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Would it make sense to locate all of the casita switches in one central location,hopefully close to electrical panel, then wire to from their to the light only. You would then use the remote throughout to control your lights. This removes holes in the envelope saving energy, cost and to some degree fire hazard. Any holes in this thinking
That is a very non-standard type on installation and sounds like a bad idea to me. This would require you to carry around a phone or remote with you at all times, for example if you woke up thirsty and wanted to get a glass of water at night you would need to take your phone with you, go into an app and turn on the appropriate lights. This type of installation would also be a huge issue if you need to sell the house, as most people would want wall switches in the appropriate places. If you are concerned about holes in the envelope then place the switches in interior walls as much as possible. Also, in this setup you would be dependent on the Caseta Hub functioning properly for the lights to work...I would not want to take a chance on this with the lighting in my house.Quote:
Originally Posted by Rodj3145
In most areas building codes require light switches to be within a certain distance of the entry to a room...I don't know if a app or remote tacked to the wall would suffice to satisfy this.
I'd avoid getting too hung up on false senses of economy or safety.
Two sayings come to mind. "Penny-wise, pound-foolish" and "Make things as simple as possible, but no simpler".
I can't quote the electrical code, but I'm thinking something applies here regarding requirements of hardware control of lighting in-room.
You'd likely degrade the resale value of any home with drastically non-standard lighting.
Just ask folks with older control systems... granted some integrator will LOVE the labor costs to correct it sometime in the future.
One great benefit to Lutron's devices is their ability to be wired in exactly the same manner as non-automated systems. Making it very easy to retrofit. Both in situations where you're ADDING automation to a space, and also for situations where you're REMOVING/REPLACING automated devices. Nothing lasts forever. But regret from having to rip apart drywall to fix short-sighted stinginess WILL come back to haunt you (or the subsequent homeowners).
If decor is an issue, look into Radio Ra2 as that offers a considerable array of both color and texture choices for the on-wall controls.
You missed the idea. You would have switches where you would normally have switches but they would be demoted that are paired to a switch. You would not have wiring running to the remote nor would you have a fixture box just a faceplate with x pico controls screwed to the wall. The phone is an ad on feature that some might have. This woul reduce the number of holes drilled in framing reduce wire and install time.
You are probably correct but i like the idea. I have solved a lot of issues with the pico. Like de-stuffing of an existing wall box by transferring power to th remote switch making it the master a using the pico at the over stuffed box.
Check with what your local building code requires. Both the building and electrical permits will affect what can and can't done.
Not worth it. Wire the areas like normal. You still need outlets, light fixtures either way. Don't try to eliminate the local dimmer/switch location, you will be sorry eventually. Now 3 ways is a different story. I have not wired for a 3 way since Caseta hit the market (slight exaggeration). I think it makes sense to use pico (virtual) 3 ways and 4 ways in most cases. I still hardwire for future 3 Way devices at staircases just in case.
I would not do that...have the electrician wire everything in the standard way including 3 way/multi location switches then install Caseta. I don't think you would save much money doing what you propose since wires need to be run to each fixture anyways and, switches usually aren't too far from the lights. Most of the time new construction electrical is per switch/fixture/outlet anyways so the price would be the same.Quote:
Originally Posted by Rodj3145
Another big problem with your setup is that if you ever want to add a caseta hub to your setup you will then become dependent on the hub functioning properly to control your lighting; once you add a hub to the equation all the picos are paired to the hub and send a message to the hub which sends a message to the hardwired dimmer/switch to turn on/off. If the hub malfunctions you would have to go to wherever all the switches are to turn on and off lights.
The last big problem is resale, most buyers may never notice that the switches are picos, but a building inspector may and you may end up having to shell out $$$$ to wire everything the traditional way to sell the house.
I think the original poster was describing panelized wiring, which, looking at HWQS, is passing the building codes.Quote:
Originally Posted by wkearney99
With gear like HWQS, sure. But then you're at a whole other price point and likely square footage.
The OP is looking to save money on his build by reducing wiring...I doubt he is interested in spending $20k on some automation system that is quickly being rendered obsolete by solutions such as caseta.Quote:
Originally Posted by veeeh
Well, I didn't go that far but I did some. We just finished a full house remodel. When working with the electrician on the 2 and 3 way switched circuits, I made sure that as much as possible the feed every multi-switched device was in a single gang deep box and the slaves where in the multi-gang boxes. I then had him tie all the other 2 and 3 ways together so that essentially everything was single switched. I then went back and added the Pico's where needed. Made the boxes much cleaner and leaves the wiring ready for wired switches if needed. It took a while to get the electrician on board but once he understood how it worked he was all in. The inspector was flabbergasted but agreed it was within code if somewhat unconventional. I will say it is VERY important to document what you do and mark your wires. My electrician was an older guy like myself and made sure the next guy would be able to figure things out.
It would be very nice if someday Lutron came out with reasonably price direct wire modules for lights. Then you could wire them all hot and use Pico's to control everything, from wherever you wanted. Ah well, I can always dream.
BTW none of this is on a Smart Bridge, I only that for my shades and outdoor lights.