Z Wave or Zigbee dimmer switch: control only? (no direct light connection...)

[pmeyer]

Does anybody make an on/off/dimmer control that fits a standard single gang wall box and runs off of 120v, but only sends out RF commands (Zigbee or Z Wave)?  It won't actually control any fixture directly.  Basically a headless control that looks like a dimmer switch.
 
My new house will have about 80' of cove lighting in main part of the house.  I'm thinking about putting in LED strip lights.  I'll run them off of a 12v supply in the mechanical closet.  I would like to put dimmers on the 12v side of the supply (arduino + zigbee + LED driver, all low voltage) controlled wirelessly.  
 
However, to make this wife friendly I'll need a standard dimmer switch somewhere.  It would just send out RF commands and the controller would control the LEDs.  
 
If they aren't available (or are expensive), some questions:
- Do standard zwave dimmers trigger zwave events/messages when adjusted?
- Can standard dimmers work with no load?
 
Thanks!
 
Paul

 

[ChrisCicc]

Simple: buy a regular INSTEON or Z-Wave switch and don't put a load on it. Use it's remote control functionality only. 

 

[pmeyer]

I was hoping that might work.  So: z-wave and insteon dimmers send out messages when touched?  I wasn't sure if they were slave only devices or also communicated up/down messages to the controller.
 
Paul

 

[oberkc]

So: z-wave and insteon dimmers send out messages when touched?

 
Insteon switches certainly do.  I have always assumed that others did the same.

 

[pmeyer]

Thanks, all.  That was what I needed.  
 
It would still be nice if somebody made a straightforward control (cheaper, as it wouldn't need the actual 120v dimmer logic), but I can see there is little market for it yet.

 

[ChrisCicc]

Thanks, all.  That was what I needed.  
 
It would still be nice if somebody made a straightforward control (cheaper, as it wouldn't need the actual 120v dimmer logic), but I can see there is little market for it yet.

 
INSTEON does: Mini Remote (battery operated):link removed plus a wall bracket:link removed. Just add a gangplate of your choosing! It's only a few dollars cheaper, but the benefit is it can be placed on any wall anywhere.