Should my blue switch be mirroring Aux switch button presses?

Switches General Discussion
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I have just installed my first Aux switch (AUX01) on a 3-way circuit with a Blue switch (VZM31-SN).

I have set up my Blue switch in Hubitat as ‘Multi-Way with Aux Switch’.

I have also followed the instructions of holding the top switch on my Blue and pressing the config button 5 times (is this what people mean by setting the switch to ‘3-way momentary?)

My Blue switch is working as expected - as an on/off switch with up/down paddle presses. I will eventually set it up as a smart switch with Hue bulbs but first I want to make sure everything is working. The config button on my Blue Switch does not control any lights or scenes.

Here is the problem: the only reliable behaviour I can get from my Aux switch is that the config button toggles the lights on/off. The paddles do nothing 95% of the time but very occasionally, they will do the opposite of what is expected (pressing down on the paddle turns the lights on, pressing up turns them off).
( Edit: I am only logging presses from the Config button (very consistently, 100%) and Down Paddle (about 5 - 10% of the time). There is no response at all from the Up paddle and I am not 100% sure if there ever was).

Yes I am sure the switch isn’t installed upside-down.

Any ideas? I have done a factory reset on the Blue switch and restarted my hub.

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That is the proper quick tap sequence. Does the LED bar flash white before you release the paddle?

I would double-check the setting in your hub. It’s often preferable to set parameters there.

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Yes I get the white flashes when setting this mode on the Blue switch before I release the paddle. I have also set parameter 22 on my Hubitat Hub to ‘multi-way with aux switch’. Is there anything else I should be setting up in Hubitat?

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@harjms or @hydro311 should confirm, but from memory, in Hubitat, you should do a Configure All, Refress All and then reload the page to ensure the setting stuck.

Neutral or non-neutral config? What conductor is connected to the Aux’s Neutral terminal?

I would pull both switches and tug on the conductors to ensure they are firmly connected.

5

Thanks for the help.

Switch is setup with neutral wire, traveller, and ground. I checked and all connections are solid.

I did ‘Configure All’ and ‘Refresh All’ in Hubitat and refreshed my connection to the hub.

Aux Switch behaviour:

  • Config button logs alternately as ‘Button 1 pushed’ and ‘Button 1 held’. This is consistent and reliable. Pushing the Config button toggles the lights on/off.
  • Down paddle logs as ‘Button 1 pushed’. It only registers occasionally (~ 10% of the time?). This turns on the lights.
  • Up paddle does not register or log at all. Looking back, I’m not sure it ever did or if it was only the down paddle and config button that were working originally.

Could this behaviour be the result of a defect with the Aux switch?

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What is the wiring configuration on the Blue 2-1 Dimmer, neutral or non-neutral?

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Both switches have neutral wires.

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In an abundance of caution, I do always do a full “Config - All”, then “Refresh - All”, and then page refresh as a final confirmation when updating any parameters in Hubitat.

I think Mark Amber has said before that’s not always necessary, but I like to belt-&-suspenders it every time.

I keep a Live Logs page open in another tab to monitor progress, since the “Config - All” and “Refresh - All” steps each take several seconds to complete.

I wish I could help more specifcally here, but I don’t use any Auxes so I have no experience with them.

This is a long shot, but have you checked your ground wire connection in each switch? Perhaps they have since fixed the design, but with (at least) early Blues, it’s easy to poke the ground wire too far into the termimal, and that can mess with how the paddle moves and registers pressses/holds.

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Thanks for the tip about having live log in a separate window when doing the full config and reset. Aux switch behaviour is still the same and I have checked that the ground wires are not pushed in too far.

The thing that puzzles me is that the Config button on the Aux switch is 100% reliable - it works every time to toggle the lights on / off. The connection between the switches is solid, it is just registering the wrong button presses.

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It seems weird to me that the config button on the Aux would toggle the load on the dimmer.

P123 is Aux Switch Unique Scenes. Is that disabled, which it should be by default?

Also, I would consider factory resetting the dimmer.

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P123 is disabled. I have reset the dimmer.

I think I’m going to return it on the assumption that the Aux switch is defective.

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12

Can you put it in dimmer mode and test when the level is set to be around 50%?

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In dimmer mode at 50% my lights flash like a disco party (Hue smart bulbs - meant for constant power). The Aux switch config button still toggles them on/off.

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Doing a Refresh All after Config All is redundant. However it doesn’t hurt anything if your mind is set on doing it :wink:

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15

I missed that you had Hue bulbs so that doesn’t work.

Aux switch is just different resistors connected when the paddle is pressed. Sometimes, the switch can have difficulty detecting the resistance that is connected. Only test I could suggest is trying it with a normal old bulb just to see if that makes a difference.

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