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USING LARGE QUANTITIES OF SWITCHLINC 2-WAY
WALL SWITCHES IN A HOME
From time to time, our tech support staff receives calls and emails from folks who have installed a large number of SwitchLinc 2-Way Wall Switches. Generally, the installer is experiencing problems communicating to some of the wall switches. Some transmitters are able to control some of the wall switches, but not others. The bottom line is that there is a reliability issue with the entire home automation system.
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The purpose of this document is to:
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Familiarize you with some of the issues in installing a large number of X10 devices in a home or facility.
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Discuss some of the issues and ideas that will mitigate the possible problems.
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Discuss some of the things you can do to have a reliable automation system.
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One of the differences between the SwitchLinc 2-Way Wall Switch series of wall switches and other X10 receivers is SwitchLinc's ability to transmit X10 signals. Generally, you will find that every X10 transmitter, which is installed or plugged in, will absorb other X10 transmitter's signals to one degree or another. For example, if a X10 RF transceiver (a plug in module with an antenna) were plugged into an outlet that also had a mini controller, each would absorb about 25 to 30 percent of each other's X10 signals when the other transmits. If one of those units were moved to the next outlet on that same circuit, the percent absorbed would be less, perhaps 10 to 15 percent. This problem affects all X10 transmitters. It also so happens that the stronger the transmitter, the greater the absorption of X10 signals!
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In most homes with regular receiver only wall switches, this problem isn't too bad. Most people have a small number of transmitters compared to the number of receivers. Generally, there is a four to one or three to one ratio (one transmitter for every three or four receivers.) In this environment, the transmitters don't have too much of an impact on the system's reliability.
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As mentioned above, the absorption effect or interference between transmitters lessens as the electrical distance between the transmitters is increases. When the transmitters are moved to different circuit breakers, the effect is even less, but it is measurable with a X10 signal strength meter or an oscilloscope. Unfortunately, with wall switches, we don't have the option of moving the SwitchLinc to a different outlet or electrical service location.
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Here is a non-scientific test we ran on a test board. Our test fixture is far from the real conditions one would find in a typical home.
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| Device | Measured Voltage Drop | | SwitchLinc | 30.0% | | Tw-523 | 27.5% | | RR-501 | 30.0% | | Lamp Module | 7.5% |
As you can see, transmitters will load down or absorb X10 signal more so than would receivers (the lamp module in this test).
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If you are finding poor signal strength at the SwitchLincs and you previously had good experience with receiver only X10 receivers, (X10, Leviton, HomePro, etc), the transmitter circuits in the SwitchLincs (along with all the other transmitters in your home) may be the cause of the signal drop.
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| | | Increase Signal Strength with Coupler-Repeaters | |
In a typical home, the wall switches are on circuit breakers that only service lighting devices. A home may have up to eight circuit breakers just for lighting and wall switches. The other circuit breakers will be for wall outlets and other electrical devices. It is generally from other circuits from which the SwitchLincs will get their commands, i.e. a home automation controller or other transmitters.
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The first order of business will be to include in your project a X10 coupler-repeater. These are sometimes referred to as an amplifier. A coupler-repeater will see the incoming signal, re-generate it, and blast it out over the two legs of 120 volts in the house coming into the breaker box from the utility company. We recommend that any home larger than 3000 square feet install a coupler- repeater. In smaller homes, a passive signal bridge also known as a phase coupler will be fine.
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It's not necessarily the square foot of the home that defines the need for a signal bridge, but rather the number of electrical devices plugged it. As homeowners install more and more audio-video components, computers and other electronic thingies, the overall high frequency impedance is getting lower and lower and so the need for a repeater becomes more necessary. As additional X10 transmitters are installed, like the SwitchLinc 2-Way Wall Switches and Wall Mounted Transmitters, the more need there is for an amplified coupler-repeater.
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A coupler repeater is a device that will be installed within a few feet of the home's main breaker box. In some very large homes where there are multiple breaker boxes, it may be necessary to install additional coupler-repeaters at those sub-panels.
