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Remote light switch - halogen

Hi

I live in a late Victorian house with some oddly placed light switches. I'd like to "move" a light switch without having to chase cable from the (newly decorated!) room so that I can resite the switch on the opposite side of the room.

I'm imagining a product which has an RF receiver in place of the old switch and then a battery operated new switch which I can just attach on the wall where I want the new switch.

I've run up against a couple of problems:-

1 - I can't find such a product! 2 - I have a halogen light fitting with a 12v transformer as the lighting in the room.

Changing the light fitting for a "normal" on is certainly an option, so I'm left with problem 1. Even an IR unit would be OK-ish if I could find one that had a stick on switch instead of a remote-control sytle switch.

X10 looks fun (ish!) if someone could point me in the right direction to start with. I've seen a switch (AW10U) which seems part of the answer, so if someone could let me know what I would need to pair this with to create a working scenario I'd be grateful.

I've googled for many an hour without coming up with the right answer!

btw, I'm in the UK if that helps.

TIA!

Matt

Reply to
matthew.larkin
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There are numerous RF operated light and appliance modules available in Europe although I'm not sure whether any (other than Jung) offer battery operated switches.

There are links to several 433.92MHz RF systems on this page...

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Some of the links are probably outdated but the product names may be worth searching for what you need.

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Reply to
Dave Houston

A receiver would need a neutral connection. There probably isn't one at your old switch position.

See explanation, above.

Reply to
Mike Barnes

Cheers Mike - but is my concept of a battery operated receiver really that stupid? Is it that the power required to switch a relay for a

240v supply is so great that a battery couldn't operate it?

Also, isn't the neutral thing a bit of a red herring - for a normal incandescent light bulb, don't X10 receivers (and similar devices) simply draw a small amount of power through the circuit, causing the bulb to light (but not noticably) and its this power that powers the receiver. As I said, I'll happily get a new light fitting if that is the only option, but I'd like to explore other possibilities first.

Cheers!

Matt

Reply to
matthew.larkin

On 3 Jan 2007 00:49:07 -0800, snipped-for-privacy@gmail.com wrote (with possible editing):

First of all, lack of a neutral indicates the receiver is at the old switch position, but you could certainly locate it at the fixture where there HAS to be the other side - a neutral (or a second leg).

I'm not overseas and so not aware of what is available for 240v 50 hz but I'd guess what you are looking for is available.

Reply to
L. M. Rappaport

While he's probably feeling "at sea" he probably feels he's not "overseas" either.

The AW10U is neither wireless nor battery operated so I'm not sure how it might be part of a solution.

There are battery operated RF switches available from a few European sources but I haven't noticed a companion receiver that would work in this case. Most of the RF receiver types are plug-in wall modules.

Some names for searches...

Ansen Electronics Gamma klik aan klik uit OTIO Elro Intertechno Jung Radio Management Philips SBC SK 305 Clipsal Ulti RF Marelco Waveman Funkschalter SET RS-202 Gira

All use 433.92MHz. Unfortunately most have their own protocols it is necessary to find transmitter and receiver from the same source.

Ansen's 0536 is a battery operated switch and their 0446 is a wireless light socket. The OP will have to decide whether they fit his needs and then contact Ansen to see who offers them in Europe. I seem to recall that they were offered by a few vendors under their own brand names.

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Reply to
Dave Houston

D'oh! I guess the OP can just buy them direct from Ansen's online store.

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Reply to
Dave Houston

The problem I was thinking of is that the power required to run the radio receiver 24/7 would drain the battery quite quickly.

ISWYM but the none of the X10 receivers I've used work that way: they all need a permanent L/N supply. That's not to say that the sort you describe don't exist, but I've never come across one.

You seem to regard the 12V halogen fitting as a problem, and its replacement as a solution. I don't understand that - could you explain? If the transformer is in the void above the ceiling and you can get at it, other possibilities spring to mind.

One other possibility you might consider is to light the room using table and/or floor-standing lamps powered from 13A sockets. They could be controlled from an ordinary wall switch, installed wherever you like, not connected to the mains but to a radio transmitter.

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Reply to
Mike Barnes

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