Alright, so I installed the new no-neutral GE dimmer over the weekend. The load it is hooked up to is 8 high-end dimmable LED tubes, which had previously been dimming perfectly using a Fibaro Dimmer 2. Well, the GE no-neutral dimmer causes pulsing in the light output, at all brightness levels. I'd say the pulsing is at about 3 or 4 hertz.
So I've ordered a bypass, and I'll try that out. But if that doesn't work, I'm going back to the Fibaro and this GE is going in the garbage. The Fibaro's documentation has many more z-wave parameters and options for configuring it for different load types. Maybe GE just cheaped out on the internals of their dimmer?
Yes, it is. And that's assuming it works with the bypass. Fortunately, I only have one light switch in my house that doesn't have a neutral. The rest all have neutrals.
I do hope I can get it to work with the bypass, because the rest of my switches/dimmers are GE/Jasco, and I like them all to have the same feel. And I'd like to have the status light.
Well, turns out it's a piece of junk. ** Even with a bypass installed, I get pulsing at about 3-4 hz, at all brightness levels. And this is with high-end dimmable LED tubes. (I'm a stickler for high quality light, so I paid out the nose to get dimmable tubes at 3000k, with > 95% CRI.)
** Disclaimer: It might not be a piece of junk for you. Maybe it'll work with your bulbs. YMMV. But I'm going to go back to the Fibaro dimmer that worked perfectly with these LEDs.
Mine arrives in a couple weeks (got it on Amazon to avoid the shipping on Jasco, and for easier return). We'll see how it goes for me - I'll just be controlling one LED bulb. Hopefully my simple setup will be successful. If not, back it goes! Not going to pay additional for a bypass. All of my other switches are GE/Jasco/Honeywell so like you I'd prefer for this one to work so it has a consistent look and feel.
Some further research shows that the Lithonia wafer lights I am using this dimmer with are generally "smart dimmer hostile". Zooz does not support them on their ZEN22/24 (triac dimmer), either. Looks like the only decora smart dimmer I can be sure works with these is the older GE 14294 (which I will have to find on eBay), so I am going to have to try and get a neutral in this box. I have similar lights in another room on a GE 14295 (which works fine), but apparently it was just dumb luck on my part.
I installed this Enbrighten Z-wave dimmer on one can downlight that is over the kitchen sink. For some reason, this is the only fixture in the house that does not have a neutral.
Even at the 1% minimum dimming level allowed by the dimmer, the LED bulb still would not turn off and was dimly lit.
I guess I could try different LED bulbs, but I gave up and removed the dimmer and will be returning it. Oh well, it was a good try.
So I had issues with the built in LED in my new laundry room exhaust fan and the old Enbrighten ZW+ dimmer (technically the Honeywell one), where the light was pulsing. On a whim, I grabbed a new no neutral dimmer for the room, and it's working great! No flickering at 1% or 100%, and the light properly turns off!
Very happy about this but...what driver are people using for this? The built in GE Enbrighten Dimmer seemed to work, and @JasonJoel's seems to be working great (the default brightness levels etc all seem to be working at first glance). Assume that's what most are using?
Update: The light IS buzzing...but working. Acceptable until the wife disagrees, as far as I'm concerned. Excited to grab a couple more (maybe Black Friday?) for a couple switches in my basement I thought I'd have to run neutrals to.
Side note: I have a neutral in this box, hence my being able to use the previous gen dimmer, but the pulsing was bad.
