Fw: CBus / X10 Opinions please

[Gareth Cook <g@xxxxxxxxxx>]

I'm pretty sure I saw Clipsal do 110v versions in one of their
catalogues...

G.

Gareth Cook
Tools and Process Architect
IBM SWG Sales - Lotus Park, Staines, TW18 3AG
Office: +44 (0)1784 445166 - Mobile: +44 (0)7980 445166
AIM Chat : TheBoyG - MSN Chat : chat@xxxxxxx
email: g@xxxxxxx


----- Forwarded by Gareth Cook/UK/IBM on 16/08/2005 15:53 -----

Discussion
Main Topic

ukha_d@xxxxxxx
Today 15:34

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Subject:
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RE: [ukha_d] CBus / X10 Opinions please
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Category:



Except Cbus isn't available to us in the US... :-(


Not yet at least... I spoke to someone who used to be a distributor in
the US for their security products, and they hinted at US compatible
modules/switches/etc, but not for a year or so.

Glenn Sullivan, MCSE+I  MCDBA
David Clark Company Inc.

> -----Original Message-----
> From: ukha_d@xxxxxxx [mailto:ukha_d@xxxxxxx]
> On Behalf Of Gerry Duprey
> Sent: Tuesday, August 16, 2005 10:04 AM
> To: ukha_d@xxxxxxx
> Subject: Re: [ukha_d] CBus / X10 Opinions please
>
> Howdy,
>
> Okay -- I'm in the US and all, but I can at least weigh in on
> my X10 experience.
>
> I have a moderately old house (1928), so refit is the key
> here.  As such,
> I've been refitting the house with X10 stuff, specifically,
> the Leviton AGC
> based switches.  These switches have a top and bottom press
> to them (for
> separate on/off/bright/dim action) and feel pretty good to the touch.
>
> At this point, just over 9 years into the project, I have
> about 50 X10
> switches and I think 2 non-X10 switches (plain old manual
> wall switch).  And
> until about 6 weeks ago, I never saw any problem with X10.
>
> However, about that time, something outside the house started
> generating a
> *lot* of electrical noise all the time.  My X10 system just totally
> shutdown.  I couldn't control anything.  I have the power
> company involved,
> but they are not being too helpful (since my appliances and
> lights come on).
> I've installed a X10 noise blocker in the main panel and that
> helped enough
> to get most of my X10 switches that are levitons working (the
> agc stuff is
> the key -- if the X10 signal is strong enough, they can
> ferret it out of the
>   noise pretty well).  Well, mostly.  Where as X10 had been
> rock solid
> reliable for years, it's now about 90% reliable.  Very, very
> depressing.
>
> The killer is that it's from a source outside the house --
> something I have
> no control over.
>
> So, after years of smugly noting other peoples X10 problems
> and thinking
> they must be doing something wrong, I'm now smarting.
>
> If I were doing a new house, I wouldn't even think for a
> second -- I'd
> absolutely run CAT-5 to each control box and probably start
> with something
> like CBUS.  Seeing as I don't have that option, I'm going to
> start looking
> into the new UPB stuff which is supposedly a much faster and
> more advanced
> protocol than X10 and very much less sensitive to noise.
>
> But changing out all the switches in the house to be UPB is
> expensive.  I'll
> be scraping nearly $3600 (USD) in X10 switches and at my best
> estimate,
> spending nearly $4000 to replace them.
>
> This tale of woe isn't so much for sympathy, but to seriously
> warn off
> anyone contemplating a large scale X10 installation.  As they
> say in the
> 50's B schlock movies:  "It could happen to YOU".
>
> Gerry
> --
> Gerry Duprey
> Ann Arbor, MI 48103
> http://www.cdp1802.org
>
>
>
>
>
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