Re: CFLs flicker when Wall Swtich WS467 is OFF

["John J. Bengii" <nobody@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

One CFL in parallel with 160 watts of incandescents worked fine with my X10
dimmer until the dimmer burnt out after about 3 weeks.

Another note: CFLs do not dim. Some are rated to be used on dimmers (safe)
but they cannot dim. I have tried a few brands now.


"Jim Hewitt" <jim.hewitt@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:fr3omo$8oq$1@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>
> "Charles Sullivan" <cwsulliv@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
> news:47d54572$0$24080$4c368faf@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>> On Sun, 09 Mar 2008 19:19:46 -0700, Gadgets wrote:
>>
>>> On Mar 5, 4:43 pm, "Jim Hewitt" <jim.hew...@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>>>> Howdy,
>>>>
>>>> I've been slowlyg trying CFLs in the house to see if they work OK wtih
>>>> our X10 installation. We've decided that the quality of light is
>>>> acceptable for the energy $ savings.
>>>>
>>>> But, when I put some (N:Vision from Home Depot) 60W CFLs in the kids'
>>>> room overehad light, controlled by a WS467, everything was fine until I
>>>> turned the lights off. They don't go fully off! We get a very low
>>>> light flicker, probably 5-10 times a second. I triple-checked, the
>>>> wall switch was not dimming the lights.
>>>>
>>>> Is this a result of the current sense (for local control)? If so,
>>>> would the standard mode for disabling current sense stop this?
>>>>
>>>> It is doubtful that the kids would sleep well with this annyong
>>>> flicker, but also likely that it would also damage the CFL electronics
>>>> eventually.
>>>>
>>>> Thank you for any input. Or for pointing me to a more appropriate
>>>> group.
>>>>
>>>> Jim
>>>
>>> Yup, disable the current sensing (local control) and the lights will
>>> stop flickering. Been there done that!  :-)
>>
>> Not quite!  The WS467 is only a two-wire device.  To disable the current
>> which causes the CFL flickering would remove power from the WS467
>> circuitry and prevent it from being turned on remotely. (The WS467 does
>> not have "local sensing" as the term is generally understood for plug-in
>> lamp modules.)
>>
>> The OP needs to replace the WS467 with a wall switch designed for
>> fluorescent lamps.  Note that these all require having a neutral wire in
>> the switchbox, and generally operate with a relay, so there will be an
>> audible click when they're turned on or off.
>
> Yes, another poster (or maybe you earlier) already discussed the two-wire
> aspect.  No power, no workie.
>
> For some of the switches I can easily try the trick of a low wattage
> incandescent bulb in parallel.  For the others,  the fixture has two
> bulbs - for now I'll just try one bulb of each type.  Less than half the
> energy savings, but better than none.
>
> I can disable the local dimming feature (which I had to mod te enable) and
> can train the kids to NOT dim via the remote [or take away the palm remote
> and only let them use the stick-a-switch without dimming control].  They
> can hear the wall switch start to buzz (better than I can!) when the
> dimming happens so I think they'll stay on top of that.
>
> So, unless we get some spurious dimming, and the wall switches stay on at
> 100% level, I'm thinking this will be OK.  If you know another reason why
> it wouldn't be OK, please let me know.   While I'd rather not buy new
> switches, I'd much more rather not have to buy a new house or get new
> kids.
>
> Thanks again.
>
> Jim
>
>
>