Shallow Decora-style rocker switch
- Thread starter Ira
- Start date
pete_c
Guru
Here the original kitchen lighting had many 2-3 way switches. Initially I went to increasing the number of switches per box (UPB) to decreasing the switches footprints by using UPB dual load / multipaddle switches.
All of the HV boxes where in drywall except for one which was mounted on the kitchen center island which wife used all of the time. The whole house used rigid metal conduit. The inside part of the cabinet electrical box connectivity use bx cable. Wife stored a bunch in the area and I never really liked the way it looked or wired and just accepted it. It was similarly wired to the under the sink garbage disposal unit.
Kitchen did have a configuration with two floor to ceiling pantries with one being a wooden cabinet attached to the wall adjacent to the refrigerator. I did at one time consider putting a touchscreen on the side of the wooden cabinet and decided not to mess with the nice woodwork. I did mount an LCD under one of the cabinets and the assembly bracket to support the mount was flush with the wooden cabinet which did look nice.
Curiosity question: Is the current load switch far from the source of lighting? Can you use a dual load switch closer to the source of lighting?
All of the HV boxes where in drywall except for one which was mounted on the kitchen center island which wife used all of the time. The whole house used rigid metal conduit. The inside part of the cabinet electrical box connectivity use bx cable. Wife stored a bunch in the area and I never really liked the way it looked or wired and just accepted it. It was similarly wired to the under the sink garbage disposal unit.
Kitchen did have a configuration with two floor to ceiling pantries with one being a wooden cabinet attached to the wall adjacent to the refrigerator. I did at one time consider putting a touchscreen on the side of the wooden cabinet and decided not to mess with the nice woodwork. I did mount an LCD under one of the cabinets and the assembly bracket to support the mount was flush with the wooden cabinet which did look nice.
Curiosity question: Is the current load switch far from the source of lighting? Can you use a dual load switch closer to the source of lighting?
Neurorad
Senior Member
China may have your solution. Scnulber may be a ripoff of Schneider, so this may exist in Schneider's lineup as well.
You could re-purpose a surface-mount REX, or panic button.
This one ('Prima') is from Schneider, in Egypt and Poland, but might be elsewhere also
http://www.schneider-electric.com.eg/en/product-range/1280-prima/?parent-category-id=5600
You could re-purpose a surface-mount REX, or panic button.
This one ('Prima') is from Schneider, in Egypt and Poland, but might be elsewhere also
http://www.schneider-electric.com.eg/en/product-range/1280-prima/?parent-category-id=5600
All of the European style switches previously mentioned (that I could find info on) require an electrical box, i.e., cutting a hole in the cabinet. It's also very hard to find info on them or where they can be purchased.
I ordered one of the Skylink wireless switches to see what they look like in real life. Turns out the wireless switch/transmitter is the same depth as a standard Decora switch and switch plate. When mounted to the wall, there's no additional depth to the switch/transmitter, so from that perspective, it's exactly what I'm looking for.
I took it apart to see if it could be altered to be a simple dry contact switch. The "on/off switching" looks like it is being done by magnets. There's a small metal object that I assume is a magnet in the rocker that is directly over something (can't tell what it is) on the circuit board underneath the rocker. No physical contact is made between these two objects. When I push on the rocker to get it to change positions (press lightly on the top half), the transmitter's LED blinks (which I think means it is sending a signal). Whenever the top half of the rocker "moves away" from the circuit board (e.g., when pressing on the bottom half of the rocker), it blinks again. The important thing is that when pressing on the bottom half very slowly and controlling the rocker motion, it starts blinking very soon after the rocker starts moving, well before it gets to the bottom-half-in position. So it seems like the only motion that matters occurs at the top of the rocker, with regard to on/off switching.
There's actually two "press-types" for the switch. Pressing a bit harder and holding (even if it is already in the required position, e..g, "on") causes dimmer actions. There are a couple of momentary pushbutton microswitches on the circuit board, one under each half of the rocker (top and bottom). I verified that the rocker doesn't play any roll other than physically pushing down on the microswitches by removing the rocker and pressing the microswitches directly, and they did flash (and at a different rate than the on/off rate) the same as when pressed by the rocker.
Downsides:
I ordered one of the Skylink wireless switches to see what they look like in real life. Turns out the wireless switch/transmitter is the same depth as a standard Decora switch and switch plate. When mounted to the wall, there's no additional depth to the switch/transmitter, so from that perspective, it's exactly what I'm looking for.
I took it apart to see if it could be altered to be a simple dry contact switch. The "on/off switching" looks like it is being done by magnets. There's a small metal object that I assume is a magnet in the rocker that is directly over something (can't tell what it is) on the circuit board underneath the rocker. No physical contact is made between these two objects. When I push on the rocker to get it to change positions (press lightly on the top half), the transmitter's LED blinks (which I think means it is sending a signal). Whenever the top half of the rocker "moves away" from the circuit board (e.g., when pressing on the bottom half of the rocker), it blinks again. The important thing is that when pressing on the bottom half very slowly and controlling the rocker motion, it starts blinking very soon after the rocker starts moving, well before it gets to the bottom-half-in position. So it seems like the only motion that matters occurs at the top of the rocker, with regard to on/off switching.
There's actually two "press-types" for the switch. Pressing a bit harder and holding (even if it is already in the required position, e..g, "on") causes dimmer actions. There are a couple of momentary pushbutton microswitches on the circuit board, one under each half of the rocker (top and bottom). I verified that the rocker doesn't play any roll other than physically pushing down on the microswitches by removing the rocker and pressing the microswitches directly, and they did flash (and at a different rate than the on/off rate) the same as when pressed by the rocker.
Downsides:
- The receiver can't dim LED's, but I'm okay with that.
- Relies on battery. Might be okay if I can get a year or so per battery.
- I don't think there is any way to integrate it into an Elk M1G and/or CQC environment to give me more flexibility and greater control, which is a high priority for me in this whole-house remodel project. I plan on implementing UPB for a lot of lighting control, and this switch (the light it controls) is a prime candidate, e.g., be able to turn off all kitchen lights with a single "command". I don't think this would be possible if this switch/receiver is in the mix. Maybe if a UPB relay controlled the power to the receiver, something could be done, but I don't know enough about UPB (or this receiver) to know.
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