Remote Control for 110 vac outlet?

[Bob F]

I have x10 stuff, it says the same warning on dimmable lamp modules, No flourescent, No apliances-motors. But I have had one lamp module on a small fan for years that I wanted to run slower than its low set speed, with no failure or overheating and I use them on flourescents. Alot of warnings are for liability and missuse, if logic and care is used you have more options.

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I had a X10 module controlling a 1/3 HP hot tub pump a lomg time ago. One day IO looked at it and relized that the module I was using was a lamp module, which had worked fine for many months. I did quickly swap in an appliance module.

[clare]

They will control flourescents if they are ALSO controlling a standard incandescent lamp or resistive load. They will handle transformers just fine, but will likely have problems with switch mode power supplies unless they also have a resistive load connected at the same time.

They are not recommended for "appliances" because of high starting currents etc. For your application, from what I made of it, you would have been just fine.

[Mark Lloyd]

[snip]

I need to replace one too. It's doing that, and about 30% of the time it won't turn off. It thinks it's off but isn't. You have to send an ON command before it responds to another OFF.

They made a bad choice for default.

There is smarthome, but they cheated me out of over $90 (for Insteon devices, which never worked reliably like X10 did).

[Mark Lloyd]

[snip]

That's when I have used the receptacle modules, which lack the limitations of appliance modules (those are marked "15A unconditional" with no additional limits for motors and lamps).

[CWLee]

I solved my problem with a $15 "Remote Control System" from The Stanley Works. Purchased it at OSH (a California based hardware store, owned, I believe, by Sears) and it seems to work fine. Mine is in black and the remote has a keychain attached. For $1 more I could have had the same unit in green (sold in the Xmas tree lighting department) and without the keychain. I chose black to fit better with the colors in the display. For $20 one can get a very similar package, but which will control two items, each in a different outlet, by a remote that can select either outlet.

Thanks for the various replies on this topic.

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[terry]

The warning not to switch fluorescents and some other devices is most likely because they have inductive reactance due to coils and transformers in them. However a very small transformer handling a few watts while it will definitely have some reactance may be well within limits. Here am making an assumption based on insufficient information in the original post, that we are talking about only one or two low power 12 volt bulbs; probably totalling no more than say 12 to 15 watts. i.e. about one amp at 12 volts? The equivalent, say, of a couple of small auto bulbs! Suggestion: Have the remote control device switch on and off a 100 watt light bulb (which could be concealed if necessary) AND the primary 115 volt input to the transformer. Rationale: The incandescent lamp/bulb is a resistance and will be a resistive load across the inductive load of the transformer. In effect the resistance of the lamp bulb will 'dampen' (shunt) the effect of any inductive reactance of the transformer. Now if you are talking heavy 12 loads etc. bets are off. Would then probably be better to use a relay of some sort. Post again if desired.