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**Msekelsky** · December 21, 2008, 02:00 PM

I'm not sure I can answer many questions, but since we are both in Chicagoland and it is WAY too cold to be out of the house I can take a stab at a couple (and bump this thread to the top of the list for you).

My last house had no neutrals but it did have conduit. I was able to get around this by screwing the neutral wire to my box and that worked fine. My understanding that doing that was not really right, but it didn't hurt anything. Might be worth a shot in your case to see (I was using SmartLincs by SmartHome).

The companion switch at "the fixture" does not make sense to me and I did not see anything in the documentation you linked to, but maybe I missed it. Is that light controlled by more than one wall switch today? If so, you need to replace all wall switches that can control the light and that is where a companion switch comes in. If not, then you should only need the one switch and you could save the companion for a future 3-way application.

I played with voice recognition many years ago and it just was not consistent enough for me (let alone the wife and kids). I went to radio Shack and bought a wireless kit so that is certainly doable.

I have a touchpanel located ona wall in ourt kitchen. I paid about $300 on eBay. It does need (and I assume this is true for the Smarthome pads) a PC to run it (which I do with an old laptop running W98SE. I think $1000 is pretty pricey for a single purpose screen. But it's only money.

BTW, I am not sure where in Chicago you are, but there is a Chicago Home Automation Users Group We meet every other month at a Denny's in Addison (see here) usually only a small number of people are there, VERY informal and everybody else has forgotten more than I know so you can fire away with lots of questions.

**Rupp** · December 21, 2008, 02:13 PM

There's some good info on touchscreens in the HSTouch thread here:
http://board.homeseer.com/showthread.php?t=131687

This product seems to be getting good press and is an all inclusive unit for ~$400
http://cubloc.com/product/05_02.php

**King5555** · December 21, 2008, 02:59 PM

Thanks; This is the actual switch I bought:

http://www.smarthome.com/2474S/2-Wir...g-White/p.aspx

It has the fixture piece too. That's why I was asking about the X10 ones instead. Same with the receptacles.

I'll definitely check out the group too. Thanks!

**Rupp** · December 21, 2008, 03:10 PM

If most of your switches are 2 wire switches I would recommend going with the Z-Wave 2 wire switches. These are a ton easier to install and avoid all the powerline signaling problems associates with X10 and some extent Insteon. There's a matrix in on this page showing which ones require a neutral.
http://store.homeseer.com/store/Dimm...tches-C64.aspx
These start at $37.95 so they are cheaper as well.

**Msekelsky** · December 21, 2008, 03:13 PM

Originally posted by King5555 View Post

Thanks; This is the actual switch I bought:

http://www.smarthome.com/2474S/2-Wir...g-White/p.aspx

It has the fixture piece too. That's why I was asking about the X10 ones instead. Same with the receptacles.

I'll definitely check out the group too. Thanks!

OK, I see what you are talking about. First, I am not sure about the X-10 two-wire. Like I mentioned in my last house I just screwed the neutral to the box (*If* you have conduit you might give that a shot). In our current house I made sure tho have neutrals run and put in extra large boxes to boot.

That said, putting the fixture module in does not look any more complicated than putting the switch in, so if you can do one I would think you could do the other with no trouble (assuming accessible and all).

Are you committed to Insteon? If not you might take a look at zwave. The switches cost a bit more but many do not require a neutral at all.

**King5555** · December 21, 2008, 03:25 PM

I'm not committed to Insteon at all. Since this is brand new to me I just picked on and went with it. I heard X10 were generally unreliable and I read a lot of people saying that Z-Wave could get very expensive, so it seemed like a good compromise.

So if I go with the Z-Wave switches I assume I would need this:

http://store.homeseer.com/store/Smar...r-P521C44.aspx

or the ZTroller? I currently don't have a serial port so the USB would be preferable, but I could always add a card or adapter. Will either be a problem being on the same PC as the Insteon PLC?

Does the same go with the receptacles?

http://store.homeseer.com/store/ZRR1...-P528C124.aspx

They don't have an install guide on that page so I'm not positive that they only need 2 wires as well. I don't see many threads about receptacles; is there a reason you wouldn't want to use these instead of lamp or appliance modules (aside from mobility)?

Thanks!

p.s.; I could get the fixture piece wired in okay but the hard part would be physically fitting it into my ceiling the way that my light fixture is now. There is almost no room whatsoever, and if I can avoid installing there then obviously that would make things easier.

**Rupp** · December 21, 2008, 03:35 PM

The Z-Troller is by far the best Z-Wave interface available so if you can swing that it's key in having a rock solid Z-Wave install. I've got a question into Rick asking if the receptacles need the neutral so I'll comment back in case no one else replies.
These kits are a good way to get going:
http://store.homeseer.com/store/Z-Wa...t-P29C120.aspx

**Msekelsky** · December 21, 2008, 03:44 PM

I use the ztroller and as Rupp said, it is the way to go with zwave. The bulk of my system remains X-10 and while it gets a stray signal now and then, for the most part it has been very reliable for me. I am slowly moving to zwave as I need a new switch for something. That said, I have yet to find the perfect zwave switch. The touch and feel of the Insteon is great and the closest I have come in zwave is the Vizia, but I really don't like the rocker being only on the bottom. But the WAF has been OK.

Insteon is a bit cheaper, but if you follow the threads there have been a fair amount of problems with Insteon, although it seems the problems are abating a bit.

Personlly, for the couple of outlets I want to control I just use the plugin modules which is why I did not comment on the nuetrals for that. Since the Intermatic wall switches do not need a neutral maybe their outlets are the same, but Rick should know for sure.

**King5555** · December 21, 2008, 03:48 PM

So the Ztroller can be taken around to help pair the devices, but I assume it obviously then needs to be plugged into the PC for HS to control the devices...

Also, this may be a stupid question, but this switch:

http://store.homeseer.com/store/HA06...ngs-P7C64.aspx

Says that it can be polled from HS for status. Does that mean that HS can't actually control it, only "see" it?

**Msekelsky** · December 21, 2008, 03:54 PM

Yes, the ztroller plugs into your HS PC. HS can control all of the zwave switches, however not all zwaves report instant status to HS. Polling means you can ask HS to request the status from the switch every x minutes. I have very few switches where it is important that HS know when I have turned it on/off, but for those instances I will want a switch that "reports" to HS. Running through my switches in my head I only have two like that, but of course that all depends upon your needs.

**Rupp** · December 21, 2008, 03:56 PM

Yes, the Z-Troller is taken to the switch(s) and then is connected back to the HS server to load this info into HomeSeer.
The switch can be controller by HS. Some Z-Wave switches do not send their status when operated but can be polled to get their current status. All of them can be controlled by HomeSeer which tends to make the status mute because if HS is controlling the switch it automatically knows the switches status.

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