Generally, SimpliSafe smart locks work without trouble, but occasionally you get an error or a problem such as a device not responding. In that case, SimpliSafe smart lock troubleshooting is necessary to continue using the product.
What is a SimpliSafe smart lock?
A SimpliSafe smart lock is a wireless, battery-powered electronic security device. The product replaces the existing deadbolt with a smart lock. It gives an opportunity to open the door with a push of a single button on the keypad or in the smartphone application.
SimpliSafe smart locks protect the residence from burglars and other intruders, drastically increasing the security level. The smart lock is intended to work with the SimpliSafe home security system, which is a basic, reliable safety hub for regular users.
Why is SimpliSafe smart lock so popular?
The device uses a simple DIY system to set the security up. SimpliSafe locks can be installed and used even by a common user without specific knowledge or training. You don’t have to call a professional locksmith, just install the lock yourself. Following the instruction in the SimpliSafe app is recommended. The process barely takes an hour. After it’s complete, you can start using the lock right away.
On top of that, the pricing isn’t very high. SimpliSafe products are generally considered to be affordable for middle-class citizens. So the buyer gets protection from burglars and other safety hazards while also avoiding overspending money on a good security system.
Convenient features
SimpliSafe smart lock can automatically lock or unlock your door if you forget. It uses a timer to apply this feature or you can set it to close the door immediately after the arming of the security system and vice versa. Remote access is also possible. Create access pin codes for your guests and get notifications when someone enters the house.
If anyone enters the entrance code wrong more than four times, you are notified. SimpliSafe locks the door for half an hour if there are more than fourteen failed attempts to get inside. A monitoring plan allows SimpliSafe to alert you and call the police in case of a break-in.
Other features include:
- Heat sensors for fire detection.
- Glass breakage alert.
- “Panic” buttons for immediate police calls.
- Freeze sensors in case the pipes leak.
Reset SimpliSafe Smart Lock
Let’s go over the steps you have to perform while resetting the smart lock and the base station:
- Remove the base station power cord from the energy outlet.
- Flip the base station upside down.
- Pry the batteries compartment of a base station open.
- Remove the power cells from the insides.
- Wait a couple of seconds.
- Replace the batteries.
- Close the energy compartment.
- Put the energy cable back into the power outlet.
How to perform the calibration?
To calibrate SimpliSafe smart lock, read the following instruction:
- Turn the SimpliSafe smart lock on.
- Check if the battery life is high enough.
- Place the keypad next to the lock itself.
- Find the “Menu” option on the keypad. Enter the master pin.
- Go to “Devices”, select your smart lock name, and press “Recalibrate”.
- You’ll receive a prompt to shut the door. Manually move the deadbolt to be locked and press “Done”.
- Wait until the door lock revolves exactly thrice.
- Wait for the prompt to check the door. If the entrance is unlocked, select “Yes”.
- Leave the menu via the “Ok” button. The lock has been calibrated successfully.
SimpliSafe Smart lock doesn’t respond
The most common complaint is that the lock stopped responding to any user commands. That means there are troubles with the devices serious enough for them to stop working. Many malfunctions may cause it, here’s a list of them.
Installation went wrong
The crucial stuff has been programmed in the base station, but the other part of the attachment wasn’t complete fully. To fix this, delete sensors from the SimpliSafe smart lock using a keypad first.
- Press the “Menu” keypad button.
- Put the master pin in.
- Select “Devices” and pick the door lock name with the right rocker.
- Go to the end of the list and use the “Remove” option via the right arrow or rocker.
- Push the “Off” button.
Now you’ll be able to reinstall the device.
Batteries have died
If there’s no energy left in the device, it stops working and can’t answer your commands anymore. This causes SimpliSafe smart lock not responding the problem.
Usually, the trouble becomes obvious when the “low battery” warning appears on a keypad. It’s a sure sign that you must replace or recharge the drained cells as soon as possible, like this:
- Slide the sensor up the wall and hold the release holder at its edge.
- Remove the sensor from its place.
- Replace the batteries in the sensor.
- Put the sensor back on the wall.
If the base station doesn’t get any energy, it uses a backup SimpliSafe smart lock battery that works for exactly a day. After the backup power runs out, the SimpliSafe smart lock stops responding.
The base station was placed too far
One of the reasons that SimpliSafe smart lock malfunctions is that it’s too far from the base station or something is blocking the signal. Communication between two devices, a smart lock, and a base station, is impossible when the signal can’t be transferred successfully between them. That makes the base station communication status “off”.
You can check if the communication has been set properly:
- Go to the SimpliSafe keypad menu and enter the master pin code.
- Choose “Test Mode” with the right rocker or arrow.
- Wait for a notification that the device enters the test mode.
- Press the button at the top of the mechanism.
