How to fix DETA Smart Switch Rapid Fire clicking noise?

Bit of a strange way to start the morning. I was in the kitchen having a coffee when I started hearing this rapid clicking noise. Tracked it down to our DETA smart touch switch, which was flickering and rapidly firing on and off, and not responding to touch at all.

First thing I did was unplug the toaster and remove the switch plate to see what was going on behind it. There was no obvious smell, heat, or visible damage, but the behaviour was clearly not right.

After around five minutes, the right-hand button stopped flickering on its own. To check whether it was just that side or the entire unit at fault, I pressed the left-hand button. That immediately triggered the same rapid firing behaviour again, lasting for roughly the same amount of time and again completely ignoring touch input.

At this point, it feels less like a random glitch and more like something failing internally, which is obviously concerning for a mains-powered device. Posting here because I couldn't find anything about this online. Unit was installed in late 2022. Has anyone seen a DETA smart touch switch behave like this before, or does this suggest the whole unit is on its way out and needs replacing?

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MitchellMc

Hi @Remarka6le,

Please, for your own safety, do not investigate or try to fix the switch further. I’ve spoken to DETA Technical Assistance, and they’ve confirmed that the behaviour you’re seeing is almost certainly due to a failed component inside the switch. The unit will need to be replaced rather than repaired.

This work obviously needs to be carried out by a licensed electrician. To make the process quicker, it can help to pick up a replacement switch in advance and have it ready for the electrician. They can simply swap the faulty unit during one visit.

I’m really sorry for the inconvenience this has caused. Unfortunately, with mains-powered devices like this, there’s no safe way to troubleshoot it at home, so replacement is the safest and most reliable solution.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell

Remarka6le

Hey @MitchellMc ,

Appreciate you checking with DETA and confirming the cause.

I haven’t tried to repair the switch itself, but I did have a proper look into it before seeing your reply. I’m posting this mainly so there’s a clear record here in case others run into the same issue down the track. I completely understand and agree with the safety advice, and once it was clear the issue wasn’t something external, I didn’t take the investigation any further.

After removing the clear panel, it became pretty obvious the physical touch switches aren’t the problem. The LED behind the panel is flickering on its own without any contact, which is what’s triggering the rapid clicking. The issue consistently starts on the right-hand side and seems to restart roughly once an hour, though not at a fixed time. There was no dirt, residue or moisture on the front at all, so it does appear to be an internal failure rather than anything environmental. The clear panel is now back on.

I’ve already organised a replacement switch and have it ready to go, so the electrician can simply swap it out in one visit as suggested. That part is all sorted. That said, I am genuinely disappointed that this particular DETA switch didn’t last longer. It was installed in November 2022, which puts it at just over 38 months of service, a fairly short lifespan for a fixed, mains powered fitting. Electrician has already been contacted to come out and replace it today, I'll respond back here with what he says it was.

I did look into the warranty side of things, but between tracking down installation details, receipts and serial information for a single unit, it was ultimately quicker and easier to just purchase a replacement and move on. I still wanted to flag it here for visibility in case others experience the same behaviour.

Thanks again for the guidance.

Remarka6le

Update (resolved):

Quick update for anyone who finds this thread later.

I ended up getting a licensed electrician out to look at it. He pulled the DETA touch unit out straight away and confirmed the internal electronics were failing and the switch could no longer maintain stable power. Nothing to do with wiring or load issues in this case. The unit itself was on its way out.

His advice was blunt: he has seen a lot of these DETA touch and smart GPOs fail early, often in exactly this way. Rapid clicking, flickering, then eventually no response at all. He does not rate them and said they are becoming a fairly common call-out.

The DETA unit has now been removed and replaced with a standard non-DETA double power point. No smart features, no touch interface, just a normal GPO. Lesson learned. The idea is nice, but reliability matters more for something hardwired into the wall and will probably replace the other touch switches in my home within the next 1 - 2 years.

Remarka6le

Another update for anyone researching these before buying.

Two more of our DETA Touch Double Power Point with USB have now failed, both with the exact same fault and on the same side. At this point it is clearly not bad luck or a one-off batch issue. We now have multiple units across the house failing in identical fashion, which strongly points to a design or reliability problem rather than installation or wiring.

After speaking again with a licensed electrician, his view was very clear: he is seeing a growing number of failures with these DETA touch and smart units and no longer recommends them. They may look good and seem like a clever upgrade, but for something hardwired into your walls, reliability matters far more than features. When they fail, they do not degrade gracefully either. They flicker, click and then simply stop working.

We have made the decision to remove and replace every DETA touch light switch and touch power point in the house with standard quality fittings. It is an expensive lesson, especially with several installed in our kitchen alone, but far better than continuing to deal with repeated failures and the potential dangers associated with keeping them.

If you are currently considering DETA smart switches or touch power points, I would strongly suggest looking elsewhere. The idea is appealing, but based on real world experience across multiple units, the long term reliability simply is not there.

MitchellMc

Thanks for your feedback @Remarka6le.

I'm sorry to hear you’ve had multiple failures.

Just to check, have you reached out directly to DETA to discuss the faults? If the switches and power points are still within the warranty period, I'm sure they would encourage you to lodge a claim. In many cases, we’re able to arrange a refund.

I'll reach out via PM to assist further.

Mitchell

Remarka6le

@MitchellMc,

I have, and I have just answered your PM.

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