Zooz (or other zwave) vs lutron for lighting

💡 Lighting
22

This is new information for me. When I was researching hardware, I looked it up and other articles state Caseta needs internet to add new devices.

This is why I chose to avoid SmartThings. :slight_smile:
The only 'true' panacea is HomeAssistant, but I value my time enough to compromise and pick Hubitat.

23

I've fully automated three of my own personal homes, and soon to automate a new Casita on our current property...

home #1: Z-Wave switches and dimmers (~25 units)
home #2: Z-Wave switches and dimmers, later changed to Zigbee (~35 units), Lutron Caséta for shades and Picos.
current home #3: Lutron Caséta dimmers and switches + RA2 for shades, thermostats and motion sensors and garage door controllers.
Casita #4: Lutron RA3, switches, dimmers and shades.

Yes, the products command a premium price, but they are a premium product.
The only Lutron devices I'm not super happy with are the RA2 motion sensors, they are a tad slower (100ms maybe) than their Zigbee counterparts.

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24

Thanks everyone lots of good info. I think I’m going with a combo. Lutron in high traffic areas and Zooz in less important areas

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25

I have an elderly parent at home. I can get around in the dark, and/or reach for a flashlight when necessary, but aging may have a profound effect when a "usual" routine is altered. I feel that her safety is non-negotiable and have included as many safeguards as possible in my automation to protect this. I generally agree that a partially functional system is less than ideal, but to know that lighting will work so as to help prevent falls or problems in the dark, I'm happier with this.

26

i ended up going with almost all lutron and it’s been rock solid. the only non lutron was stuff i owned already. little more expensive but great experience a year later

27

Disclaimer... I've never tried Lutron Caseta due to my concerns about the maximum distances.

Is the maximum distance between the Lutron Caseta hub (or repeater) and devices of 30' a real maximum, or is Lutron being very conservative? Same question for 60' distance between hub and repeater.

How much are Lutron Caseta devices affected by interior obstructions (walls, furniture, etc.) compared to z-wave devices?

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28

Losing tap events is enough reason for me to stick with my inovelli switches. I would want the diva switches as I don't like the looks of the Pico style switches. I'm an electrician and can get them at a discount but still holding back.

29

Their distance estimations are absurdly conservative - I have no idea why they say that low, but unless you live in a ginormous & sprawling mansion, range is not a problem.

I'd say the protocol is much more immune to obstructions than ZW (or ZB or wifi for that matter). It's a hella impressive system in terms of reliability - no other smart system comes close in that regard.

30

Or - In this day and age, and given recent Hubitat matter support, is it better to just go with Matter/WiFi switches/dimmers, as Wifi is definitely a larger standard that's easier to troubleshoot, expand, control via VLANs, etc - versus LEAP, Zwave, or Zigbee - I know Leviton is now making Matter/WifI switches, Dimmers, and there are others coming shortly. - My early GE/Jasco gear is starting to die, and while I'm a definite ZWave/Zooz fan (50+ nodes), I'm experienced enough to know that strong/working ZWave mesh can be fragile/delicate thing- IMHO

I think Matter/Thread is still a bit "under-cooked", given various credential sharing "teething issues" - but longer term, it seems like some flavor of Matter device is going to integrate more cleanly in a heterogenous enviroment, versus yet another (Lutron) hub. Then again, I'm a fan of LIFX over Hue, so perhaps my TCP/IP bias is showing.

Just my 2 cents.

31

@hydro311 I would say the house is "semi-sprawling" thanks to the attached garage. It's basically rectangular, but it's 140' side-to-side with the attached garage making up 40' of the 140' width. I will need some devices on both side/end walls, including the garage side wall. The house averages about 35' front to back.

So will a single Caseta hub and a repeater cover the perimeter walls of a 140' x 35' rectangle?

32

I'm not an installer or anything like that, but I'd start with just the main hub (placed as centrally as possible). If range ends up questionable, then add a repeater.

33

I have a detached garage around 80' from the Lutron Bridge. It was working but with delays. A repeater in the middle solved that issue.

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