G-tools smart box

A Wi-Fi timer with four sockets for your grow cabinet or tent. Two sockets are permanently live, two are switched on a schedule through the app. There are manual buttons on the unit as well.

Two of the four never switch, and that is the thinking

With an ordinary smart plug you can turn anything on and off. That sounds like more freedom and in a grow setup it is actually a risk, because some of your equipment does not belong on a timer at all.

Your extraction is the clearest example. It has to keep running, including through the dark period: without air exchange the temperature climbs, the humidity sits there, and those are precisely the hours in which mould problems start. The same goes for an oscillating fan and for a dehumidifier. Put them on the same channel as your lamp by accident and they drop out along with the light, and you find out when something has already gone wrong.

This unit settles that in the hardware. Two sockets carry permanent power and cannot be switched, not even accidentally from the app. That is where anything that must stay on goes. The other two are the switched pair: one is meant for your lamp, the other for something like the pump of an irrigation system, and you programme them independently of each other.

If your internet goes down, it still works

There are two buttons on the unit, one per switched socket. They turn the lamp and the pump on or off by hand. That is more than a convenience: if your Wi-Fi or your provider has a fault you keep control of your light rather than waiting for the connection to come back.

Watch one thing when installing. The unit works on 2,4 GHz Wi-Fi, not 5 GHz. Most routers broadcast both, but if your network has 2,4 GHz switched off or on a separate name, you need to put your phone on that band while pairing.

Check the current before you plug things in

Four sockets on one unit makes it tempting to fill all of them. There is a limit: 10 A or 2200 W per channel, and 15 A or 3500 W for the unit as a whole. Add up what you are connecting before you start, because the total limit is lower than four times the per-channel one.

See the Smart Box

Technical Specifications:

• Type: Wi-Fi timer with four sockets
• Brand: G-Tools
• Model: 1130.1136S
• Sockets: 2 x permanently live, 2 x switched on a schedule
• Control: through the app, and by hand with two buttons on the unit
• Wi-Fi: 2,4 GHz
• Voltage: maximum 250 V, 50 Hz
• Load per channel: 10 A, 2200 W
• Total load: 15 A, 3500 W
• Protection class: IP20, so for dry indoor use only
• Dimensions: 22 x 12 x 8 cm
• Weight: 2 kg
• Note: no mains plug is fitted, you fit one yourself or have one fitted

Frequently asked questions

Does it come with a plug?
No. The unit is supplied without a mains plug. Expect to fit a suitable one yourself, rated for the 15 A the unit can draw.

What do I connect to the two permanent sockets?
Anything that has to keep running: extraction, circulation fan, dehumidifier. Those sockets cannot be switched off by accident.

Does it work without internet?
For switching by hand it does, using the two buttons on the unit. Programming and remote control go through the app and need a connection.

My Wi-Fi is 5 GHz, is that a problem?
The unit needs 2,4 GHz. Make sure that band is enabled and pair your phone on it while setting up.

Can it go in a damp room?
No. IP20 means no protection against moisture. Mount it somewhere dry and clear of splashing water.