Re: Why cling to old X10?

["Robert Green" <ROBERT_GREEN1963@xxxxxxxxx>]

"Bream Rockmetteller" <bream(dot)rockmetteller(at)mac(dot)com> wrote in
message
news:2007091122290416807-breamdotrockmettelleratmacdotcom@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> On 2007-09-11 20:37:30 -0700, RickH <passport@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> said:
>
> > Why do so many here still cling to X10 when there are more dependable
> > mesh networks available like zwave, insteon, etc.?  Reading through
> > the past posts there are so many war stories with X10, at what point
> > are these headaches no longer worth it?  I waited 3 years to install
> > the switches/load handlers in my basement remodel, simply because I
> > had had enough with X10 and ACT's A10 and I knew other mesh products
> > were coming.  I'm glad I waited and wonder why others continue to
> > patch a leaky boat.
>
> My problem is the age of my wiring. I don't have the separate power
> supply required for an Insteon switch... only two wires in the box. In
> fact, I recently bought, and returned, a collection of Insteon products
> because I was unaware that they required modern wiring to function.
> SmartHome was gracious enough to refund the vast majority of the
> purchase price, even though the items had been opened. Their on-line
> chat help was, well, helpful! Despite the problems I have with X-10, I
> have very little alternative. But, when a two-wire Insteon switch is
> available, I'll be first in line!

Kudos to Smarthome for accepting the return.  I hadn't realized that Insteon
required a neutral wire to function properly.  While X-10 switches do work
without a neutral, I have not had any that would work with CFL's in that
particular configuration.  In my house, that's just the overhead fixtures
which we rarely use anyway, so it's not too big a deal.  For others, it
could be a real PITA.  I had one lamp seem to work at the front door but a
few hours later the neighbors were asking "why is your front light
flashing?" because they thought it was some sort of "help needed" alarm.
(-:

Another serious impediment to switching over for me is also the age of the
wiring, but for a different reason than yours.  I've already broken off
wires and had to rip out plaster to fix the problem.  I'd really like to
avoid that happening again.  I intend to replace all the X-10 switches with
the original manual switches when we move.  That means I want to make sure
there's at least one OUT/IN cycle left on the wallbox wires.  That makes me
really inclined to leave them alone.

--
Bobby G.