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Water Detection Cable

Reliable Leak Detection for Sensitive Areas

The Didactum water detection cable is a comprehensive sensor cable for early detection of water leaks in server rooms, data centers, and other critical company facilities. The cable is flexibly installed along floor edges, under raised floors, around server cabinets, or near water pipes and HVAC systems, providing seamless coverage of the entire monitored area.

As soon as the cable comes into contact with moisture, the electrical resistance between the two conductors inside the cable decreases. This change in resistance is registered and immediately triggers an alarm—via email, SMS, or SNMP trap, depending on the configuration of the connected Didactum Monitoring System.

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Important Note: The water detection cable is a pure sensor cable without its own evaluation electronics. It is not functional without the separately available Connector for Water Detection Cable (Didactum, Art. No. DI14007). The connector evaluates the change in resistance in the cable and forwards the alarm to the monitoring system. Please order the connector separately if not already available.

How the Water Detection Cable Detects Leaks

The cable operates on a simple but reliable resistance principle.

The water detection cable has two continuous conductors. As long as no water or other conductive liquid connects the two conductors, the connected connector reports the "Normal" status. When liquid comes into contact with the cable, the resistance between the conductors becomes measurably lower—the connector detects this change within seconds and reports the "Alarm" status to the monitoring system.

The cable detects not only pure water, but also contaminated or distilled water as well as acids, alkalis, alcohols, and other electrically conductive liquids—making it suitable for use in humid, dirty, and demanding environments.

Cable Installation

To ensure the water detection cable functions reliably, several important points must be observed during installation.

  • Lay cable straight: The cable must not touch itself and should be laid as straight as possible.
  • Do not kink or crush: Excessive twisting or compression can deform the cable. The two sensor wires inside must not touch each other.
  • Consider the substrate: The cable may only be installed on smooth, non-conductive surfaces—not on rough or conductive substrates such as metal grids.
  • Shortening possible: The cable can be shortened if necessary. The open ends must be insulated so they do not touch each other. The cable must not be laid in loops.

Depending on requirements, the cable can be laid in different patterns: for full-area protection of a room, along the edge area to protect against ingressing or leaking water, or selectively at particularly vulnerable points such as air conditioning units or pipelines.

Testing Cable and Connector

The function can be easily and non-destructively checked after installation.

Lightly moisten a cloth and touch both conductors of the water detection cable simultaneously. The contact simulates a leak, causing the connector to switch to alarm status. After carefully drying the cable with a dry cloth, the sensor automatically returns to normal status.

An alarm is typically triggered within about 15 seconds. How quickly the status returns to "Normal" after removing the moisture depends on how fast the cable dries completely.

Technical Specifications at a Glance

Diameter6.5 mm
Weight36 g/m
Max. Cable Length100 m
Operating Humidity0–95 %

The cable has a 2-conductor output and is designed for continuous use in humid and demanding environments. The maximum storage temperature is 75 °C.

Application Areas of the Water Detection Cable

The versatility of the water detection cable is evident in numerous application areas where early leak detection is business-critical.

  • Data Centers & Server Rooms: Installation along raised floors and around server cabinets for immediate detection of even the smallest amounts of water
  • Technical Rooms: Flood protection around pumps, heating systems, and cooling units by laying along walls
  • Archives & Storage Rooms: Protection of valuable documents, files, or art objects from irreparable water damage
  • Production Areas, Laboratories & Warehouses: Protection of areas with water-carrying systems
  • Pipelines & HVAC Systems: Early detection of leaks at pipe bursts or leaking air conditioning systems
  • Large & Complex Facilities: Connection of multiple water detection cables to a continuous detection circuit for seamless monitoring

Flexible Lengths and Scaling

The water detection cable is available in various lengths and can be flexibly adapted to the respective room structure.

Shorter cable segments can be combined to form a longer route if needed—for example, two 3-m and 15-m segments together make 18 meters. For particularly large or complex facilities, multiple water detection cables can also be connected to form a continuous detection circuit, allowing the entire perimeter of a room or building section to be monitored seamlessly.

If more sensor or connector connections are needed than the monitoring unit directly provides, the number of available analog connections can be additionally increased with a Didactum sensor expansion unit (8x analog, CAN-Bus).

Individually Configurable: Cable Length

The water detection cable can be cut to size to match the area to be monitored directly during the ordering process.

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Please Note: The desired cable length must be actively selected above the shopping cart button under "Select Length". The standard length is 3 meters and is already selected as the default option.

Select Length

3 m

Ideal for selective protection, e.g., directly under a single server cabinet or at an air conditioning unit.

6 m

For smaller rooms or edge monitoring of a single rack area.

10 m

Covers medium-sized room areas or multiple adjacent hazard points.

15 m

Suitable for enclosing medium-sized server rooms or technical areas.

25 m

For larger rooms or combined monitoring of multiple rack rows.

50 m

For comprehensive protection of large server rooms or raised floors.

100 m

Maximum single length for very large or extensive data center areas.

Shorter segments can be combined to form a longer route or connected to a continuous detection circuit if needed—details can be found in the "Flexible Lengths and Scaling" section above.

Why the Water Detection Cable is the Right Choice

Comprehensive Detection

Seamless monitoring of entire rooms, edge areas, or individual hazard points.

Early Warning

Detects even the smallest amounts of moisture and reports the alarm in real time.

Versatile Use

Detects water, acids, alkalis, alcohols, and other conductive liquids.

