Anybody any good with connecting Quinetic switches please

[happyhero]

Hi, I have several Quinetic bits installed already but I am now thinking of moving onto my staircase where my boy is always leaving the lights on so that I can turn them off with my Alexa or by my phone. I also have Alexa controlling my Quinetic lights downstairs so I know how to do a lot of the initial bits.

Anyway I have an attic extension so I have 3 floors of 2 way lighting and on every floor I have a 2 gang MK switch to control the floor I’m on and the next floor. Getting into the ceilings is now awkward as we have finished decorating so I am thinking of using the Quinetic switches with built in receivers in 2 gang format, so swapping 2 gang for 2 gang. The existing wiring is a switch line from the rose on each floor so live in and live out and no neutral which I believe these switches are happy with.

The Live in live out switch is in each case on the floor where the lights are, i.e. on attic level one of the 2 gang switch has the live in live out for the light on that floor whereas the other switch is just the slave for the floor below so the other end of the 2 way switching. This is the case on all 3 floors.

But here’s my problem to solve If I buy 3 x 2 gang Quinetic switches with the receiver built in do I just leave one switch on each floor unwired but pair it with the floor it has to 2 way switch. I’m assuming and think I remember from previous work with Quinetic switches that they work wirelessly for pairing.

And I assume I just leave the 2 way part of the wiring disconnected everywhere as the 2 way lighting will work via the paired switches.

I hope I have made sense here, is this how it is done or does it have to be done differently or is there even a better way?

Any help with this would really be appreciated.

 

[TimboTwo]

1) From the Quinetic Q&A sheet.

2) Doesn't look like they are WiFi units.

 

[SUNRAY]

Other than ripping them out and replacing with normal switches I have no experience of these sort of devices. So I'm not in a position to comment on compatibility etc.

As I see it you have 3 switch plates;
Loft, you have 1x twin and earth and 2x 3core and earth.
Upstairs, you have 1x twin and earth and 2x 3core and earth.
Downstairs, you have 1x twin and earth and 1x 3core and earth.

If I have that correct you require 3 switches, one for each location. I'd say you are looking for single gang format rather than 2 gang.
Scrub that, of course you still require 3 physical switches at each location

 

[happyhero]

Apologies I have to add something, on the middle floor/1st floor I have 2 x 2 gang switches, one at each end of the small landing the idea being if you are on the way up you can control 2nd floor and 1st floor lights and if you are the way down you can control first floor and ground floor lights, which basically means the 1st floor lighting switches on the actual first floor are intermediate wired switches.

Also TimboTwo, it looks like you are saying I cannot pair a built in receiver switch with a built in receiver switch if I read that right which makes things very frustrating but I've had an idea that may work to get round this problem.

See if you think this would be a solution, there is more than one way with this but I'll pick one method, what if for the 2nd and first floor I used the 3 core and earth cables to extend the 1st floor switch line to the 2nd floor switch so that I have 2 switch lines at the 2nd floor switch. Then I fit a 2 gang Quinetic switch with receiver built in on the 2nd floor. On the 1st floor I fit an ordinary Quinetic 2 gang switch which I pair with the 2nd floor one. I would now have 2nd and 1st floor lighting controlled by Quinetics correct? (Note nothing would actually be wired to the ordinary Quinetic switch on the 1st floor, the switch would just sit in front of the existing wiring).

Now at the other end of the 1st floor landing I fit another ordinary Quinetic switch and pair one side with the 1st floor lighting and the other with the ground floor lighting Quinetic (with built in receiver) switch to be fitted on the ground floor. On the ground floor I use a 1 gang(with built in receiver) switch in place of the 2 gang switch which will control the ground floor lights and then get another 1 gang ordinary Quinetic switch which can just be stuck on the wall next to the built in receiver one and this one will pair with the first floor lighting.

In this way if you count I have a total of 3 gang built in receiver switches, basically 2 on the top floor and one on the ground floor. The 2 x 2 gang switches on the first floor are just ordinary Quinetic switches and are paired to suit and not wired to anything. Obviously now instead of having a 2 gang switch on the ground floor I have had to resort to 2 1 gang switches.

As I type it I realise it takes a bit of reading but hopefully you get what I am saying and can possibly improve on the idea.

 

[AndyPRK]

Is there something wrong with your current setup ?

Receivers go near the light they control and connect to neutral normally

 

[dannyboi2003]

This sounds like a lot of time, effort and money just because your son is leaving the lights on occasionally. I appreciate it’s your home and your choice but it seems the opportunity to install wi-fi lighting control discreetly during your recent refurbishment has been missed and adding it now as you want it will involve opening up floors/ceilings, with the quinetic range at least.

I would suggest just replacing the lamps in the stairwell lights for LED if they aren’t already. Minimal cost/effort and even if they are left on occasionally the energy used won’t cost anywhere near what installing all the quinetic/wi-fi control will.

If you absolutely want wi-fi control have a look at the lightwave light switches, they’re not cheap but they are really good, they state they don’t require a neutral at the switch but I have had issues where they don’t, dimly lit LEDs when off for example, it’s a bit of trial and error finding the right LED lamps that work with them correctly. Connecting a neutral to the switch resolved the issues.