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Thread: Caseta Wireless For Fireplace ?

  1. #1
    Junior Member
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    Dec 2015
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    Caseta Wireless For Fireplace ?

    HI there

    Trying to find a good way to turn on and off a fireplace using Caseta and pairing with Apple Homekit etc. Today I have an on/off mechanical switch and I know that Lutron themselves are saying they only rate their switches for CFL/LED/FAN loads but wondering if anyone has tried this and what the real issue behind using this could be outside of things like wireless system goes on the fritz and you end up with the fireplace on when it should be off etc.

    Again just curious as have replaced most other switches, plugs outlets with various smart wireless devices

    Thanks

    WC

  2. #2
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Nov 2014
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    238
    You will probably need to setup a neutral switch and a relay. The control for the fireplace may also be low voltage and not directly connectable to a caseta switch.
    RadioRa2 PSP Level 2 Platiunum
    RaSelect Pro Installer
    Caseta "Pro" Installer
    My Systems:
    RadioRa2 with Triathlon Shades, Sonos, Harmony, Nest, Alexa, and HomeKit.
    Caseta with Triathlon Shades, Sonos, Harmony, Nest, Alexa, and HomeKit.

  3. Thanks SDR-Mike thanked for this post
  4. #3
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    Aug 2016
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    Question

    Quote Originally Posted by Lukeetal View Post
    You will probably need to setup a neutral switch and a relay. The control for the fireplace may also be low voltage and not directly connectable to a caseta switch.
    I am also very interested in fireplace control from Caseta. Initially thought I could just put in a Caseta on/off switch and be done with it but then found that the existing fireplace switch is just a low-voltage switch like you said. Additionally, there is no high-voltage wiring at the switch location :(

    There are two high-voltage outlets in the guts of the fireplace and I could intercept the LV control link there. I suppose i could then use the on/off switch with a pigtail to one of the outlets. Wouldn't be all that pretty but that wouldn't matter in this case.

    I guess my question becomes: what type of relay would I need to get for the output side of the on/off switch?

    Any help is appreciated!

  5. #4
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    Jan 2017
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    Did anyone ever get this working? I also have a fireplace that utilizes low voltage for the on / off switch and I wasn't able to get the Caseta switch to turn on because of this.

  6. #5
    Junior Member
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    Aug 2016
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    I was able to get this to work, though with a much different setup than I was initially envisioning.

    The fireplace I was working used a low-voltage switch on the wall with a 2-wire cable between that and the fireplace guts (below the firebox). It also has 2 outlets in that same area: one labeled REMOTE and one labeled FAN. As far as I know, both outlets are always on and the labels are just for fun.

    Here is what I did:
    - Caseta plug-in lamp dimmer plugged into one of the outlets
    - Set this dimmer to switch mode (no dimming) - see Caseta Advanced Installation Guide for details
    - Plugged a 5V DC power adapter I had laying around into the dimmer
    - Connected the output of the DC adapter to the input of a relay. I used the Sunfounder 2-channel 5V relay module
    - Cut the cable that went to the wall switch and connected it to the output of the relay instead of the switch

    This solution does completely disable the wall switch but - in my case - it was in a crappy location anyway.

    Some other notes on this:

    - I got a 2-channel relay module since it was cheap and readily available but only one channel was needed
    - I was a bit worried about the heat in the area with the electronics but I measured the temperature of the dimmer with one of those point-and-read thermometers after the fireplace was on for a while and it came up at 105. The specs for the Caseta say the operating temp tops at 104 but it's been running for over a month now and - so far so good.

  7. #6
    Lutron Technical Support
    Join Date
    May 2013
    Posts
    635
    Lutron doesn't support the use of standard digital dimmers or switches (such as the Caseta controls) to trigger fireplaces.
    We don't test, nor UL rate, the Caseta controls on anything other than lights or fans. We don't have anything in the Caseta line that we could recommend for this situation.

    The closest thing I would recommend is the plug-in RF Appliance Module.
    We have the non-system MRF2-15APS-1-WH or -BL, which can only be triggered from itself, or with a Pico remote control.
    We also have the RA2 system RR-15APS-1-SW or -MN and the Homeworks QS system HQR-15APS-1-SW or -MN units that can be controlled from themselves, from Pico remotes, from system keypads, or from the Ra2/Homeworks QS smartphone apps.

