Getting ready to buy some light/power switches

Other Devices & Integrations Lighting & Load Control
1

Hello Guys,

Can I get a recommendation on the best fit to my scenario?

I have no zwave lightswitches/power/or door locks yet. I plan on buying a good amount soon.
I would love to be able to use an energy tracking solution for the lightswitches to help track usage. I also
Think I will be buying a motorized lock (Yale) also.

Which lightswitches support energy usage? I would assume most power plugs do out of the box?

I am leaning towards the GE stuff, because of price and availability. I do want all of the best options
for my system though so I am open to anyone’s suggestions.

Thanks,
Jim

2

I’m not sure that you really need energy monitoring for lights. Lights generally consume the same amount each time you turn them on (ie a 100W bulb consumes 100W). Vera has an option to manually set the power that a switch consumes - so each time you turn a switch on, it shows 100W consumption. If you get a dimmer, it will scale this by the amount that the light is dimmed.

I suspect that this is just as accurate as measuring the light.

Personally, what I’ve done is to get switches that report their status when it changes (Fibaro switches do this, Duwi do not!). This allows the system to work as soon as you turn on a switch. The alternative is that Vera needs to poll the node, and it does this quite slowly so it can take a minute or two for the status to change.

Anyway - my 2p worth…

Chris

3

This.

4

This.[/quote]+1!

Actually in my opinion, I’d say +10! I replaced nearly every GE switch with Leviton.

5

Ahh perfect advice! Thanks for the info about instant on and the watt editing, both which I did not know. The fibaro is a chipset? Does anyone have a compatibility table for reporting vs polling?

Thanks again for the advice!

Jim

6

This may be of help:

http://store.homeseer.com/store/HomeSeer-Z-Wave-Wall-Switch-Matrix-W7C37.aspx

7

Fibaro is a manufacturer - they are becoming quite popular in Europe with a good range of different units (and a controller that’s probably competing with Vera). I think I read somewhere they were also available in the US, but I’m not 100% sure…

Chris

8

Some posted a response from Fibaro very recently saying they were currently gaining certification and due for release on the US start of this year.

9

They are a good product I think so when they do come out they’re worth a look. Their switches are just electronics modules, so you need to actually buy the switch to go in front of it. Personally I like this approach as I can use some reasonably nice switches - unfortunately most Z-Wave switches available (that I’ve seen anyway) tend to look and feel a bit cheap and plasticy…

Chris

10

There at CES in Las Vegas now showing their goods and I imagine it won’t be too long before you see them hit the market.