I’d like to synchronize two Leviton DZ6HD-1BZ dimmer switches. I understand there are several routes by which this can be done, including meshbot automations, scenes, and device associations. My understanding is that the priority that these three should be attempted in is (in order of most reliable/quickest to least reliable/slowest):
Device association
Scenes
Meshbot Automations
However, I am unable to figure out how to do any of these. Upon trying to make device associations in the ezlogic.mios.com website, I am unable to select anything but group 1. I am not able to deduce what is useful troubleshooting information but am willing and able to provide any information that could help figure out how to do this.
The desired behavior is the following, using two DZ6HD-1BZ dimmer switches:
Press to turn on switch A → Switch B also turns on
Press to turn on switch B → Switch A also turns on
And vice versa for turning the dimmer switches off.
Thank you in advance for the help - I am a novice in the home automation world and would like to learn. Could someone help point me to a guide that can help or provide steps?
The Leviton DW6HD-1BZ dimmer is a discontinued Wifi Dimmer, not a Z-wave dimmer, only Z-wave dimmers support Device association to my knowledge, can you confirm what dimmer we are talking about?
The best option would be to create different MeshBots for each action, in this way they can work more stable and you will have more control over each sequence of MeshBots.
To do so, create a new Local MeshBot, pick a trigger device (Switch A), and set its Switch value to true (which means ON):
Remember that you can also configure the MeshBot to notify you when it is activated.
Now, you can do the same for the rest of the MeshBots using Switch B as a trigger and Switch A as the actor. Also, change the values when you want the switches to turn off by selecting false value instead of true.
Direct Association is definitely the best option but is fairly new in the Ezlo Controllers.
I looked at the documenation and Group 1 is the correct Association group for this dimmer. So on each switch you need to add a Group 1 association to the other switch. then they will work as you described.
And in the rules action I control the two real lights that I want to synchronize and set their dim level to that of the current level of the “master” virtual dimmer device.
Note a value of 0.42 is 42%. Don’t know why MSR uses that scale but it does.
So by using the virtual “master” dimmer device I can set the dim level of two real lights. And also using the ON or OFF button on the virtual dimmer device would turn ON or OFF the two real lights.
I’d be interested to know how to do the same in Meshbot’s ? As the expression code language is different to that of MSR and I don’t think they have a “changes” logic operator either ?
So don’t think I could currently replicate my MSR rule in Meshbots.
Unless they have some other different way to achieve this ?
EDIT: For the expression you need to add “return” first.
However you can’t seem to do much with the expression? Can’t seem to use it in a Meshbot trigger or action.
EDIT 2: These are not fully auto generated expressions. It just adds the “item” you selected. You have to then add code around the item like this, its now returning the current value of the virtual dimmer device.
A test was set up by creating a Meshbot in the way you described. The logic works out, but it seems evident that the Ezlo doesn’t quickly recognize the changed status of a switch. I have it set up so when switch A turns on, B turns on, and when A turns off B turns off. When I turn A on physically, B turned on and off with it once but is now not synchronized. However, if I turn switch A off or on within the Vera controller app, switch B follows suit. I have noticed, as well, that when the switches aren’t synchronized, their status also isn’t updating in the Vera app when the switch is toggled.
I will now try the device associations route as mentioned by shallowearth.
I gave this method a shot - here is a screenshot showing two dimmers associated with each other as well as a shot of what was in the menu when setting up one of the associations. Note I am unable to change the “Source Group” and “Source Channel” selections in the drop down menus.
This works and not gets stuck into a loop because after first “turn on” actions, subsequent actions won’t trigger because the Switch is already in the “on” state.
Second is with Device Associations:
In the device associations menu, when you select a device it shows possible groups to create the association. So if you see there only 1 group, it means your device supports only 1 group.
And in order to send a “on/off” command to another device, your group should support “BASIC_SET” command. Your Leviton switches do NOT support this command sending via associations. Here is the link for your switches.
(This is zwave sniffer export, so you can see association is done and one node sends BASIC_SET command to other node directly.)
Another way would be writing Lua script to turn on the other switch and even setting a dimmer level to it.
If you like we can work on it as an example as well.
Mean while we are working on a new feature on the actions part of the meshbot to set an expression at runtime to get the value of the device and then you will be able to set it as a value for the other switch. Then you wont have to know extensive Lua code. So stay tuned for that part.
Thank you for your comprehensive reply - it has helped narrow down issues. I think a valuable resource would be some way to know what switches/dimmers are capable of what, as I was purchasing these specifically to do this action while building my house during which time I was unable to dedicate the 10+ hours I’d normally be able to dedicate to this type of decision due to the aforementioned home-building. However, that is a separate topic.
Do you know what specific words in a specifications sheet I should look for to be able to identify dimmers with this functionality?
The meshbot method works when the lights are controlled through the web app/phone app, but not when using the switch itself. It appears that the Ezlo Plus isn’t up to date on the status of switches. Is there an expected multi-minute delay or is this an issue to troubleshoot?
EDIT: It looks like this right here is the important text:
I never would have imagined manufacturers to produce dimmers without this functionality, as it seems integral to the concept of home automation.
Actually it is quite rare to find Switches that actually support direct association correctly. The Eaton RF line supports it, as does the HomeSeer branded switches. I also believe the Aetec Labs, and Fibaro micro switches do it, but I really do not like those so am hesitant to recommend. In Europe I believe the Zooz brand is the most common for supporting direct association. I am less sure about other brands, it is less common that you think. Also note the Group number is defined by the manufacture and not necessarily indicative of the capabilities.
Hi @JeTFiN , as I stated in the post, you can look for BASIC_SET command in the spec sheets association section from the manufacturer.
And for the meshbot seciton problem we can get help from the customer support to further dig into the logs, since it should work fine. @SaraV can u help here pls.
We’ve been tasked with digging around a bit more to see what’s the issue and why your Meshbots aren’t working after the first time the trigger condition is met.
We might need you to help us to gather data of what happens when you manually operate each device. Provided the switch is able to send a “node info frame” when it is manually controlled so the hub can poll it, the Meshbot should work. We’d like to find out what’s received when you manually operate the switches.
Please send us a PM with your controller’s serial number and allow us to create support credentials to test further and replicate the issue.