  8. #7
    Junior Member
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    Oct 2017
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    Can you please post a picture of your setup? I am running the same exact thing, but I cannot get it to close the relay for some reason. I can get power to the relay, but it doesn't seem to close the circuit when it gets power.

  9. #8
    Junior Member
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    Dec 2017
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    Quote Originally Posted by martopg View Post
    I was able to get this to work, though with a much different setup than I was initially envisioning.

    The fireplace I was working used a low-voltage switch on the wall with a 2-wire cable between that and the fireplace guts (below the firebox). It also has 2 outlets in that same area: one labeled REMOTE and one labeled FAN. As far as I know, both outlets are always on and the labels are just for fun.

    Here is what I did:
    - Caseta plug-in lamp dimmer plugged into one of the outlets
    - Set this dimmer to switch mode (no dimming) - see Caseta Advanced Installation Guide for details
    - Plugged a 5V DC power adapter I had laying around into the dimmer
    - Connected the output of the DC adapter to the input of a relay. I used the Sunfounder 2-channel 5V relay module
    - Cut the cable that went to the wall switch and connected it to the output of the relay instead of the switch

    This solution does completely disable the wall switch but - in my case - it was in a crappy location anyway.

    Some other notes on this:

    - I got a 2-channel relay module since it was cheap and readily available but only one channel was needed
    - I was a bit worried about the heat in the area with the electronics but I measured the temperature of the dimmer with one of those point-and-read thermometers after the fireplace was on for a while and it came up at 105. The specs for the Caseta say the operating temp tops at 104 but it's been running for over a month now and - so far so good.
    I think I'm following this and it actually seems reasonably "elegant", given the problem we are trying to solve. However, I can't quite figure out why you need the relay? If you essentially have a switched 5V output once you plug in the DC adapter, why couldn't that be directly connected to the wires that are currently switched? (https://www.amazon.com/Adapter-Power.../dp/B00JRNQUM8) - link to an example. Seems like I could just plug that sucker into the Caseta switch, strip the wires, connect them to the LV wires going to the fireplace and be done with it. But....I'm probably missing something so please advise!

    Edit: Nevermind, I realize the issue. The DC adapter is powering the relay which is actually acting as the LV switch. Sorry!

  10. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by gduhachek View Post
    I think I'm following this and it actually seems reasonably "elegant", given the problem we are trying to solve. However, I can't quite figure out why you need the relay? If you essentially have a switched 5V output once you plug in the DC adapter, why couldn't that be directly connected to the wires that are currently switched? (https://www.amazon.com/Adapter-Power.../dp/B00JRNQUM8) - link to an example. Seems like I could just plug that sucker into the Caseta switch, strip the wires, connect them to the LV wires going to the fireplace and be done with it. But....I'm probably missing something so please advise!

    I'm not an electrical engineer or an electrician, but I think the reason is that all the 5V relay does is provide current. It doesn't close the circuit, which is what you're looking to do.

    The relay, when powered by the 5V adapter actually closes the circuit, which is what you need to make the fireplace work. So let's look at it this way: If I cut the wires from the wall switch, and touch the negative and positive leads of a 5v battery to each of them nothing will happen. But if I cut the wires from the switch, and just touch them together the fireplace will light, because the act of touching the wires closes the circuit to the fireplace, which already has the power it needs to light. The 5V current from the adapter is what is needed to trip the relay to automatically close the circuit.

    I was never able to get it working exactly like the OP's. I am not sure whether it was because the relay he used needed something I wasn't giving it, or if I was doing something minor wrong. But I ended up buying the following items, and hooking them up. I plugged the Elgato switch into the receptacle. I plugged the AC/DC adapter into the Elgato switch. Then I ran a couple of small gauge wires from the LED light adapter tip of the AC/DC adapter to the relay, and hooked the wires that I had cut from the switch into the other side of the relay. It works like a charm.

    https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

    https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

    https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

  11. #10
    Junior Member
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    Dec 2017
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    Great reply! Thank you.

    Yes, your explanation dawned on my shortly after I posted, however I really, really appreciate the detailed reply with specific products!! I think there's a good chance I would have struggled with the relay the OP posted as it looked a bit more complex than what this process calls for. Love the AC/DC unit with LED light adapter, that'll further simplify it! Thank again, I'm pretty sure I can get the fireplace under voice control in no time!

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