Evolve Dimmer Switch LRM-AS and LTM-5

Other Devices & Integrations Lighting & Load Control
1

Hi All,

I need a little Help. I am building a new house and the Electricians are installing the Evolve Dimmer Switch LRM-AS and LTM-5 in the upstair hall. Here is the Problem.

its (1) LRM-AS and (3) LTM-5’s … The LRM works fine, but none of the LTM’s work at all.

I dont have my network setup yet, so (no Micasa yet) do i need that to work? won’t it just work like a regular dimmer setup without smart capabilities?

2

The LTM-5 is, in reality, a wireless Z-Wave controller. It works by sending a signal to an associated Z-Wave device, like the LRM-AS. In order to create/program that association, a master Z-Wave network controller(Vera) is required. You’ll need to create a Z-Wave network, include all the switches and then create an association between the desired switches.

After the association has been made between one or more LTM-5(s) and a LRM-AS the controller is no longer required, so the switches will continue to function even if Vera is off or removed.

3

Thanks for the reply, I have been re-reading the document and found:

“Note:This module must be ?Included in the Network? only where it will be permanently installed. The proper operation of this node in the mesh network is dependent on it knowing its location with respect to other nodes. You cannot ?test bench? configure this module.”

and

“As it controls no load directly, wire the Transmitter anywhere power is available according to the diagram above and program from the Wireless Controller to operate other loads.”

I will have to setup the controller tonight, connecting to my laptop to get this working.

4

I am having difficulties paring the Evolve LRM, any help is appreciated. nothing happens at the Vera3…

I see post that say to try excluding it first, but I don’t see any information on how to do that.

on the Dimmer instruction it just say push twice to include and push twice to exclude… is that the up? down? does the light need to be on? off?

thanks

5

There’s always the manual. If the device is within Z-Wave reach of the Vera, so that Vera does not need to be moved to the device, you can use a full power exclude:
Devices → Add Device → Advanced Z-Wave Devices Add
At the bottom of the page choose the drop down for Full power → Exclude → (change timeout if you need more than 30 seconds) → Go → double tap the button on switch and observe messages at the top of the page.

It doesn’t matter if you press the up or down button on the switch. When including press the button once. It doesn’t matter if the light is on of off.

6

Thank you… that was very informative and extremely helpful. Solved all my issues… Sorry for the newbie question…

7

[quote=“Z-Waver, post:2, topic:177081”]The LTM-5 is, in reality, a wireless Z-Wave controller. It works by sending a signal to an associated Z-Wave device, like the LRM-AS. In order to create/program that association, a master Z-Wave network controller(Vera) is required. You’ll need to create a Z-Wave network, include all the switches and then create an association between the desired switches.

After the association has been made between one or more LTM-5(s) and a LRM-AS the controller is no longer required, so the switches will continue to function even if Vera is off or removed.[/quote]

it’s nice to know that LTM-5 and LRM-AS are not dependent on vera. Evolve’s pair of 3 way dimmers will cost about $90 and GE45613 is only about $50-$54. anyway, i don’t seem to find anywhere in the thread if it can control motorized windows and/or shades as described in amazon. anyone has tried this association yet?

8

It would depend on which motorized windows and/or shades you are trying to associate the LTM-5 with. But, the LTM-5 is a Z-Wave scene capable controller so, it should control almost any Z-Wave relay or dimmer class device including motorized shades.

Note: To be clear, you need a Z-Wave controller like Vera or similar to create the initial association with the LTM-5. But, that controller does not have to be present after the association has been made.

9

It would depend on which motorized windows and/or shades you are trying to associate the LTM-5 with. But, the LTM-5 is a Z-Wave scene capable controller so, it should control almost any Z-Wave relay or dimmer class device including motorized shades.

Note: To be clear, you need a Z-Wave controller like Vera or similar to create the initial association with the LTM-5. But, that controller does not have to be present after the association has been made.[/quote]

Great and thanks for your prompt input. i have vera2 for about 4 years now with UI5. i have GE and intermatic switches. i want to try other zwave switch but not leviton (due to its price). before i buy LTM-5 and LRM-AS, one more quick question if you don’t mind. do you know off hand how many devices can be associated with LTM-5?

10

As the Evolve LTM-5(Linear WT00Z-1) manual indicates, the controller supports 5 devices in each group. Four group IDs are supported for a total of 20 devices directed by the LTM-5/WT00Z-1.

