As the name implies, Shelly Wi-Fi devices are designed to connect directly to your Wi-Fi network (unlike Z-Wave or Zigbee, they do not require a dedicated hub to work). For the most part, this works really well. However, as I am sure we have all experienced, sometimes setting up Wi-Fi devices can be tricky.
In this blog, we are going to take a look at how to connect Shelly devices to your Wi-Fi network – and possibly more importantly, what to do if things don’t go as planned!
Let’s start with the (hopefully) easy part…
Installing the correct Shelly app
We will focus on using the Shelly Smart Control app – although this newer app is still in “beta” phase at the time of writing this blog, it will become the main Shelly app shortly (the older Shelly Cloud app will be discontinued). After downloading the correct Shelly app, you will need to create a Shelly account…
Creating a Shelly account
Now that we have the correct Shelly app loaded – let’s create a Shelly account (skip this section if you already have a Shelly account)…
1. Open the Shelly app.
2. Select “Create new account”.
3. Enter your details and “Sign Up”.
4. Sign in to your Shelly account.
5. Select “Request confirmation code”.
6. Check your email and enter the confirmation code – then click “Confirm email”.
Be sure to check your spam / junk folder for the confirmation email. Now let’s add our first Shelly device…
Connecting Shelly devices to your Wi-Fi network
Follow the instructions below to add a Shelly device to your Shelly app and account…
1. Open the Shelly app.
2. Select “Add Device” or the blue + icon on the lower right corner.
3. Select “+ Add a New Device”.
4. Select “Add via Wi-Fi” and then “Next”.
5. Find and select your Shelly device and then “Next”.
6. Enter your Wi-Fi SSID and Password. Select “Save password” then “+ Add device”.
7. Your phone will ask to join the Shelly device Wi-Fi hotspot – Select “Join”.
8. Your phone should now connect to the Shelly hotspot temporarily and upload your Wi-Fi credentials to the Shelly device.
9. Give your Shelly device a name and upload or choose an exisiting image, then select “Next”.
10. Create a new room or add your Shelly device to an existing room – then select “Save”.
11. Your Shelly device should now be added – initially it may indicate “Pending connection”.
12. After your Shelly device has finished registering to your Shelly account… the process is complete.
If all has gone well, you should now have your first Shelly device setup and working. If things did not go so well, please see the Shelly Wi-Fi troubleshooting section further down below. A quick note regarding step 6 above – if you have previously added a Shelly device (or for adding additional devices), you should be able to skip this step as your Wi-Fi credentials will already be saved in the Shelly app.
Now for some housekeeping…
How to update Shelly firmware
This is optional – but highly recommended. I cannot count the times I have seen issues with Shelly devices that are easily fixed by simply installing the latest firmware. Let’s get it done…
1. Open the Shelly app.
2. Select the “Home” icon.
3. Select “All devices”.
4. Select your Shelly device.
5. Select the “Settings” icon.
6. Select “Firmware version”.
7. If a new firmware version is available, select “Update”.
8. Select the “Update” button.
9. Your Shelly device will go offline whilst being updated – after the update, it will come back online.
How to change your Shelly device name
This is optional – but highly recommended if you are planning to use your Shelly device with a 3rd party control system such as Home Assistant. We are going to change the Shelly device embedded name…Â This is different to the name you have given the device in the Shelly app.
Why would we do this? Simply so that when your Shelly device is added to Home Assistant (or another controller compatible with Shelly, such as Homey Pro), the name of the Shelly device makes sense when it is added (i.e Bedroom Light) – otherwise your Shelly device is going to be imported with a name similar to “ShellyPlus1PM-B48A0A213E78” – very messy! Here’s how we do it…
1. Open the Shelly app.
2. Select the “Home” icon.
3. Select “All devices”.
4. Select your Shelly device.
5. Select the “Settings” icon.
6. Select “Device name”.
7. Enter your desired device name.
8. Select the “Save” button.
9. Done.
Setting a static IP address for your Shelly devices
This is optional – but highly recommended if you are planning to use your Shelly device with a 3rd party control system such as Home Assistant (or another controller compatible with Shelly, such as Homey Pro). It is a good idea to set a “static IP address” for your Shelly modules. This means that the IP address that is currently assigned to your Shelly module will be fixed and will not change – or get “lost” if your router reboots or their is a power outage – your Shelly device will always have the same IP address.
