I bought a boat-load of ge dimmers when radio shack started giving them away.
So far, I have only installed the single dimmer switches, which worked great. I’ve used them all up, and am now trying to use one of the 3 way dimmers I bought as a standard single pole dimmer, but cant get it to work.
here’s what i have in the wall and switch
Wall:
Black wire (2)
Bare ground wire
Switch
Blue wire(line)
Black wire (load)
White wire (neutral)
Yellow wire (traveller)
Green wire (ground)
I tried blue and black to the 2 hot black wires in the wall with green to ground and capping yellow and white, but no dice.
I googles, and everyone says a 3 way dimmer should work as a single pole dimmer, what am i doing wrong?? I’m not an electrician, and am afraid of burning then house down, anybody know how this is supposed to work?
Connect the “white” neutral wire to the ground wire, that is how the Zwave radio is powered.
(will technically work, but you are in theory not supposed to draw power through a ground wire, but you don’t have a neutral, so no choice)
Also, check your 2 black wires with a meter, one will be “120VAC”, connect that to the black wire on the switch, Its likely ther other wire is the “load” which should be connected to the blue wire (which is the “load”, if you check the back of the switch). Insulate the yellow wire, it won’t be used.
Yes, the box ground, and the ground to the switch should be connected. The reason it works its because when you connected the “white” (Neutral) from the switch to the ground wire, you “powered up” the Zwave radio in the GE switch… You are drawing a small amount of current through your ground, but the only way to be “code compliant” would be to run another wire to the box, with a proper “neutral” in it. Since the Zwave radio + LED take very little power, you can technically get away with it. Just don’t ask an electrical inspector to “approve” it
