| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| jmoore102 |
Posted - 05/10/2012 : 09:56:46 AM
Hi All,
I have a system that has been in place for about 2-3 years now and it has been working great for the most part. Strictly and INSTEON system. Recently within the last 7 months there have been issues with the systems ability to communicate between the devices. I am getting strange blinking lights on the devices. It started with the Smartlinc, Access Points and Lamp modules (basically all the plug in devices) and now it is happening on one of the wall switches. I started noticing this around the time I switched out a lot of my lights for the energy saver fluorescents. I also put an ISY 99i in around the same time. I have removed the ISY and left the fluorescents but there still seems to be a problem there. Any ideas on what could be causing this and what a solution to it might be?
Thanks
John |
| 6 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| BLH |
Posted - 05/10/2012 : 3:29:53 PM
I don't think my old V1.3 ApplianceLincs and V2.1 SwitchLinc Relays have the turn off LED flashing feature. 
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| EVIL Teken |
Posted - 05/10/2012 : 3:19:24 PM
As BLH had stated above. I would verify that you have not enabled the *Flash LED on traffic* via the ISY. I turned this feature on to see how it worked and how it would integrate with the family.
It may have uses for some, but it caused more concern and grief than it was worth. So I turned it off and only use it to confirm comm issues.
Teken . . . |
| Tfitzpatri8 |
Posted - 05/10/2012 : 12:20:06 PM
Do you have HouseLinc? If so, you can use it to perform signal diagnostics to see where Insteon signals are doing well and where they might be suffering from interference. That could allow you to replace just the bulbs that are giving you trouble. HouseLinc also has an option for turning off LED 'blink on traffic'.
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| BLH |
Posted - 05/10/2012 : 12:16:46 PM
Some versions of hardware in the modules. Flash their LEDs when they detect communications on the power line. Sometime noise from things like CFLs can cause the LEDs to flash.
I would also suggest seeing if you can find a CFL that maybe on the way out.
Some electronic devices like TVs and small battery chargers can also make power line communications poor.
An occasional FilterLinc sometimes has to be added to the home.
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| jmoore102 |
Posted - 05/10/2012 : 12:01:45 PM
Hi There,
Thanks for the response. Just to clarify the blinking is not happening on the lights themselves but rather on the small LEDs inside the modules and switches themselves. I did have one instance where the house lights were flickering and replaced the bulb in question with a regular incandescent bulb. That stopped the flickering. There are no other house lights that flicker now. Rather than switch out all the bulbs in my house (which I spent a small fortune on) is there any other approach that could boost the signal in the lines? i.e. adding more access points or a power line cleaner or anything? |
| Tfitzpatri8 |
Posted - 05/10/2012 : 10:54:42 AM
Incandescent light bulbs operate by running voltage through a simple filament and converting electricity into light and heat.
Compact fluorescent bulbs use an entirely different approach. They use an electronic 'ballast' circuit board to convert household 120 volt/60 Hertz electricity to high-frequency energy that can excite glowing chemicals in the light tube. CFL bulbs use less electricity to create light, but depending on the design of the ballast, some can 'pollute' your home electric wiring with noise that can interfere with power line signals like those used by Insteon gear.
Look around the house for any CFL bulbs that are dim or flickering, that can be a sign that the ballast is malfunctioning. Remove any bulbs with that symptom and retest. Also, make sure you are only using bulbs specifically labeled for use with dimmers with any dimming modules or switches. |
