First Project - Please advise. What Switch do I need?

[ComeOn]

I finally decided on Smartthing hub. My first project is to replace two switches that control the lights outside my house. Here is the link

GE Add-On Switch, Toggle Style for GE Z-Wave, GE ZigBee and GE Bluetooth Wireless Smart Lighting Controls, White, NOT A STANDALONE SWITCH, 12728 - - Amazon.com

Any thoughts? Please advise. All I want to do is schedule lights on and off. Maybe get a little fancy later by adding a sensor to determine sun light and shut off/on

Thanks in advance.

[GGexe (Eddy)]

Hi this is a addon switch that is use for a 3-way Setup.

DO NOT BUY THIS ONE

My guess you are automating on/off lights (not dimmers), if thats the case then

This one would be the one you should be buying

GE Z-Wave Wireless Smart Lighting Control Smart Toggle Switch, On/Off, In-Wall, White, Works with Amazon Alexa, 12727 - - Amazon.com

or

GE Z-Wave Wireless Smart Lighting Control Smart Toggle Switch, On/Off, In-Wall, White, Works with Amazon Alexa, 12727 - - Amazon.com

[PhilB]

I’m hoping this is the switch you purchased for the 2nd switch in a 3-way switch setup. This is an add-on switch. It contains no radio to connect to the SmartThings hub. It relies on a primary z-wave switch to talk to the hub.

[rontalley]

That’s just an add-on (slave) switch for the switches listed in the post. These are used to expand a GE Toggle Switch-12727 for 3 way or 4 way operations.

Check out the newer Z-Wave Plus switches. The GE compatible would be 14292.

[JDRoberts]

You can easily schedule lights to turn on and off with any light which is controlled by SmartThings. So it’s just a question of selecting the right light.

You said you have two switches – – do they both control the same light? Or are they controlling different lights?

If they are both controlling the same light, then in the US that is called a “three-way” set up. A common example would be the lights over the basement stairs. You might have one switch at the top of the stairs and another switch at the bottom of the stairs which both control the same light.

Three ways work a little differently with networked switches then they do with non-networked switches. One switch, the one that actually controls the current load to the light, Will be the master. The other switch will be the auxiliary, which GE calls an “add on.”

When you flip the add on switch it sends a message to the master and the Master actually controls the current to the light. The following FAQ explains more about that.

FAQ: Zwave Switches 101 for Noobie (What's an Add-on Switch for and Do You Have to Replace All the Switches in a 3-Way?)

Brand new to Smartthings and trying to get some areas of the house “connected” ASAP. Most of the devices available are intuitive enough to figure out, but one area that seems to be a bit confusing is the on/off light/scene/etc. switchs that are available. I am mainly confused with the 3/4-way options, the add on switches and how these inter-operate with existing switches (if at all). My initial understanding is that I can replace a single pole switch with something like the GE Z-Wave Wireless Lighting Control On/Off Switch, if I want it to be able to dim the lights I need one that supporting dimming. If I have a 3/4 way lighting setup I need to get a zwave/wireless switch that is capable of supporting 3/4 way. However does this mean I can just replace one of the existing switches with…

As others have mentioned, the specific device you linked to is an add on switch, which is why the product description says “not a standalone switch.” But that’s fine as long as both of your switches control the same light and the other switch is a master switch.

If by chance you bought two add-ons by mistake, you just need to return one of them and instead get a matching master switch for the master position.

However, if your two light switches control two different lights then you need to have two master switches, one for each light.

There is an excellent FAQ on wiring GE switches which should help a lot once you get the correct devices:

[FAQ] GE 3-Way Wiring

I’ve decided to put this FAQ together to help those with questions about installing GE 3-way switches. Definitions of terms: Line: The hot wire from the breaker (usually black) Neutral: The return wire for circuits (usually white) Load: The wire that will be hot when the circuit is completed to your light (usually black) Traveler: In existing 3-way wiring, this wire toggles hot between two switches. In a smart switch 3-way configuration, a smaller charge is looped through the add-on switch. Some things to know: 3-way wiring for smart switches is different than standard 3 way wiring. You cannot use dumb 3-way switches with most smart switches (You must purchase the matching GE add-on switch to wire with your GE smart master switch). If the line is wired into the light fixture, you …

[ComeOn]

Thank you for the explanation! I am new and my question while readying everyone’s post was “What is a three way switch” your explanation helped. The switches control separate lights. I will make sure to buy two masters.

[ComeOn]

Ok, thank you! I need two master switches since they control different lights. I’m sure my novice is showing here but this community seems to be willing to help.

Thanks again.