What are the Heat Guardian error/warning conditions?
In cases of errors or warnings the Heat Guardian will typically change the blinking LED color and play an alert sound.
* If the blinking LED is GREEN then everything is working perfectly, and the temperature is within your set range.
The unit has the following error conditions:
- If the temperature is too high or too low the blinking LED will be RED and an alert will sound every 30 seconds (for a few minutes) unless muted by clicking a button. Too high = greater than the set maximum temperature, and too low = lower than the set minimum temperature.
- If the temperature measurement is changing rapidly, indicating that ambient temperature is pretty far off from the measured temperature, the blinking LED will be ORANGE and an alert will sound. This is after a constantly increasing (or decreasing) temperature for about 3 minutes. Simply placing a room-temperature sensor into a warm car will cause this - don't panic but let the measurement stabilize.
- If the sensor signal is lost for 2 minutes the LED will stay RED and an alert will sound every 10 seconds until muted by clicking a button. After a bit the temperature will blank out to show it is not up to date and a counter will show how long it has been since the last packet reception.
Loss of signal for up to a minute may happen when nearby devices (such as some garage door openers or ZWave light switches) use the Heat Guardian frequency range.
Why not use WiFi
The range of Wi-Fi is at best 150 feet indoors and 300 feet outdoors. The Heat Guardian works at a range of about 2000 feet indoors and ½ mile outdoors.
Wi-Fi also uses a lot of battery power.
Why not use Cell Service
We want to be able to use the Heat Guardian everywhere, like hiking outdoors where cell service may be spotty. Cell service also costs money constantly and requires you to keep your phone on and in-hand. The Heat Guardian is a one-time purchase price. The Heat Guardian handheld unit shows the temperature and connection status constantly – no clicking.
The Heat Guardian is also a monitoring system. It sounds the alert and changes LED colors to warn you when the temperature goes out of range and when the connection is dropped. It even warns you when the temperature changes quickly. You don't have to peer at a screen.
Finally, cell service takes a lot of power. We want a small battery to provide a very long day and constantly update the temperature.
How much time does it take to adjust to ambient temperature?
Unfortunately, the Heat Guardian has to obey the laws of physics.
No temperature sensor is instantaneous. According to physics, the sensor will approach ambient temperature quickly then slowly. For the Heat Guardian, if you put a 70°F sensor into a windless 100°F car it will take about 15-20 minutes to fully adjust. It takes almost 30 minutes to be 1°F accurate.
If you see the temperature on the monitor increasing noticeably every 30 seconds there’s a problem in the vehicle/room. The Heat Guardian will warn you with an orange blinking light if the temperature measurement changes quickly - about 2 degrees per minute for 3 minutes in a row.
What can I change with the User Interface?
The Heat Guardian monitor has a user interface to let you change volume, LED brightness, display brightness, and minimum and maximum temperature.
Start by clicking the lower (menu) button. Click it again to cycle through the various settings. Once you see a setting to change, click the upper (power) button once and the display will point at the value. Use the two buttons as up/down until happy. Wait a couple of seconds and the display will reset and save the values.
If you set the monitor display to Off (to make the Heat Guardian unobtrusive or save battery) it will temporarily go back on when you click a button to enable setting parameters.
What is the battery life?
Both units have a USB-C charge connection on the right side. They take about 3 hours to fully charge from empty and the yellow charger light will stop glowing when full. The charge lasts about 40 hours on the monitor and 70 hours on the sensor, assuming a consistent connection.
Unstable connections (no bars showing) will use the battery more as the Heat Guardian searches for the sensor.
When the units are turned off they will very slowly drain the battery as they monitor the buttons. They will drain about 5% of the battery per week when turned off.
The batteries are rated at about 500 charge cycles. With daily use (charging every 4 days) that equates to about 6 years. If you use them once a month the battery should last about 40 years. Batteries are factory-replaceable.
The units require only a common 5V 1W charger. A typical USB hub can charge both at once at full speed.
Are the units waterproof?
They are NOT waterproof. A few sprinkles on the top shouldn't hurt anything but do not dunk them in water or they are likely to fail. If a unit does fall in the water, immediately turn off the power and allow it to completely dry before trying to turn the power back on.
Please contact us directly at support@snug.dog if you have other questions or concerns.
Heat Guardian is proudly made in North Carolina, USA by Audua, LLC 