Re: What can I replace this latching relay system with?

[jmj1492@xxxxxxx]

Steve,

I've skimmed over the posts on this subject and wondered if you have
one or more lighting control centers?  These are generally a small
metal can with a partition separating the low and high voltage
sections.  In the GE installations I am familiar with all the lighting
loads were home run back to the control panel.  The mechanical on/off
relays (RR7 etc) mounted in the partition with the low voltage leads on
one side and the high voltage connections on the other.

If your installation is similar perhaps you can remove all the relays
and install some multi-circuit dimmers like the PCS Scenemaster LM4 (UL
approved) which control 4 circuits (total 2000 watts) and is relatively
small in size (4x9").  Unfortunately I believe these are out of
production - so eBay may be your only resource for them.  You might try
contacting www.pcslighting.com and see if they know of any units
available.

If this is possible, you can then use your low voltage switch wires
(existing switches)  to signal inputs to an ADI Ocelot/Secu16I
combination, or Homevision type controller that can interpret switch
presses, double presses, hold, etc. and put x10 signals on your house
wiring accordingly.  Because the x10 signal only needs to reach the LM4
which is just a few  feet away I would expect 100% reliability.  The
Homevision software has built-in functions to trap multiple keypresses
making implementation simple.  The Ocelot can be a little slow on
reading the SECU16I inputs and is more tedious to program.

If you can make this work, it will be a clean and professional
installation that would likely not scare off the next homeowner and,
IMHO,  not be in violation of any NEC or fire codes.

John