Device control

[kennybroh]

I had no problem installing the plugin and the first light (group) I tested it with was a Lightify MR16 bulb. In the device list I can turn the bulb on and off and adjust the color temperature, but the white slider doesn't seem to do anything,. What is that supposed to do? What I cannot do from there is adjust the brightness.

When I put the device on a control page and used the popup UI, the brightness slider works, but there's no ability to set color temp.

So, how do you recommend these bulbs be set up when the actual power to them is controlled by an Insteon wall switch?

[rbdubz3]

I am pretty new to using the Control Page stuff in Indigo - lemme play around with it over the weekend and see if I can figure out the issue

[rbdubz3]

So, how do you recommend these bulbs be set up when the actual power to them is controlled by an Insteon wall switch?

In the situation you describe, the manufacturer has stated that it is ok to turn power on/off. The Lightify bulbs are designed to have 100% power when on, so you really need to be careful with any dimming done via a wall switch such as the Insteon SwitchLinc. You can screw up the Lightify bulbs if they have less than 100% power.

In my house I have several Insteon SwitchLinc dimmers wired as 'always on', as the only load is some of the Lightify RGBW RT 5/6 recessed can lights. I recommend getting some help from an electrician if you aren't familiar with this type of wiring.. After re-wiring the switch, the load is always on to 100% and I have Indigo triggers to turn the bulbs on/off based on activity from the Insteon switch.. Some of the Indigo triggers setup capture the brightness of the SwitchLinc, and update the Lightify bulbs to match

[kennybroh]

I'm not intimidated by doing wiring, but need to know how to do that. Can that be found somewhere in the Switchlinc docs or is it a generic method of wiring any switch? I like the idea of getting the state from the switch and triggering other things. I assume if "off" is pressed that could trigger an "off" to the bulb or group of bulbs. I have other situations where smart bulbs are controlled by standard on-off switches. I know not to turn the switch off, but nobody else does!

If you could point me to info about always on wiring I'd appreciate it.

[rbdubz3]

If you could point me to info about always on wiring I'd appreciate it.

It is a pretty straightforward setup.. Though it is NOT found in the Insteon guide - http://cache.insteon.com/pdf/2476D.pdf . Basically, you just take both line/load wires from your wall and connect them together - along with the line wire (black) from the SwitchLinc .. The SwitchLinc ground and neutral wires connect as you normally would. For the SwitchLinc load wire (red), just cap it off without connecting to anything. By capping the red load wire, it is similar to the SwitchLinc 3-way / multi-way circuit.. Essentially the SwitchLinc gets power from the line, but doesn't 'really' control any load. By wiring the line/load wires from the wall together, you are forcing the load to ALWAYS be ON.. In this manner, you are always delivering 100% power to the load - now you can leverage the plugin to dim/change color/etc for the Lightify Bulbs without risk of messing them up

[kennybroh]

Let me make sure I understand. So the line and load are normally wired to separate poles of the switch , but here they are both essentially on the same pole so there's nothing on the load side of the switch,. The neutral and ground are still connected, so the Switchlinc is still sending information about presses to the server, yes?

[rbdubz3]

Correct - line/load from wall wired together forces the load to be always ON ..
- Ground/Neutral wires are connected normally to allow the switch to send/recv signals
- SwitchLinc Line (black) wired to line from wall (along with load) to get power to the switch
- SwitchLinc Load (red) capped and not connected to anything

[rbdubz3]

One note of caution - I have several Sylvania Lightify RT 5/6 recessed trim kits wired in this manner. One of them seems to get wonky and out of sync/unresponsive maybe once per month.. When the bulb gets in this state I cannot control it anymore remotely - whether trying with Indigo or via the Sylvania app. My only recourse for this bulb is to get on my step ladder, pull the can light down and disconnect wire/power momentarily.

Similarly - but not quite as big an issue to fix - the A19 bulbs occasionally do the same thing and become unresponsive. Happens very infrequently. Most of these are installed in a regular lamp and so I just toggle them on/off