Everything is alright if the base station shows the sensor information. But if you don’t see anything, the communication hasn’t been established in the first place. Therefore you need to change the location of the base station for the lock to start responding.
Software is outdated
Sometimes you’ve updated the base station’s software but forgot to update the SimpliSafe keypad software. That causes the lock to stop functioning because the two devices become incompatible until both of them are up to the latest version.
How do you ensure that’s the case?
- Turn on the Wi-Fi network so the devices can detect it.
- Press the “Menu” keypad button.
- Look for “System Settings” in the drop-down menu.
- Choose “Wi-Fi”, find your net’s name, and select it.
- Put the password in if requested.
- Wait for a message that the Wi-Fi is connected.
- The available updates should be displayed now. If there are any, install them.
SimpliSafe lock can’t reach the Wi-Fi net
Ensure that the Wi-Fi network runs on a 2.4 GHz signal frequency exactly and not at 5 GHz. SimpliSafe systems only work with 2.4 GHz networks. That’s because they penetrate the walls and floors better than their 5 GHz counterparts.
If the name of your Wi-Fi net (SSID) has been changed lately, put the password in the keypad again. Make sure that the network name is seen, else you should change it in the Wi-Fi router system settings. Otherwise, the keypad won’t detect the Wi-Fi network.
Power cycle the base station and try reconnecting after. If nothing else helps, reset the router – perhaps the problem isn’t with the security device but affects the Wi-Fi router instead.
The last step of this SimpliSafe smart lock troubleshooting is moving the base station closer to the router. Ensure that nothing blocks the signal between the two devices, including walls and floors.
The keypad and the base station can’t connect
Bring the keypad and the base station next to each other. It doesn’t matter whether you take the keypad off the wall or if you unplug the base station. Attempt arming the system via the keypad. Can they work like this? If yes, then the problem is that they have been installed too far apart or something doesn’t let them reach out. Replace one of the devices to fix that.
If it didn’t help, the trouble comes from two devices being unpaired. Read the next paragraph to find the solution.
SimpliSafe smart lock didn’t pair
So your device doesn’t pair. First, make sure that your smartphone with the SimpliSafe application installed is connected to the same SimpliSafe Wi-Fi network as the keypad and the base station. Check it with an app such as a Wi-Fi analyzer or iNet.
The devices you wish to pair have to be within a few feet of each other. Their being too far might be the issue.
SimpliSafe smart lock won’t calibrate
There are two SimpliSafe smart lock troubleshooting tips for this case.
Ensure that the software on both the base station and the keypad is up to date. If there are any updates available, install them as soon as possible. There’s been an instruction on how to do both in this article.
If there are no updates, try restarting the security devices. Once again, you can find the instruction above.
Batteries drain faster than they should
It’s very inconvenient when you have the smart lock for a long time, change the batteries once in a few months, but suddenly the battery is significantly less powered than you’re used to. So you must replace the pack more frequently for seemingly no reason. What could’ve gone wrong?
The contacts in the SimpliSafe smart lock battery compartment are damaged or have some dirt on them. Pry the device open and check if that’s the case. Carefully clean the contacts.
Try unplugging and then plugging the keypad back. It won’t hurt in any case but fixes most of the unexpected programming or mechanical malfunctions that aren’t tied to a specific reason.
Reconsider the usage habits. Lower the volume or brightness of the display. Turn off unnecessary smartphone notifications: they drain a lot of energy compared to a silent alarm.
To avoid inconveniences that come with a short battery life, purchase an external energy cell pack. It’ll be an emergency power source for when you’re away but the smart lock’s original batteries have died.
SimpliSafe smart lock jammed
It’s scary – not being able to get into the residence because the lock has jammed. This trouble requires a quick solution. But like always with SimpliSafe smart lock troubleshooting, there could be a few possible reasons for the malfunction and you must cross all of them out.
One of the causes might be miscalibration. Try to recalibrate the device – that’ll force the smart lock to refresh its system and assume the correct deadbolt locked position.
An internal mechanical reason could be at play. Perhaps the manual knob doesn’t function properly. Try to fix this yourself or call a professional.
If nothing helps, don’t be ashamed to call SimpliSafe customer service. They will give you additional troubleshooting instructions, send a locksmith or give you a brand-new device in the most desperate cases.
Why does the SimpliSafe smart lock blink?
A SimpliSafe smart lock emits a blinking signal for more than half a minute only if there is a problem that requires immediate fixing.
Start with checking the battery life. A slow, steady blinking can be a sign of an energy cell being drained and close to death. Replace the batteries unless they are more than 25% full.
Next, you should ensure Wi-Fi stability. Is your device connected to the Wi-Fi network or was the connection lost? If the answer is “yes”, reconnect the SimpliSafe smart lock with the Wi-Fi net. Check if other devices in the house interfere with the signal. Don’t rush if the problem still persists – a system can take a few minutes to update the Wi-Fi connection status.
