So, to clarify, the switch itself, when turned off, dims to what I estimate to be about 2% and in HomeAssistant it shows as off, and when I poll the device directly it reports as off. So there seems to be an energy leak somewhere.
When I turn it off physically, I watch the blue bar slowly decrease to zero, so everything seems to appear correct but it isn’t correct.
As for a bypass, I had that on my fluorescent but not on these. I actually was replacing another Z-Wave device that was already on those and thought I would try this “old” switch first to see how it behaves, so I don’t think a bypass is needed for the new light.
Got it. So the switch is off but the bulb is very dimly illuminated. This happens with non-neutrals but can happen with neutral installations as well. Bypasses are needed in some non-neutral cases just get to the switch to function properly. But with both neutral and non-neutral installations, bypasses can be used to remedy exactly what you are experiencing. Smart switches leak a bit, and if you have a LED that has a very low threshold, you may need a bypass to bleed off that leaked voltage.
One test would be to temporarily swap the bulb for an incandescent and see if the problem goes away.
@harjms can comment, as he has experienced this with neutral installations, I think.
If the switch does end up needing a bypass I wonder why that would be since the Z-Wave it is replacing didn’t need one. Fortunately I have several Inovelli’s that I bought for other lights so I’m going to swap one in today and if it has the same problem then we’ll know, if it doesn’t then the switch might be a lemon.
Swap the switch out for another Inovelli and see what happens, although changing the bulb will be easier if you have one.
Regarding one switch vs another, you can’t compare different brands as they perform differently. Sort of like comparing apples and oranges. It may be that the Inovelli leaks more than other brands.
Exact same issue. Which is interesting because I have Inovelli’s on several lights and they don’t do this. This, however, is a bit different because it’s not just a standard bulb, it’s actually 5 lights on a vanity, each one is a 5W T4 G9 which means it’s 30W, above the wattage where Inovelli’s seem to need a bypass.
The bypass between neutral and load did the trick on the new light. I guess I’ll have to stock up on some more bypasses just in case this pops up again, which I hope not because that adds $15 to each switch that is already more costly than the competition (but worth the extra in my opinion).
I still have to figure out how to get the fluorescent light working (the original topic) but for now at least I know the switch is OK.
Glad you got it going. Apparently the five bulbs were enough to bleed off any leakage and/or have a higher threshold, where the single bulb could not. This is going to vary by bulb model. A lot of LEDs do not have this issue with a neutral installation, but some apparently do.
Hello,
Sorry, the paddle makes the switch indicate via the LED that it was turned on but it would not pass power. I see a bypass got the other switch working. I picked a bypass up as well and will try it out.