I've got one, maybe 2, issues with a motion sensing fixture.
I have 2 of the same fixtures. One by the front door, controlled by "standard" X10 dimmer switch, i.e. not a 3-way switch. The fixture has it's own motion sensor. This fixture has been in operation for over
5 years with no problems.The other location is near the garage door and is controlled by a
3-way X10 switch, one inside the house and one in the garage. The fixture(s) in that location have failed 3 times in the same five years. Same model, same set up other than the 3-way switching. I should note that the switches rarely even get used, other than to set the initial brightness. The motion sensors do all of the hard work.I know the fixtures themselves are bad because once they fail, they will not work even if wired directly to the power. In one case, I jumpered around the motion sensor and the bulb lit, so something seems to be frying the motion sensor portion.
Last night I unhooked the fixture and tested the voltage coming from the
3-way switches: 87V. That didn't surprise me since I keep the fixtures slightly dimmed. What did surprise me was that I could not adjust that voltage via the X10 switches. I did not have ready access to another fixture to use as a load for the X10 switches, so my testing ended there. I plan to hook something up tonight, but I'd figured I'd post my question anyway.So, the first question is: Do the X10 switches need a load in order to dim/undim or should I be able to see the voltage change when I hold the button?
The second question is "Is it possible that I have simply gotten 3 bad fixtures in 5 years?" (That's not really a question looking for an answer, *of course* that could have happened.)
They are not expensive fixtures, but if they are that bad, I would think that the one by the front door - which gets activated way more times than the garage fixture - would have failed by now.