If i have 2 fans each with a light. can i use 2 of the controllers one mounted in each fan but a single switch to control both. maybe 1 click turns them both on. 2 clicks will turn 1 on or off and 3 click would turn the other on or off? looking to conserve space in the box. from looking at the wiring diagram, it seems like you could bypass any switch in the box by just connecting the wires so the power would not have to go through the switch itself just control 2 controllers in the fans.
Unfortunately 1 switch can only pair with one canopy module. What you can do is “hide” a second switch and associate them together so that the “slave” switch mimic’s the main switch, and both fans are controlled.
Also, just confirming so you understand, the switch shares mains power with the canopy at all times, and relies on RF to transfer information between the switch and the canopy module.
Kreene. i believe i understand how it works which is what i was trying to say the second fan could just be wired direct. no switch to cut power to it. from the diagram the black goes to the switch and then out to the fan which i guess powers the switch and also passes power to the canopy and fan. so if they could pair with 2 i could just connect the 2 blacks together for the second fan in the box. so the switch would be wired into the first fan which shares power all the way up and the second fan would just be a direct connect controlled by the rf module. my issue im looking to resolve is i have a lot of switches and the inovelli reds do not fit together without breaking some fins off. im trying to avoid breaking the fins and this would have given me some space in the box to do this. please let me know if i have anything wrong in my understanding so im not looking at things invorrectly.
So you’re saying that you want to run two fan motors in parallel. The first thing that comes to mind is that the canopy module is only designed to carry the load of one fan. It’s rated for 1 amp, which is just above the typical load of a ceiling fan motor.
Even if the canopy module would support this (which it won’t) it wouldn’t surprise me if the fans turned at the different speeds.
Why?
for the first part.
1 switch 2 modules 1 in each fan. so i would still buy 2 just want 1 of the switches to control both of the ceiling rf modules
for the second
the fins are there for a heat sync reducing them means more heat. even if im under the limit its still more possible heat. so i would rather not have heat if i can avoid it in the electrical box. when my house was put together they have some switch boxes with 4 and 5 switches. so some heat of off each switch can still build up
Not possible. Only one switch can control one canopy.
There’s no load on the switch. The load is at the canopy. The switch is basically a remote for the canopy and the load is basically what it takes to power up the brains of the switch (not much heat at all).
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I think Kevin already answered your question regarding one switch and two modules.
he did. i was clarifying what i had asked it appeared from the question the understanding was 1 switch and 1 rf to control 2 fans with the 1 amp and fan motor. that is all my questions answered the fins was just why i wanted to know this. thank you to everyone who helped out.
actually im sorry i was not clear in my statement and i see why the confusion now. if i could use 1 fan controller to control 2 fans i would have more room in the electric box for my red dimmers and not have to remove the fins from the red dimmers not the fan fins. i should have mentioned that sorry for the confusion. i have 4 switches in the box 2 for fans and 2 for lights. if reduced it to 3 i could keep all the fins on the red sliders in the same electric box as the fans.
Yep, the bottom line is it’s one controller to one fan. You shouldn’t be fearful of removing heatsink tabs, particularly with the fan controller. As @harjms explained, there is very little draw one the switch itself, because it’s only powering it’s internal components. So with a low current draw, there should be little, if any, heat to dissipate.
Perhaps a number of LZW36 users will respond here and comment regarding if their switches feel warm so you’ll get a general sense of this.
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Also, just confirming so you understand, the switch shares mains power with the canopy at all times, and relies on RF to transfer information between the switch and the canopy module.
Just to clarify this isn’t totally true. The switch can be on a completely different circuit if you wanted it to be since it does not actually control power to the load(… basically it’s just tied to line and not relayed). The RF part is true though.
I read another thread where a user with multiple units had issues and tried to swap modules between rooms. When he tried to pair them to the wall switch he managed to pair 2 fan modules with one switch. He could turn on or off the fans in both rooms with one switch.