Flexible Installation

Individually adaptable along floor edges, raised floors, or pipelines.

Expandable & Combinable

Multiple lengths and cables can be connected to form a continuous detection circuit.

Simple Function Test

Can be checked at any time with a moist cloth, without any additional tools.

Robust for Continuous Use

Designed for operating humidity of 0–95 % and demanding environments.

Made in EU

Developed and manufactured in the European Union.

What is Included in the Delivery

Please check the scope of delivery for completeness upon receipt and report any missing or damaged parts to your supplier immediately.

  • Water detection cable (selected length)1 piece

The Connector for Water Detection Cable (Art. No. DI14007), which is absolutely required for operation, is not included in the delivery and must be ordered separately.

More About Analog Sensors

Tutorial: Analog Sensors Part 2

In-depth guide on connection, configuration, and operation of analog sensors on Didactum Monitoring Systems.

Go to Tutorial →

Frequently Asked Questions

Why doesn't the water detection cable work on its own?

The water detection cable is a pure sensor cable without its own evaluation electronics. Only the separately available Connector for Water Detection Cable (DI14007) evaluates the change in resistance in the cable and reports detected water contact to the monitoring system. Without this connector, the cable is not functional.

How does the cable detect a leak?

The cable has two continuous conductors. As soon as water or another conductive liquid connects both conductors, the electrical resistance between them decreases. This change is detected by the connector and reported as an alarm to the monitoring system.

Which liquids can the cable detect?

The cable detects pure, contaminated, or distilled water as well as acids, alkalis, alcohols, and other electrically conductive liquids.

Which cable lengths are available?

The water detection cable is available in lengths of 3 m, 6 m, 10 m, 15 m, 25 m, 50 m, and 100 m. The desired length is selected above the shopping cart button via the "Select Length" dropdown field.

What should be considered when installing the cable?

The cable must not touch itself, should be laid straight, and not be kinked or crushed. It should only be placed on smooth, non-conductive surfaces—not on rough or conductive substrates such as metal grids. When shortening, the open ends must be insulated, and the cable must not be laid in loops.

Can I combine multiple cables or lengths together?

Yes, shorter segments can be connected to form a longer route—for example, a 3-m segment with a 15-m segment to make a total of 18 meters. For large or complex facilities, multiple water detection cables can also be connected to form a continuous detection circuit.

How do I test if the cable and connector are working correctly?

Lightly moisten a cloth and touch both conductors of the cable simultaneously. The connector should then switch to alarm status. After carefully drying the cable, the status automatically returns to "Normal". An alarm is typically triggered within about 15 seconds.

Questions About the Water Detection Cable?

Our support team in Germany will advise you free of charge on selection, installation, and configuration.

Datasheets
Datasheet 1

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Datasheet 1 (655.34 KB)

Didactum Water Detection Cable

Function

  • Analog sensor for large-area detection of water leaks
  • for continuous surface monitoring
  • Ideal for raised floors, server rooms, technical rooms, and along pipelines or HVAC systems
  • Detects liquids by resistance change in the sensor cable
  • Early detection of even the smallest amounts of moisture

Suitability / Technical Data

  • Suitable for use in humid, dirty, and demanding environments
  • Detectable liquids: water (pure, contaminated, distilled), acids, alkalis, alcohol, and other conductive liquids
  • Diameter: 6.5 mm
  • Weight: 36 g/m
  • Max. cable length: 100 m
  • Available lengths: 3 m, 6 m, 10 m, 15 m, 25 m, 50 m, or custom-made
  • Output: 2-wire

Environmental Conditions

  • Operating humidity: 0% to 95%
  • Max. storage temperature: 75 °C

General

  • Origin: EU
  • HS Code: 8544 42 10
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The following sensor is required for operation:

Connector for Water Leak Chain
Connector for Water Leak Chain
Real-time water leak detection and monitoring for server rooms and critical facilities. Protection, alerting, easy installation.
Product number: DI14007

Regular price: €71.00
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Suitable monitoring devices:

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Monitoring System 100T
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Product number: DI12002

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Monitoring System 300T
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Powerful monitoring system with sensor integration, real-time monitoring, alarm management, and IoT integration for industrial applications.
Product number: DI12003

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The 500T monitoring system reliably monitors temperature, humidity, energy, and access in IT, technical, and server rooms.
Product number: DI12004

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The Didactum 550T reliably monitors temperature, humidity, airflow, and access in racks, production, and building management.
Product number: DI12005

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Didactum PDU 8T
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Switchable PDU 8T with 8 C13 outlets, SNMP, sensor integration, monitoring, alarms, remote control, Green IT, CAN connection.
Product number: DI12006

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Can also be used with the following extension unit:

DIN sensor expansion unit for 8 sensors
DIN sensor expansion unit for 8 sensors
Modular DIN sensor expansion for industrial monitoring. Easy installation, high scalability, and centralized management of all sensors.
Product number: DI13002

Regular price: €240.00
Expansion unit for sensors 8x analog
Expansion unit for sensors 8x analog
The sensor port extension connects to the CAN port of your Didactum Monitoring System and provides 8 additional ports for analog sensors.
Product number: DI13000

Regular price: €240.00

Manufacturer information:

Didactum® Security GmbH

Im Mühlenfeld 4

48163 Münster
Deutschland

Fon: (+49) 250 19 71 63 54 / (+49) 171 33 11 577
Email: info@didactum-security.de

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