Please help me understand powering/drivers/controlling LED strips.
All the LED strips I have bought require a "controller" that is apparently also a power supply/ transformer to go from 110v household to 24v or 12v low voltage and a driver. If the LED strips are dimmable, the "controller" is also a dimmable controller/driver/power supply. These are controller/driver/power supplies bought from LED strip companies (not Amazon) that lack zigbee or zwave control.
- If the LED strips are to be controlled ONLY via automations (no wall switch needed) then there seem to be several options
a. Buy a controller/power supply/driver device that ALSO has zigbee or zwave built in. Some are dimmable, some are not, but in any case it will all be controlled from HE.
b. Buy the controller/power supply/driver device recommended for the particular LED strip, then buy an additional device such as a Zooz Zen31.
- Is the Zen 31 installed between the outlet and the combined device, or between the combined device & LED strips?
c. Buy a power supply, then a separate controller/dimmer that has zwave built in, such as:
Z-Wave LED Dimmer
- If the LED strips are also to be controlled by a line voltage Zwave or zigbee wall switch dimmer, I'm not sure what to buy. I know I need a power supply, which I presume steps down the voltage feeding the LED strips, but what are the balance of the specs?
You’ll need a controller like this one:
And also a power supply of 5v, 12v or 24v depending on what your LED Strip requires.
Ali express is typically cheaper, Amazon will typically ship faster and has better return options.
The controller you get should have the correct type of connection, 2 for white, 3 for CCT, 4 for RGB, 5 for RGB-W or 6 for RGB-CCT.
I've used Fibaro Z Wave RGBW Controller modules for mine. The power supply (12V DC in my case) supplies the controller permanently and the RGBWW (red, green, blue, warm white) strip connects to the controller. Previously I'd used warm white only strip and for that I'd simply connected it directly to the 12V DC supply and energised that supply via a z wave switch (line voltage) which was preferable for direct control from the wall if needed. Unfortunately the RGBW is reliant on the Z Wave controller and hub being functional.
What I'd like, that I don't think exists, but should be relatively easy to build - a dumb RGBW controller. This would be a 12V DC power supply with terminals for the RGBW channels and potentiometers/variable resistors to adjust the levels, allowing you to tune the strip to your desired colour. I'd then just power that up using a line voltage Z Wave switch. Doing that would allow me to use it in automations, use a wall switch for manual control and it would be controllable manually with the hub down if needed. Once I've selected my colour scheme I don't need to change it or use any of the special effects.