Each group ID is accessed by the number of taps on the switch, so a single tap accesses group ID 1 and a triple tap accesses group ID 3. A single tap(GroupID1) can control a maximum of 5 devices. A triple tap(GroupID3) can control a maximum of 5 devices. The 5 devices in each group can be the same, different or any combination of the two.

11

[quote=“Z-Waver, post:10, topic:177081”]As the Evolve LTM-5(Linear WT00Z-1) manual indicates, the controller supports 5 devices in each group. Four group IDs are supported for a total of 20 devices directed by the LTM-5/WT00Z-1.

Each group ID is accessed by the number of taps on the switch, so a single tap accesses group ID 1 and a triple tap accesses group ID 3. A single tap(GroupID1) can control a maximum of 5 devices. A triple tap(GroupID3) can control a maximum of 5 devices. The 5 devices in each group can be the same, different or any combination of the two.[/quote]

hi, i installed, paired and associated my new LTM-5 and LRM-AS successfully. Associated LRM-AS and 2 other GE switches in Group 1 and they all worked. Created Group 2 Group 3 and assigned other lights just to test; 2 taps for group 2 and 3 taps for group 3 did not work. i have read somewhere in another thread that evolve only supports group 1. according to you and from the Linear manuals that you provided they support up to 4 groups and 5 devices in each group. just curious. any thoughts. thanks.

12

I’m unable to locate an Evolve manual. It is possible that they are using a different firmware than Linear and that it only supports 1 group. Does your manual not discuss groups?

13

Not sure if this helps, but what is in Group 2 or 3? IRC correctly, GE/Jasco switches don’t support associations (and hence their lower cost)? That is why GE 3-way switches use the actual traveler arm/wire to detect Auxiliary switch requests.

Maybe I’m wrong here?

14

CA3000 intermatic switches are much cheaper than GE and they support association. i bought them 6-pack from ebay for $99-so it’s like $17 each. my GE/Jasco dimmers flicker every once in a while. LTM-5 has more features; it can be used to open/close window shades/blinds according to the description - it is a controller and does not carry a load

15

Understood, but my point stands, current GE/Jasco switches don’t support associations according to all available documentation on the Internet (plus I own several GE switches). So if you are trying to test using them in your Groups they simply will not work. Hopefully I’m not misunderstanding your testing scenario.

-TC

16

[quote=“TC1, post:15, topic:177081”]Understood, but my point stands, current GE/Jasco switches don’t support associations according to all available documentation on the Internet (plus I own several GE switches). So if you are trying to test using them in your Groups they simply will not work. Hopefully I’m not misunderstanding your testing scenario.

-TC[/quote]
i understand. GE/Jasco will not associate to any zwave switch if you use them as the primary source of association (I tried that already). i used CA3000 intermatic switch as the primary source and associated two GE 45609 and they work fine until now. so when i take my dog out to the backyard, all i have to do is turn on the CA3000 intermatic switch and the 2 GE 45609 will simultaneously turn on their respective lights (porch light and swimming pool light) Just this afternoon. i used LTM-5 as my main source and associated GE 45612 dimmer (kitchen) and LRM-AS (also dimmer) in the dining room in Group 1. They all worked.

17

@TC1 - Most, if not all, GE/Jasco devices do not support associations. This means that A GE/Jasco switch cannot be used to control other devices via association. However, any Z-Wave device can be controlled by another device that does support associations.

Think of it in terms of devices that support associations are controllers. They can control other devices. GE/Jasco devices are not controllers, but they can be controlled.

18

Thanks, that explains it. Wasn’t quite seeing it, but yes, it’s clear now.

19

i tried to send you the scanned manual but the file is too large (pdf or jpeg). but the manual mentioned about 4 groups without any further details. it just says "the LED of LTM-5 will flicker when transmitting commands to any of its 4 groups. check this out: http://www.evolvecontrols.com/. http://www.evolvecontrols.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/specs/LTM-5_3-Way%20Switch.pdf

20

I’ve seen the Evolve spec sheets that you linked to, but they aren’t helpful in this case.

Observe the section on association groups in page 2 of the Linear manual. If your Evolve manual has had this section removed, it may be that Evolve has removed multi-group association support from the switch. It sounds like this is the case. If so, you’re stuck with a single GroupID 1.