Leviton releases 5 zwave plus devices--solves low load glow problem

Devices & Integrations Connected Things
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Leviton has now released their five new zwave plus models. There are some significant changes from previous generations. Also know that at the same time they have released devices with the identical cases but other protocols, including Wi-Fi models. So make sure you are buying the Z wave +ones if you want them to work directly with SmartThings.

These are a 600 W dimmer, a 1000 W dimmer, a plain on/off switch, an appliance module pocket socket and a dimmer pocket socket (no grounding plug).

1) “Decora Smart” form factor. In previous generations, the Z wave models didn’t use the Decora rocker form which Leviton invented. Instead, because these were momentary switches, there was a paddle where you always pressed at the bottom of the paddle regardless of whether you were turning the switch on or off. Some people liked these, but a lot of people didn’t.

The new model is a regular Decora rocker switch. You press the top for on and the bottom for off. In between use, the switch rests in a neutral position.

2) more colors. The new line is available in many colors, including almond, grey, brown, and black.

3) no load sensing–but will work even with just one LED. previous generations of Leviton zwave Devices have had a problem with trickle current which would keep a single LED lit softly even when the device was turned off. There are several forum threads on this with the usual recommendation being to increase the load, typically by adding a phone charger to a pocket socket or one incandescent bulb to a fixture just to allow the lights to be turned off completely. the official Leviton blog article announcing the new devices specifically says they can turn off a single LED.

The new lighting control accessories are engineered to function with extremely sensitive, low-wattage light sources, such as a single LED bulb in a hallway or a strand of holiday lights, ensuring LEDs do not glow when off.

@Navat604 should be happy about that. :sunglasses:

4) New Auxiliary Switch since the new masters have a different form, the new auxiliaries do also. They still use physical traveler wires. And there are now two different auxiliary switch models, one that has an LED indicator light and one that does not, although I only saw the one with the LED being offered for sale. DD00R-DL and DD00R-DLZ.

I was confused by the product descriptions on this auxiliary when it first came out because they are promoting it for use with the new Bluetooth master switch from the “Decora digital” line as opposed to the “Decora smart” zwave plus line. But it’s the same auxiliary, it communicates with its master with physical traveler wires. The auxiliary does not have a radio of any kind.

The difference between this and the older VP00R auxiliary is that the new one is a rocker switch and the old one had the same design as the Vizia where you always press the bottom.

https://www.amazon.com/Leviton-DD00R-DLZ-120VAC-Digital-Matching/dp/B01AFU1KOY/

5) “Two way feedback” instead of “instant status” there are some complicated technical and legal reasons for changing this phrase, but it’s basically good news for customers. :sunglasses:

6) Pricing discounts. Pricing looks like it’s going to be about the same, but previously Leviton discouraged their distribution channels from discounting the devices, and at least right now it looks like they’re encouraging those discounts. So definitely shop around now, you will probably see quite a bit of price variation on the new models.

https://www.amazon.com/Leviton-DZ15S-1BZ-Decora-Switch-Technology/dp/B01MZ0WVKH
.
https://www.amazon.com/Leviton-DZ15S-1BZ-Decora-Switch-Technology/dp/B01N4F487U

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So are these devices officially supported by SmartThings? The reason I ask is because I have a bunch of the DZ6HD dimmers and DZ15S switches and have noticed some things that might need to be fixed with a firmware update. So I’m assuming that SmartThings would have to allow the firmware update to be issued by the hub, is that true?

In case anybody else can confirm these issues on their devices:

ISSUE #1:
The status of the DZ6HD dimmer can get out of sync with SmartThings. The issue can be reproduced with the following steps:

  1. Turn light off
  2. Use the thin dim level paddle to adjust the dimmer setting and either
    (a) do not press up on the main paddle, OR
    (b) press down on the main paddle

The DZ6HD reports to SmartThings that the light is on at the dim level chosen using the thin dimmer paddle. However, the light is actually off and out of sync with SmartThings. The issue can be resolved by turning the light on and then off. Refreshing the status of the dimmer does not fix anything, since the DZ6HD just keeps reporting that the light is on.

I spent a while playing with the device handler in SmartThings and looking at the logs and it appears that the DZ6HD reports the same Z-Wave information to SmartThings when the dimmer is adjusted with the light off as it does when the dimmer is adjusted with the light on. I’m not sure if there is a way for the DZ6HD to report that the dimmer setting has changed, but the light is actually off. So the solution may be to report that the light is off even if the dimmer setting has changed locally on the device.

ISSUE #2:
Do the matching remotes on the dimmers and switches trigger instant “two way feedback”? I want to purchase a DZ1KD dimmer and DD00R remote, but first want to make sure that the remote causes the DZ1KD to report updates to the hub. Another post on this forum talked about this not happening with the DZ15S switch and the remote. If this is the case it would seem to also require a firmware update.

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Hmmm, very tempting to finally ditch the Lutron Maestro dimmer & slave in my kitchen. The wife loves those in the kitchen, so I’m treading lightly until I’m sure these will be a worthy successor for the kitchen led high hats. I already automated under cabinet led’s with osram tape Lights.