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Here's a brief overview of how a coupler repeater work. An X10 transmitter sends out its signal, in this case "A1 A1 A-On A-On". The original signal is not strong enough to get to the receiver, so the command is lost and the receiver does not react. If a coupler-repeater is installed, it receives the first frame of data (the first "A1) from the transmitter and then retransmits it at the exact same time as the second frame of data (the second "A1") from the transmitter. The repeater then receives the next frame of data (the first "A- On") and, as before, retransmits it at the exact same time as the next frame of data (the second "A- On") from the transmitter. The receiver "hears" (receives) the "A1" and then the "A-On" from the repeater.
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We have coupler-repeaters on our web site at this page: X10 Troubleshooting
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| | | Smarthome�s BoosterLinc™ can solve localized problems | |
 Repeaters are ideal for improving the home automation signal strength throughout all the outlets in a home. But, as the PLC signals travel down a circuit and away from the repeater, it will weaken by the same factors listed above. Additionally, the signal will get weaker as it passes installed PLC transmitters. Each PLC transmitter contains a tuned circuit that when it's not sending signals it's absorbing them! In addition to plug-in transmitters, LampLinc� 2-Ways, SwitchLinc� 2-Ways, ToggleLinc� 2-Ways, ApplianceLinc� 2-Ways, KeypadLinc� Controllers, or any module with 2-way abilities will load down the available signal. With so many transmitters installed, the signal is loaded down to a point where some modules will be unable to receive a signal. Installing multiple 2-way devices on one branch circuit may necessitate the use of local amplifier like Smarthome's BoosterLinc.
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| | | Filters Keep the Signals You Have | |
Once you have amplified the signal, it's time to preserve what you've got. Since the X10 signal goes everywhere in your home, some devices will have more of an effect on the signal strength than other things. X10 signals are like water pressure in pipes, it actually goes everywhere it can.
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When people call about this problem, we often used a plumbing analogy. If you called a plumber to your home because of low-water pressure and he suggested increasing the water pressure instead of fixing many small leaks, you would thank him for his time and hire another plumber! In the X10 world, electrical devices that are not even x10 related cause these leaks. We know of many devices that will actually absorb x10 signals that are not intended for them. Just because there is no X-10 receiver on a particular circuit doesn't mean that the signal doesn't go there.
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The more complicated the electrical power supply is in a device, the more likely it is to absorb signals. In the last 20 years, an explosion of electrical devices has invaded our homes. Computers, video gear, and fancy electronics are more present than years past.
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Take the personal computer. These devices contain a complex power supply whose job is to deliver clean power to the memory chips, hard drives, and other parts in a computer. These devices need the clean and pure power to do their job. Electrical noise on the line, if passed to the microprocessor, would cause the computer to lock up and crash. The engineers who design power supplies build in traps to filter out and kill electrical noise. Unfortunately, X10 signal look like electrical noise to these devices. The result is that a large percentage of the signal is lost to this and other devices leaving a weaker signal for the SwitchLinc and other X10 devices.
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The most likely devices to be signal suckers are:
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Televisions, problem brands are: Sony, Phillips, Magnavox, Hitachi, Emerson
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Computers: Clone-type computers seem to be a problem. Name brands like IBM, Apple, Compaq (to name a few) don't seem to cause problems.
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Computer monitors: No-name brands are bigger problems than are big name brands.
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Laptop computer power supplies, NEC is a known problem
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Ozone/Air ionizers and filters
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Sony DSS and Chaparral Satellite receivers
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Some brands of Fax machines
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Some brands of surge-protection power strips and computer UPS's
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This is just a partial list that we have complied from callers to tech support. If any conclusions can be drawn, it would seem that devices that include complex electronic power supplies are possible suspects. Other electrical devices like toaster ovens, washing machines, and clock radios will have an extremely negligible effect on the signal.
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You can test for the problem pretty simply. If a device is suspected of causing signal absorption, we call it signal suck in the Tech Dept., you will need to unplug the device and then re-transmit the signal. If you have a HouseLinc or JDS Time Commander, put it in the signal test mode where it will transmit a continuous series of ON and OFF signals for a single address. It's very important that you don't just turn the device(s) off, you need to unplug them! We once had a computer monitor that absorbed 90% of the present X10 signal, even when it was switched off!
