Lighting Control - Simple system for mood lighting

[Alex]

Hey there, 

 

Just wondering what people have used / could recommend for some simple lighting control. I have a large open plan room that has Kitchen, Dining and Lounge in it. There are (or will be!) 9 separate lighting circuits that I'd like to control via 4 or so preset scenes. I'd like to avoid having a bank of light switches which no one (except me) knows what they all do! 

 

I'm not looking for a whole house system just something that can be used for this one area. Cost as always comes into the equation as, whilst I'd love to have a Savant or Crestron system I don't have the ££££ to spend. 

 

I've been looking at the Lightwave RF system which you can use smart switches that can then be controlled via a Scene selector switch, basically put the bank of 8 switches in the back of a cupboard and have the Scene selector switch in the usual switch place, there's a mini control box that needs to be on network as well. For a 8 circuit system I've been quoted approx £450.

Does anyone have any experience with LightwaveRF? good/bad? 

or any suggestions of alternative systems that you're using / would recommend? 

 

Thanks

Alex

 

[newhome]

I imagine there are endless good options these days. I have a similar room to yours by the sounds of things (large kitchen / family room with an island for casual dining) and have a simple 4 zone control with dimmers that controls all of the ceiling lights which comprise 20+ downlighters, 2 pendants above the island and 1 in the sitting area. Looks like the system I have from 2009, the GET Smart wireless system, is discontinued so if it ever goes wrong I am in trouble, as I then have no way of working the ceiling lights I think especially as I have no idea where the controller is . So more than a recommendation as to a make ensure that yours are future proof in some way, that there is an alternative way of switching them on, and how they are set up is written down somewhere. 

 

Apart from the pendants over the island I don’t tend to use them much as it happens as I prefer to use lamps, and the lights under / over the kitchen wall cupboards. 

 

 

Edited April 24, 2018 by newhome

[chrisb]

I believe that there is a gap in the market here.

 

My Brother has a couple of Lightwave RF dimmer modules controlling two banks of downlights in his kitchen. Control from a wall-mounted wireless switch, many compatible varieties available. He's taken the whole thing to the next level by incorporating it into his OpenHAB home automation setup.

 

I've got a similar issue to resolve - at least 4 zones of lighting in the kitchen/family/dining room, but also 2 dimmable zones + 2 on/off zones in each of the two boys rooms. Another dimmable zone in the playroom/study.

 

Doing all these with LightwaveRF is the cheapest option using 'proper' kit. It's still quite expensive though - especially when you add on the cost of the dimmable LED fittings too.

I've had good results previously from the generic chinese panel lights (like @JSHarris has) so long as the power supplies are reasonable, and not devoid of filtering components and went looking along these lines again until I found MiLight - similar style of fitting, but with integrated dimmer (and RGBW colour changing if you want it). They have inbuilt proprietary 2.4GHz RF control, which has a variety of controllers available, up to 8 channels or scenes. The protocol isn't secure, but I'm not worried by this - the worst someone could do is mess with my lights.

[oranjeboom]

Raspberry Pi? Not had the time to get and play with these yet, but they seem to have a very wide range of uses including lighting setups.

Edited April 24, 2018 by oranjeboom
spellink

[Guest Alphonsox]

Have you looked at the Philips Hue system ? I've got a few bulbs and the controller bridge. It's a pretty flexible system and my do what you want.

[Alex]

thanks for the suggestions. 

 

@newhome - Future proofing is definitely important. Looking at the Lightwave I should be able to just change out for normal switches so would have individual control via normal switches if there was any issue in the future... 

 

@chrisb - I'll have a look at the milight system

 

@Alphonsox - I have looked at the Hue system but not too sure. I'm looking at controlling some LED Strips and some narrow beam spots as they're going to be at the ridge line. 

 

[newhome]

2 hours ago, Alex said:

thanks for the suggestions. 

 

@newhome - Future proofing is definitely important. Looking at the Lightwave I should be able to just change out for normal switches so would have individual control via normal switches if there was any issue in the future...  

 

 

I hadn’t really thought about it before you posted, so now I have a choice to make. Carry on in denial and hope they never go wrong, or try to get them sorted before a future issue occurs that would make all the ceiling lights in here worthless ornaments (25 downlighters and 3 pendant lights). Hmm. What’s the most likely place where the controller will be? Any suggestions? ?

 

 

[MrMagic]

I went round and round on this topic for ages when fitting out. In the end I decided the best way to cover all bases was to star wire all lighting circuits and switches back to a central point (three in my case) and then it gave me the option to fit whatever combinations of switches/lights/control gear I wanted.

 

If the system is no longer supported or I wanted to revert to a 'dumb' system you could pull the gear out and rewire it in the central panel without having to trash the house.

 

In the end I went for a Zwave system - its been working for a few years now, no complaints.

[Mackers]

Im always banging on about this but check out Casambi. Easy to use and cheap too. They have everything you can ever want. Download the app to look at the options they offer. I specify them on all our projects from one fitting to thousands.

[chrisb]

I tried to find out more info about Casambi, including prices. It seems that a simple 1-channel dimmer module is about 70 euros? I can't find a UK online store - maybe I'm using poor search terms.

 

I completely agree that star-wiring back to sensible central locations, along with neutrals to switch locations is the way to go for future-proofing.

[newhome]

3 hours ago, MrMagic said:

If the system is no longer supported or I wanted to revert to a 'dumb' system you could pull the gear out and rewire it in the central panel without having to trash the house.

 

The problem I have is that I have no way of knowing how it was set up. All I have is the wireless control to switch the lights on and off. What ‘gear’ would need to be pulled out and would that be easy for an electrician to identify and address? 

[PeterW]

6 hours ago, newhome said:

 

The problem I have is that I have no way of knowing how it was set up. All I have is the wireless control to switch the lights on and off. What ‘gear’ would need to be pulled out and would that be easy for an electrician to identify and address? 

 

I’d add that to the list for Little Willy as he’s good at tracing wires ... but I reckon it’s all in a cupboard in the hallway ..!

[newhome]

12 minutes ago, PeterW said:

 

I’d add that to the list for Little Willy as he’s good at tracing wires ... but I reckon it’s all in a cupboard in the hallway ..!

 

Thanks! Little Willy staying for a month then? ?

[Mackers]

On 26/04/2018 at 15:04, chrisb said:

I tried to find out more info about Casambi, including prices. It seems that a simple 1-channel dimmer module is about 70 euros? I can't find a UK online store - maybe I'm using poor search terms.

 

I completely agree that star-wiring back to sensible central locations, along with neutrals to switch locations is the way to go for future-proofing.

Try Holders Components for prices