Using PD-10NXD-WH (Caseta Pro) to control non-light-bulb items

Greetings all, I purchased a PD-10NXD-WH switch to control a fan. The fan has two power settings: 250 W and 750 W. I specifically bought this switch instead of other Caseta options because it is rated to up to 1000 W, well above the 750 W max draw that I expect to use.

I have other Caseta switches to control lights (LED and incandescent, on separate switches), and they work brilliantly, but those are the PD-6WCL-BL models. I was hoping that the PD-10NXD-WH switch would work as well, but control a fan rather than lights. It seemed pretty straight forward... but I'm having issues:

After wiring up the switch (with neutral connected), and turning power on at the breaker, the switch blinks at the top and second from bottom LEDs. This indicates:
No Load (PRO Dimmer only)
• Apply or replace the load

However, the fan is ON. The Lutron switch, however, will never turn the fan off.

I tried removing the neutral wire, no change. To further troubleshoot, I swapped the PD-10NXD-WH switch with a regular 15 A switch, and that works fine.

I tried removing the little FASS switch thing, and plugging back in, but same result. I tried following the instructions to switch from MLV to ELV mode, but it never worked. It only continuously blinks at the top and second from bottom. If I remove the outgoing power (red wire), then it still says no load (of course) and I STILL cannot set it up with the app, nor change from MLV to ELV mode or anything of the sort....

So is the switch simply incapable of controlling anything other than light bulbs, or is my switch possibly broken?

Never put a dimmer on a motor load. If you need to have this under control by Caseta, the PD-6ANS is your ONLY option. You'll have to manually select between the two heat settings.

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Originally Posted by SDR-Mike

Never put a dimmer on a motor load. If you need to have this under control by Caseta, the PD-6ANS is your ONLY option. You'll have to manually select between the two heat settings.

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I should have been more clear that the 250 W and 750 W settings are controlled by a separate switch, not the Caseta switch.

I never planned to use the dimmer functionality, only 0% and 100% power as I know one should not go anywhere in between. Regardless, the switch should not be "aware" of what I put on the load wire. It should just send power, correct? I should still be able to set the thing up.

The PD-6ANS is only a 6 A switch (theoretical max of 720 W) which is insufficient to carry the load at the high setting, to say nothing of overhead. That's why I looked for a higher rated switch. If there's another switch or another brand that carries 8+ amps, I'm open to it, but the PD-10NXD-WH should handle it...

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Originally Posted by Adoniram

I should have been more clear that the 250 W and 750 W settings are controlled by a separate switch, not the Caseta switch. I never planned to use the dimmer functionality, only 0% and 100% power as I know one should not go anywhere in between. Regardless, the switch should not be "aware" of what I put on the load wire. It should just send power, correct? I should still be able to set the thing up. The PD-6ANS is only a 6 A switch (theoretical max of 720 W) which is insufficient to carry the load at the high setting, to say nothing of overhead. That's why I looked for a higher rated switch. If there's another switch or another brand that carries 8+ amps, I'm open to it, but the PD-10NXD-WH should handle it...

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Most dimmers trim a percentage off the high end. This percentage is not affected by the programmable trim settings.

Modern dimmers use a triac which constantly turns the load on/off. Some triacs can be used to control heaters but the one in the dimmer will not. High probability you will damage the dimmer and a pretty good chance you will fry the heater.

The RadioRA 2/RA2 Select switch will control up to 8 amps. You may still experience minimum load issues.

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The PD-6ANS is only a 6 A switch (theoretical max of 720 W) which is insufficient to carry the load at the high setting, to say nothing of overhead. That's why I looked for a higher rated switch. If there's another switch or another brand that carries 8+ amps, I'm open to it, but the PD-10NXD-WH should handle it...

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Unfortunately, thsi might still damage the device, as the dimmer still ramps up and down. Even if you were using R2S or RadioRA2 and changed the ramp rate, it's still there and a lot of motor type loads are not designed to handle that. And to make matters worse, there is no adjustable fade rate on Caseta, so the problem shouldn't be solved using a dimmer. There are ways to use the PD-6ANS and run a contactor, but you are adding parts and points of failure, as well as physical size.

Thank you for all that helpful info. I’m betting that constant on/off is causing (in part) the problem. Looks like my dream of having a true wireless on/off switch (which can carry 750 W) is not reasonable, at least not right now. I’ll put in a “normal” timer switch which is better than nothing.