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If the X10 device begins working after the appliance is unplugged, then you will need a filter on the offending device. Install the filter between the offending device and the wall outlet. The filter will prevent X10 signals from entering the appliance and raise the signal strength of the entire home. We have filters in 5, 10, and 15 amp capacities on our web site and in the printed catalog.
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X10 Troubleshooting
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An average home will need between three and five of these filters. If you are
in the business of installing automation system and not in the 'call-back'
business, include some of these in your bid as part of the standard package.
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| | | SwitchLinc Behavior | |
As mentioned earlier, SwitchLinc 2-Way Wall Switches are able to send and receive X10 signals. All of the SwitchLinc 2-Way Wall Switches have the electronics in them to be transmitters. The SwitchLinc Lite and LS wall switches do not contain the programming or the circuitry to transmit.
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We typically see problems in homes where measures have not been taken to increase and preserve signal strength and where there is over 20 SwitchLinc 2-Way Wall Switches installed. With so many SwitchLincs installed, all these transmitters load down the X10 signal. Even if you program the SwitchLinc 2-Way Wall Switches not to transmit, they will still electrically absorb the signal.
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During the testing phase of the SwitchLinc, we measured this effect. One absorbed 22.5 % of the signal. When two SwitchLincs were connected together, signal absorption was 35%. When three SwitchLincs were applied to the circuit, signal absorption was 40%.
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In this example, the test transmitter and SwitchLincs were on isolated circuits (basically a power strip with a filtered power supply). This example represents the worst case scenario.
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As you can see, as each additional transmitter is added, the increase is smaller than the previous increase. That is, one transmitter absorbed 22.5%, two were 35% (12.5% more), three were 40%, (5% more than 35%). We predict that four or more switches would rarely exceed 50%. We recommend in the Specifications section of the manual that no more than four SwitchLincs be installed in one single location or gang box. The total on one circuit should not exceed eight units.
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In homes where the installer does not need 2-way X10 control but still likes the other features normally found in the SwitchLinc 2-Way Wall Switches, we now offer the SwitchLinc LS series. This unit has been specially modified to remove the components that give the SwitchLinc the ability to transmit signals. Without those components connected to the powerline, the SwitchLinc LS looks like (electrically speaking) another receiver-only switch. It retains all the other features of the SwitchLinc 2-Way Wall Switches, like scenes, programmable ramp rates, and preset dim levels.
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| | | Tools for the Job | |
If your are dropping a thousand dollars on some fancy switches, you will need some tools to make the project work right.
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Invest in a Maxi-Controller
 The Maxi-Controller from X10 is a plug in transmitter that has the ability to send individual X10 commands. The keys are separated into Keypresses and Command functions. To use this controller, you have to press the address (for example, "5"), then the command (On, OFF, BRIght, etc.) Some of the SwitchLincs advanced features need the programmed to send individual keypresses in order to set certain features. For example to set a scene, you need to send SwitchLinc these commands: O16, N16, M16, P16, M16 Adjust the SwitchLinc to the brightness level desired Transmit M16, N16, O16, P16 Transmit the desired scene address Once the SwitchLinc is programmed, it can be activated from any X10 transmitter.
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Click here to read more about the Maxi controller.
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| | | X10 Signal Meters | |
These are invaluable tools when it comes time to installing and diagnosing problems. Knowing the signal strength at a location, you'll be sure that the signal will always reach to that X10 module. Generally, you will want to have at least 100mV at each location. Conservative installers will want event more; perhaps 250mV just in case the homeowners install a signal sucker after the job is complete. The extra margin will still give the X10 receivers enough signal strength to be reliability triggered. Some models will also record the X10 signal activity over time and will show electrical noise levels, great for troubleshooting random ONs. These units can also be used to measure the effects of signal suckers mentioned earlier. Plug in the transmitter and measure the signal, then unplug the device that's plugged into that outlet. If you see a 10% or greater change, it's time for a filter on that device. . We have three units to choose from on our web site and catalog.
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We hope this message will help in planning and executing your planned installation of SwitchLinc wall switches. If you have any questions, please call our Tech Support Department at (949) 221-9200. You can also email your questions to pretech@smarthome.com.
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updated 6/28/05
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