off
    target:
      entity_id: switch.your_router_smart_plug   # ← Change to your plug entity
  - delay:
      seconds: 20
  - service: switch.turn_on
    target:
      entity_id: switch.your_router_smart_plug
mode: single

You'll also need a ping sensor (add the ping integration or use a command-line sensor that pings 8.8.8.8 or 1.1.1.1). This basic version can be improved with a counter to avoid false triggers during brief blips.