1. Open the Shelly app.
2. Select the “Home” icon.
3. Select “All devices”.
4. Select your Shelly device.
5. Select the “Network” icon.
6. Select “Wi-Fi 1”.
7. Tick the “Set static IP address” box.
8. Select the “Save” button.
9. Select the “Confirm” button. Done.
It should be noted that you can also set a fixed IP address in your router (which is also recommended), however this is beyond the scope of this blog – a quick search in Google will get you on the right path (“how to reserve an IP address in <router make / model>”).
Shelly Wi-Fi troubleshooting
Over 90% of the issues we see with Shelly devices are network related… incorrect Wi-Fi passwords, Shelly devices trying to connect to 5GHz (Shelly only works with 2.4GHz) and all of the other lovely network issues that are the love/hate Wi-Fi relationship. Below, we are going to try and cover the most common issues and how to (hopefully) fix them. As always, if you get stuck, we are here to help (provided you purchased your Shelly devices from SmartHome of course). Let’s jump in…
Shelly won't connect to Wi-Fi
There may be a number of reasons your Shelly device is not connecting to your Wi-Fi network – Here are some tips that will hopefully fix the issue…
Shelly devices will only connect to a 2.4GHz Wi-Fi network (not 5GHz). Try temporarily turning off your 5GHz Wi-Fi band in your wireless router or separating out your 2.4GHz and 5GHz networks with different SSIDs - then be sure to connect your Shelly device to the 2.4GHz SSID (Wi-Fi network name). Each router / modem is different, please search Google for instructions for your particular equipment.
This one probably goes without saying... but we will anyway! Make sure your phone is connected to the same Wi-Fi network to which you are trying to connect your Shelly device.
We have seen this so many times! Please make sure that your SSID and in particular, your Wi-Fi password are correct when adding your Shelly device. If you get it wrong (or suspect you have), try factory resetting your Shelly device (see below) and adding it again - this time with the correct SSID (Wi-Fi) password.
If for any reason your Shelly device did not connect successfully to your Wi-Fi network - or your Shelly device is not providing an SSID hotspot to connect to... try factory resetting your device (see below).
As a last resort - and provided your Shelly device is still broadcasting its Wi-Fi hotspot (if not, try factory resetting your device - see below)... Connect your laptop or computer directly to your Shelly device Wi-Fi hotspot. Then in a web browser, type... 192.168.33.1 into the address bar. This should then allow you to access the settings of your Shelly device so you can manually add your local Wi-Fi credentials.
How to factory reset Shelly devices
There are three main ways to factory reset most Shelly devices…
Most Shelly devices provide a "Reset Button" that you can hold down for 10 seconds to factory reset the device.
(1) Disconnect the power from the Shelly by turning off a breaker or other means.
(2) Restore power.
(3) Within the first minute, toggle a switch connected to the "SW" input on the Shelly 5 times on/off (10 total) or press and release momentary button 5 times.
This method to factory reset your Shelly device will likely be the least helpful as it requires the Shelly module to already be connected to your Shelly account and app. However, there are some instances where this method may be helpful...
In the Shelly app, select your device and access its settings - then select the "Factory reset" tab. Now select the "Factory reset" button.
Shelly device will not connect to the Shelly Cloud
One last common issue we see with Shelly devices is the lack of “Cloud” access and control from outside your local Wi-Fi network. In other words, you can control your Shelly device when your phone is on the same local Wi-Fi network, but not when you are away from home. To fix this issue, we need to make sure the “Cloud” access is activated for your Shelly device. There are two ways we can do this…
Activating Shelly "Cloud" access from the app
The easiest way to turn on “Cloud” access is via the Shelly app…
1. Open the Shelly app.
2. Select the “Home” icon.
3. Select “All devices”.
4. Select your Shelly device.
5. Select the “Network” icon.
6. Select “Cloud” and toggle the “Enable” switch.
We have had feedback from customers that the above method does not always work – we can also try this method…
Activating Shelly "Cloud" access from a web browser
This method usually works well for activating Cloud access…
Enter the IP address of your Shelly device into a web browser address bar (see Setting a static IP address for your Shelly devices above to find the IP address of your Shelly device).
Click on “Settings” then “Cloud”.
Make sure the “Enable Cloud” checkbox is selected.
Click the “Save settings” button.
