Dimmer on 2 way lighting.

[The Medway Handyman]

Am I right in thinking you can fit a dimmer switch to a 2 way hall/stairs/landing setup - as long as only one switch is a dimmer & t'other normal?

[The Natural Philosopher]

yes.

You will curse the day when your wife says 'the light isn't working dear' and you leap off the bog to discover she hasn't turned the dimmer up at the far end of the hall.

[Bob Minchin]

Yes

[Graham.]

That's true about conventional dimmers with a potentiometer but there are *bound* to be more elegant solutions that can be controlled from multiple points. Someone will be along to tell us I'm sure.

[Andy Burns]

You can get master/slave dimmers e.g.

which can be toggled or dimmed from multiple points

[John Rumm]

Yes and no... ;-)

With a "normal" two way dimmer switch, yes you use one plus a normal switch. However its not an ideal situation since when you are the wrong end and someone left the other end on minimum, its as good as not being able to turn the light on.

The more refined solution is a Master / Slave dimmer pair (TLC do them). Then you can turn them on and off and adjust the brightness from either end. (you can also have multiple slaves on one master to give three or more position switching.

[Graham.]

Ah, that's interesting, I photographed this at my daughters new house. Same product, different branding on the RC.

It's just being used a stand-alone switch and RC, I didn't know they were so versatile, and the price is very nice too.

[The Medway Handyman]

Normal dimmer would prolly work in this application.

In our small hall we have a 3 gang switch, one for the outside light, one for a single downlighter in the hall, and the third for four downlighters over the stairs & one on the landing.

SWMBO goes to bed earlier than I do, and turns off the landing/stairs lights - otherwise it shines into the bedroom through a glass panel over the door.

Problem is, if I go for a pee or when I go to bed, the stairs are in darkness.

Don't really want to have to chase out the hall wall to fit a bigger 3 gang switch box - which I assume I'd have to do to fit a master/slave pair?

[polygonum]

How about one of the cheap and readily-available battery presence-detecting LED lights? No need for a switch. Comes on if dark and sense you.

Or fix the real problem. Reinforce bladder.

[Owain]

Perhaps SWMBO could run up a little curtain for the glass panel? It might take her mind off ceiling fans if you kept her busy.

LEG nightlight.

Owain

[Tim Lamb]

Or paint over the glass in the bedroom door?

>

[Dave Liquorice]

Train SWMBO'd to sleep without it being pitch black.

Naw that'll never happen, cover panel with blackout material.

[Brian Gaff]

Electrically yes assuming both bulbs in a system are compatible. I used to have one some years ago now but removed it as it was not really much use to me any more!

Brian

[Brian Gaff]

This sounds like a great use of a radio dimmer to me. Brian

[Adrian C]

Fit one way glass?

Strip of LEDs running down the stairs at floor level, or perhaps under a stair rail?

Or repaint part of the stairs with special paint, available in yellow ...

[S Viemeister]

We have a few motion-sensor LED lights in the halls and stairwell - just enough light to see your way at night, not enough to bother sleepers.

[Grimly Curmudgeon]

Liquid Emitting Gnome?