Also, check out page 10 of https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/www.mrcdn.com/pdf/ge-appliances/ge-45612-ge-zwave-dimmer-switch-with-terminals-owners-manual.pdf for the wiring diagram.
Agreeing with @notoriousbdg, you can definitely make this work.
At switch 1:
- Black from the breaker to switch 1 ālineā
- White from the breaker to switch 1 neutral and to white going to light
- Black going to switch connects to switch 1 āloadā
- Red going to light connects to switch 1 "traveler"
At light: - Black from switch 1 connects to lightās black
- White from switch 1 connects to lightās white and to white going to switch 2
- Red from switch 1 connects to red to switch 2
At switch 2: - White from light connects to switch 2 āneutralā
- Red from light connects to switch 2 ātravelerā
- Black from light gets capped (connects to nothing)
Believe it or not but that 's not technical enough. The trick is to note down all the terminals and wires on the old switches before removing them. This will actually tell you the wiring configuration. I did quite a few repair before and colours mean nothing. There are quit a few crazy diy people out there that donāt really care out color. Once you have that info we will sure can help you make it work.
1 Like
Thank you both for the added information here. I know that this has to work, I was just hoping someone would be able to help me figure it out if theyāve done it before. As far as the wiring is concerned Iām absolutely sure of which wires are coming from the breaker and to the light and to the switch. Took me a few hours to figure out how the original home owners wired a lot of things incorrectly. Anyways, once I get another few minutes to give this another go I will for sure get back to you on how I make out.
Since Iām not the only person that will have this issue in the future, if it works, Iāll try to make a visual wiring diagram to help others in the future.
Wish me luck!
Thanks
I donāt doubt your info above at all just want to know the wires going to each terminal on the switches and light. This way we can figure out the load and travellers.
My very first post had a very detailed textual breakdown. Was that not understandable? Iād send a picture/drawing if I could. Let me know what else you need hereā¦
Edited to add following new textual diagram.
If the other ones were hard to understand maybe this is a bit easier?
Cable from Breaker
Black/White into Switch1
Cable from Switch1
Black/White/Red into Light
Cable from Switch2
Black/White/Red into light
Leaving the grounds out per usualā¦but theyāre there
actually the reason why you have a hard time is because the GE master should be at Switch 2 box. GE AUX at Switch 1.
Switch box 1 ) hereās how to wire it up. at Switch one. Connect the Hot (black) with Black wire going to Switch box 2. This wire will be your new hot wire at switch box 2.
Switch box 1 ) neutral (white) connect with the other neutral white going to switch box 2. Also make a pigtail wire for your GE AUX later.
Switch box 1) red will be use later for your GE AUX.
Switch box 2 ) connect new Black ( hot) from Box 1 to line on GE master, neutral to the rest of neutral and switchā¦
and the rest should be easy.
edit : forgot to mention the red wire is your traveller
1 Like
Where does the light box play a role here in your last post? The reason Iām having issues in the first place is because switch box one goes to the light box. There is a totally separate set of cables running from the light box to the second switch box.
I believe @Navat604 is describing the same type of configuration as in the GE wiring diagram, where the traveler wire runs directly between the master switch and the aux switch. Which doesnāt apply to your situation where the two switches donāt share a wire.
For dumb switches in a 3 or 4 way setup there are at 5 to 8 ways to run the wire, depending on just what you count as a differential.
For smart switches, though, there are usually fewer options because the aux typically is not to be connected to the hot wire and is not load bearing, although, as @obycode suggested, you might be able to use the fixture as a junction box and tie together wires there. But this is tricky stuff and may not be to local code. I personally prefer to bring in an electrician at that point.
Hereās another example, but read carefully: what he ended up doing is different from the picture he includes, which is his point. He used the fixture as a junction box for the neutral, NOT the hot wire. But he ran the traveler wire directly from the master to the aux, bypassing the fixture.
Geeze, I totally misread the original post. For whatever reason I assume you have 5 wires going to box 2. Half asleep with my kitchen reno. Check your PM for a picture I sent. Hope that will help.
@Navat604 the diagram you sent me worked! Pretty much the same link JD sent over as well. Thank you everyone who had a helping hand here. Wife factor went up a few XP not to mention Iāll be able to rest easy tonight knowing itās finally working.
As a favor in return Iāll work on a better visual diagram of how I actually have it wired up now.
Thank you all again. Seriously great work.
@Navat604 is totally correct that the key is to find out what box the load (the light) is connected to and work back from there. Where the load is, is where your master switch is. Now all you have to do is figure out how you are going to get the traveler and a neutral to the aux switch, and if the box where the load is doesnāt have a hot wire, a hot wire thereā¦ This is actually in many ways MUCH easier than traditional three/four-way wiring, but it is a totally different dichotomy, so you have to get used to that.
So hereās something strange that just started happening. The same light that is now using the GE dimmer kit that you guys helped me figure out the wiring for in this thread just started flickering and not powering off entirely. Very strange. It worked up until I got home today. Any ideas? Basically the light wonāt turn all the way off when I press the switch to power off, itās much softer but doesnāt actually turn off. When I turn it on it looks like the light when itās normally on but when I hold the dimmer up to turn the brightness up, it starts to flicker. Iām stumped. I could understand this happening if it never worked but since it was working just fine, I donāt know where to go with it. Could something on the light have gone bad? Or the switch?
It sounds like the bulbs youāre using arenāt dimmable. What type of bulbs are you using?
Itās a slimline LED unit. Iām sure if I took it down I could get the model number. It was purchased because it was dimmable. The old dimmer worked on it for over a year. The new GE dimmer worked with it for about a week. This is whats been making me scratch my head.
3 possibilities. Bad bulb, bad switch or loose wiring. Easiest way is test it with another bulb first.
At least 4 possibilities: something else has been added on the circuit.
Given that this is a DIY situation where there was considerable confusion initially, I would first call in an electrician. Incorrect wiring can lead to shorts that could damage the fixture/switch. Better safe than sorry and all that.
2 Likes
Update: so I had a certified electrician come over. After multiple variations and tests which also included opening a new pack of the GE dimmers, they still donāt work right. I hate to say it but Iāve spent long enough on a technology that should be much simpler. They are all going back. I wired up a new dumb dimmer 3 way setup and plugged in a $15 smart bulb, which is what I should have done from the beginning. From what Iāve read and heard Iām not the only person whoās had issues with these GE kits. If the product worked like every other one Iāve come into contact with they might actually get a 4/5 star rating. Iām giving them a 1 star. Very disappointed.
On a positive note, SmartThings is pretty awesome and I was able to demo a bunch of cool ideas to a handful of people at an event today.
1 Like
Sorry it was so much hassle, but sounds like youāve got a good direction now.
I hate dealing with wiring anyway, so I like plug ins, battery operated toggles, and smart bulbs. But āall home automation is localāāwhatās good for me might not work for someone else. 