Caseta Claro switch and Fluorescent light bulbs

[braggpeak]

In my kitchen, I have 7 recessed fluorescent light bulbs controlled by a single switch (non-dimmable). When I change it out for the Caseta Claro, it won't turn the lights on (no response when the button is pressed). Is it incompatible or am I doing the installation incorrectly? I've double checked the red, black, neutral, ground connections so everything is connected properly. Thank you for any help or insight.

[Brandon W.]

Hello braggpeak and welcome to the forums!

The Claro Smart Switch can handle fluorescent loads. Please note that this switch is polarity sensitive (power must be coming in on black with load out on red). With this in mind, could you please try swapping what is connected to black and red?

[braggpeak]

Thank you, Brandon! I did not realize the polarity could be an issues. I was excited to try reversing that in the hopes that would fix it.

Unfortunately, even when I reversed it, it did not work :(

I have a Caseta Diva switch so just to see if it works, I tried it. I connected red to red, black to black, green to ground, and left the blue unattached. I also left the neutral from the wall unattached too... and the light worked!! ?? Well, at least it turns on and off. Because it's a dimmer switch, the fluorescent lights flicker until it is fully on max. And there is a slight buzz until it goes to max...

So, does that mean that the Claro switch I have is broken and should exchange it for a new one? And it should work once I replace it?

OR, does that mean that the wiring from my fluorescent lights were not done correctly so that the neutral is not properly connected or something of that nature?

Finally, since the Caseta Diva is "working", I can just use it as it or is it a electrical hazard to keep it connected this way?

Thank you for the help!

[Joy L.]

Hello braggpeak,

It could be an issue with the neutral in this location, or possibly a device issue; can you try connecting the DVRF-5NS device in another location with a known good neutral bundle, to help isolate this issue? If the unit works in another location, it is likely an issue with the neutral in the original location. If it doesn't work in a new location, either, it is likely a bad device.

If it is not a true neutral in the desired location, this can explain why the Claro model DVRF-5NS is not working, since it is a neutral-required device. If we needed a non-neutral Caseta on/off-only switch for this location, we do offer model PD-5WS-DV:

https://assets.lutron.com/a/documents/0301979.pdf

That being said, we do not recommend keeping the DVRF-6L Caseta Diva dimmer installed on this load, as it could cause damage to the device or the lights themselves.

[braggpeak]

Thank you so much for all the input.

It turned out to be the neutral... the one associated with the previous switch was probably not wired correctly. There were other neutral wires in the same junction box so I attached the neutral from the switch to those neutral wires... voila! Worked! Thank you so much!!