Hello everyone, yup, another noob here. I had X-10 devices years ago, and learned that it wasn’t exactly dependable. But I did learn to add and remove devices and how to use Home Seer, a really old version, after all, this was many years ago. That system made me abandon my smart home project.
Recently I decided to give it another try. I’m just getting started and in the process of seeing if I need a hub. I have 4 GE Enbrighten Z-Wave in wall light switches, on/off, not dimmers. I also have two Eaton Aspire Z-Wave on/off switches. I also have a whole house dehumidifier and a Samsung TV that required I download Smart Things to my cell and open a Samsung account. So I have a very minor start. I planned on using my cell to operate the switches until I can get a hub. After some research it looks like I can’t use my cell until I get a hub.
After installing the GE switches and powering them up, I discovered that they don’t function at all. I have power on the line terminal, but no LED illuminated, and the lights they are supposed to control don’t turn on. I was wondering if anyone here has experience with these switches. I don’t know if I missed something when I wired them in or in set up, shoot; I haven’t even tried to insert them into a network yet. How do I know if I have faulty switches? (I understand I will probably have to get hold of their service dept, but it's closed on the weekends)
So, after X-10, and the GE switches, I don’t want to spend a whole bunch of money, I mean the switches are expensive enough. I have more questions, but I want to get the manual function of the GE switches to work before I go any further.
Thanks in advance to any and all that can help
@TRJ
No probs on adding the z-wave stuff. Do understand if they are not z-wave plus (you can check at the main z-wave alliance home page) You will have problems getting status and need to install z-wave poller to get status. You can't use your phone to operate the switches alone, you will need a hub. As to your lights not turning on, it's either you have the air gap pulled, the wiring is wrong, the switches are bad. They should work by themselves as manual switches. There have been some bad ones and it go so bad ge started offering extended warranties. Check your wiring. Line (hot) bottom, load (to light) top, and white to common... So if you look at the back, hot to lower left, load upper left, Very top is ground, lower right is white/common... Make sure that they're wired this way. Confirm your grounds and commons..
Hi Thanx alot. I was an electrician for over 20 years and I made the most boneheaded mistake an amateur could make. I jumped the neutrals from all the switches together but forgot to tie them into the neutral from the panel. They work fine manually now. I think I just panicked cuz I swore I wired em right. I double checked the Enbrighten switches for Z wave compatibility. They were advertised at amaz as z wave plus, but I just looked at the packages and nowhere does it say ‘plus’. They do say ‘S2’ and ‘Smartstart’.
I do want to run a network with a hub; I just wanted make sure they worked. After some research, it seems like z-wave is what I am looking for, even a bit more than I’m looking for. For now I just want the six lights to be accessed with our cell phones. That would be step 2 (step 1 was seeing the lights come on). Step 3 is choosing a hub, dongle, or what. That will come real soon now.
In the future I would like to add a front end, I have some old laptops or I would even consider something like a hub with built in touchscreen. I hope to run scenes, but I don’t think I’ll be doing security or anything fancy, at least not yet.
I'm pretty sure all the embrightened branded switches are Z-wave plus.
Welcome to our community!
You'll need something to translate your switches Z-Wave signals to a protocol/app your phones can understand before you can control your lights.
Of course everyone here recommends the Hubitat Elevation® hub for that. 
There may be simpler ways to control your switches, but HE will give you the best bang for the buck.
Look at Lutron Caseta switches over the GE.... Z-Wave and Zigbee for everything else. If you have an occasional table lamp, I'd recommend Lifx bulbs and use pico controllers on pedestals for manual shut off
I hate it when that happens. 
May I be so bold as to make a couple of suggestions?
Spring for the HE hub. You may find it daunting at first, but like so many good machines, it can be simple or complex. Whatever you choose to make it.
For me, I started with Z-Wave switches thinking I would standardize. I have now mixed my switches and devices to include both Z-Wave and Zigbee. No big deal. Z-wave is good, Z-wave Plus is better. Zigbee seems to have a better offering for wireless contacts with more power efficient battery devices.
In both formats, battery powered (wireless) devices do not act as repeaters so you need some wired devices scattered around the house to keep their respective mesh networks stable. Put both a Z-wave and Zigbee powered switch near your hub -- say 20-30 ft distant depending on walls, etc.
As you are an electrician, you will probably be more comfortable changing our switches than worrying about individual bulbs. I found that route to be more efficient with my time and $$.