Another issue is uninstalled updates. Check all the possible updates: of the smartphone application, smart lock keypad, and base station software. Get the devices to the most recent version. Refresh the app connection via your cellphone.
If nothing helps, perform a factory reset. Bring the smart lock back to the manufacturer’s settings. You can use the instruction back at the article’s beginning.
Smart lock strange behavior
There could be many ways the door lock malfunctions, but some problems can be described as strange behavior or the SimpliSafe smart lock not working as intended. There are several causes for this trouble-giving issue.
One of them is that you touch the “Lock” button with your finger instead of properly pressing it. Or there is dirt or dust under the button and it doesn’t respond to the push properly.
Wi-Fi disconnection happened or your smartphone is turned off. You can check if this is the case in the smart lock keypad settings, under the “Wi-Fi” option.
Of course, the battery life ending can cause various problems including this one. Check how much energy there is left in the batteries. Replace the energy cells if required – it’s easy to do and will pay off in the long run. Never let your power resource die off, which can permanently damage a SimpliSafe smart lock, causing the odd behavior of a SimpliSafe smart lock.
Green (and only green!) blinking can be a signal that the door isn’t actually closed. There’ll also be some beeping. Push the door handle until you’re sure the deadbolt is completely latched.
An update broke my SimpliSafe smart lock
Sometimes trouble starts only after you’ve installed a program update.
The first thing to do in this case is to make sure the base station and keypad software versions are synchronized. Perhaps you’ve forgotten to install an update on one of the devices.
Another thing you can do is to ensure the Wi-FI connection, as always. The lock, the base station, and the router should all be tied to the same Wi-Fi router network. Check that via the “Settings” menu on the smartphone SimpliSafe application. Select “Devices & Sensors”, then “Add Device”. Or you can look into the device’s Wi-Fi settings tab.
Bluetooth must be turned on. Ensuring that is different for various smartphone OS:
- For Android – Settings, Connected Devices, Security & Location.
- For iOS – Settings, General, Bluetooth.
In the last tab, whichever it is depending on the iOS your cellphone uses, the “Bluetooth” option must be on. If it isn’t, enable it.
Try restarting the tablet or the smartphone with the SimpliSafe app installed. Hold the power button for around ten seconds and release it. Sometimes you need to remove the case first if it doesn’t let you press the buttons properly. Then restart the smart lock itself. Perhaps you’ll have to do this twice before the SimpliSafe smart lock starts working properly again.
Can I open the SimpliSafe smart lock if the battery is dead?
SimpliSafe smart locks attach to a deadbolt. They don’t replace the door mechanism completely. Therefore it’s possible to unlock the home entrance with your old physical key at any moment.
This comes in handy when the batteries suddenly died before you could replace them. Even if the smart lock doesn’t have the energy anymore to operate, you can still enter or leave the house. You don’t get yourself locked out.
Even so, it’s not recommended to wait until the power cells drain completely. Pay attention to the device’s notifications that warn the owner about the battery life coming to an end. Replace the batteries in time, when they are around one-fourth of their resource, to prolong the smart lock’s life and ensure a comfortable user experience for yourself.
Outside help with Simplisafe smart lock troubleshooting
Sometimes your own knowledge can’t help with fixing the problem at hand, especially if you’re not an experienced smart lock user. There is nothing to be ashamed of. Don’t be scared to get outside help with your engineering trouble.
SimpliSafe smart lock user manual & guide
The official SimpliSafe user manual can help you with setting the smart lock up. There you’ll find detailed instructions on the fitting process performance.
Also, in the guide, you’ll find answers to many questions regarding the ways the device works as well as some advanced troubleshooting tips. It may give a hint about your next step.
SimpliSafe support department
When nothing helps you fix the problem, don’t be disappointed in the product. You can call SimpliSafe support and ask for a solution.
The help center will give you specific troubleshooting instructions, repair tips, and in some cases send a locksmith. In desperate cases, they’ll give you a brand new smart lock device to replace the malfunctioning one with.
Final word
Smart locks are complex devices. You rarely can detect one specific reason for a mechanical or programming issue you’re experiencing.
This text went over troubleshooting tips, instructions on SimpliSafe smart lock installation, calibration, pairing and resetting, and troubleshooting plans as well as a quick review of the SimpliSafe smart lock. I’ve also covered the reasons for different common types of malfunctions.
As complete as the guide may be, sometimes it’s still not enough to fix the problem. After attempting to repair the smart lock yourself, don’t be shy to call the manufacturer’s support department for professional help. You can rely on their support department and professional locksmiths.
When you get rid of the existing troubles, you’ll be left with a great user experience because SimpliSafe locks really are great for home security systems.