Product: Third Reality Color Smart Bulb (3RCB01057Z / ZL1)
Firmware: 1.00.74 (multiple bulbs, same issue)
Coordinator: Zigbee2MQTT 2.6.3 with Ember adapter (SONOFF ZBDongle-E)

Issue Summary

Third Reality ZL1 bulbs accumulate hidden TouchLink group bindings that are not visible in Zigbee2MQTT and cannot be cleared through normal unbind operations. These bindings cause:

Group commands ignored - Bulb doesn’t respond to Zigbee group OFF commands
State bounce-back - Bulb turns OFF briefly, then immediately turns back ON
Message flooding - Single commands generate 4-40x duplicate MQTT state messages
Cross-talk - Turning one bulb ON causes other bulbs to turn ON

Technical Details

When attempting to unbind from default_bind_group, we discovered bulbs were bound to dozens of hidden groups (IDs 900-920+). These bindings are stored in bulb firmware but are invisible to the Zigbee coordinator.

Diagnosis command:
mosquitto_pub -t “zigbee2mqtt/bridge/request/device/unbind” \
-m ‘{“from”: “BULB_NAME”, “to”: “default_bind_group”}’

Error reveals: bound to unknown Group 901, 902, etc.

Evidence of hidden bindings:

Create temp group, then unbind succeeds (proving binding existed)

mosquitto_pub -t “zigbee2mqtt/bridge/request/group/add” \
-m ‘{“id”: 901, “friendly_name”: “TempGroup901”}’
mosquitto_pub -t “zigbee2mqtt/bridge/request/device/unbind” \
-m ‘{“from”: “BULB_NAME”, “to”: “TempGroup901”}’

Response: “status”:“ok”, clusters: genOnOff, genLevelCtrl, lightingColorCtrl

We found 6+ hidden group bindings per bulb across groups 900-920. Even after unbinding all discovered groups, some bulbs continued misbehaving.

Workaround

The only reliable fix is factory reset via power cycling (on/off 5-6 times rapidly until bulb flashes). This clears all firmware-level bindings. The bulb must then be re-paired and re-added to groups. This works for a few weeks, then the TouchLink Groups comeback and message flood.

Questions for Third Reality

Why do these bulbs accumulate so many hidden TouchLink bindings?
Is there a firmware command to clear all group bindings without factory reset?
Can future firmware updates prevent TouchLink binding accumulation?
Is there a way to disable TouchLink functionality entirely via Zigbee command?

Environment

18+ Third Reality ZL1 bulbs
Zigbee2MQTT 2.6.3
SONOFF ZBDongle-E (Ember/EZSP)
Channel 25
All bulbs on firmware 1.00.74