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Can anyone comment on the size of the portion that goes into the electrical box when compared to the Vizia RF+ older version? Has the internal part been reduced in size at all? All my wiring is 12 AWG and it is super hard to get the wires packed in the electrical box when installing these huge switches. I have the hardest time with 2 gang boxes… 1 and >2 are typically much easier.

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My apologies for the noob question.

I installed a Leviton DZ6HD a few weeks back as my first dimmer. It’s working fine, but doesn’t behave as I would expect under a specific scenario. Since it’s my first z-wave dimmer, I’m unsure if this is expected behavior or not.

When controlled from the switch, everything works properly, and when switched on it resumes at the set dimmer level.

However when controlled from the app, if I press the toggle switch to turn it on, it always sets the dimmer to 99%. The same behavior is experienced when I tell the Google Home to turn on the lights. I can work around by telling my Google Home to set the dimmer level, which will turn it on to the appropriate level, but it’s a little annoying.

When toggling on through the app, should the dimmer remember the last dim level, or does Smartthings “On” always equal 99%? I notice it’s using the Z-Wave Dimmer Switch Generic device handler, so maybe this is something that can be changed with a custom handler.

Any advice is appreciated.

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Based on the published specs, it’s actually slightly bigger at 1.4 inches in depth, although they may have rounded up as the last one was 1.37. Doesn’t look like it’s thinner, though. :disappointed_relieved:

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First rule of working with home automation devices: read the manual for your specific model. :sunglasses:

https://support.smartthings.com/hc/en-us/article_attachments/115001236843/Leviton-DZ6HD-manual.pdf

In this case, there are indeed parameters that can be set. They are listed in the user guide under “advanced options.” You can either have a fixed level that the switch will always come onto, which it sounds like yours is set at 99. Or, you can set it to remember the last setting it was at before it was turned off and come back on at that level.

Preset Light Level
• Parameter No: 5,
Length: 1 Byte •
Valid Values = 0 to 100 (default 0)

  • 0 = Memory Dim - Last dim state
  • 1 - 100 = Level

You will need a custom device handler in order to Change these parameters, but once they are changed then you can go back to the stock handler if you prefer. It’s just a one time change.

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In the “def on()” of the generic dimmer switch handler you could change:
zwave.basicV1.basicSet(value: 0xFF).format(),
TO
zwave.switchMultilevelV2.switchMultilevelSet(value: 0xFF, dimmingDuration: 0xFF).format(),

This will use the last dim value and also use the default dimming duration when turning the switch on from the SmartThings app.

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That’s brilliant. I actually read the manual and even looked at the parameters that can be set, so I’m not sure how I missed it. Thanks a million for pointing this out.

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Perfect, I’ll give this a try and report back how it works. I really appreciate the help.

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That did the trick. Thank you again for the assistance.

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I have a leviton 15A switch (non dimming), it keeps reporting the light is “ON” , regardless if it’s controlled by smartthings app or the actual switch.

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There seems to be a problem with Z wave plus devices not reporting status:

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Please tell me they aren’t discontinuing the older rf+ models. I still have half my house to finish, plus I prefer the single click to a rocker.

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I have the Leviton DZ6HD dimmer switch. I’m able to set the fade duration time and it will work when I’m pressing on the switch. However, no matter what the fade duration time is set to, when turning on/off the lights from the smartthings app, the fade time is always about 2 seconds.

I used the generic dimmer switch handler and tried the solution from your post but it had no effect.Do you have any idea?

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Does anyone else notice this new switch from Leviton feels slightly warm? We have in our house a few of the previous model DZS15, and they do not feel warm at all. However, we recently installed some of the new DZ15S and they all are warmer than room temperature. They are not hot by any means but run at approximately 26 degress c / 78 degress f, and they are only driving LED loads so they shouldn’t be overloaded. We checked with Leviton, and they said it shouldn’t be an issue, but thought we would check here if anyone else noticed the warmth of this new model. Thanks!

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Just installed my first smart dimmer (DZ6HD) a few days ago, and can confirm the issues mentioned in this thread with the generic z-wave dimmer DH. I hacked around a bit and found some fixes/workarounds and put them into a new DH. In particular, it should resolve @capfan’s ISSUE #1 and @ziggy682’s “always turning on to 99%” issue. I also put in some other goodies like being able to configure the indicator LED and load type right from your phone, and shortcuts for LOW, MED, HIGH levels. Unfortunately I don’t have a matching remote yet so I couldn’t see if there’s a workaround for @capfan’s ISSUE #2.

Here’s the source code. Happy hacking!
https://github.com/jasonxh/SmartThingsPublic/blob/master/devicetypes/jasonxh/leviton-decora-zwave-plus-dimmer.src/leviton-decora-zwave-plus-dimmer.groovy

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Me too. Luckily I’ve just finished what I think is my final few switches. Might want to source some switches while you can!

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This is fantastic @jasonxh! Thanks for finding a fix for ISSUE #1! I tried it out and it successfully shows the correct value of the dimmer and whether or not the light is on, no matter how much I mash on the buttons of the dimmer.

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Anybody seen where you can buy these in grey? been waiting to find any zwave switch in grey, but I can’t find anything about replacing the plate or buying them in colors other than white/almond.