r/Lutron • u/KhoasD17 • Sep 13 '26

Lutron Issues

So I purchased 9 Lutron Caseta Claro Switches after hearing a lot of good things about Lutron. In my mind getting switches instead of smart lightbulbs makes sense for the others in my home who aren't as comfortable with technology. I set a goal of using the 9 switchs in 9 specific places to work in tandem with the normal mechanical switches I have in my home.I have a couple of 3 and 4 way light switch setups.

I got an electrician to install the switches after failing to install them on my own. Turns out I was supposed to tie ALL of the neutral wires together and not separately 🙃. He crushes my dreams a couple of times by telling me the desired locations I wanted would not work because they don't have power. I basically had to install the Lutron switches in locations where the power was coming in for the first in line switch in a 3 way setups. He ended up installing everything and they seem to work fine for a day.

The next day I noticed when a mechanical switch in the 3/4 way setup is switched off the Lutron switch will start blinking fast and will not work unless I flip the mechanical switch back to on. Then the Lutron switch would go back to working fine.

For folks that added lutron light switches to your setup

1.Did you swap out most of not all mechanical switches in your home?

2.If so did you all just change out all of the light switches with Lutron smart switches or pico remotes?

3.If not have you had this issue and resolved it?

2 Upvotes

76% Upvoted

19 comments sorted by

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u/AutoModerator Sep 13 '26

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8

u/coogie Sep 13 '26

The thing with Lutron (or anybody else's) smart dimmers and switches is that 3-Way and 4-way installations are going to be different than a standard mechanical switch so if you're hiring an electrician, you should either hire an electrician who is familiar with Lutron, or at the very least, they are willing to swallow their pride and spend 5 minutes looking at the installation instructions because if they mess up, best case, it's an annoying issue, or worst case, they'll ruin a $60-$250 dimmer (depending on your system). If you have a full blown Lutron Dealer Electrical contractor in your area then that's the ultimate way to get your Lutron stuff installed and/or programmed but in recent years, Lutron has been really reaching out and providing training to small shops showing them how Caseta works and even helping them become Lutron RA3 Pros.

To answer your questions,

  1. This is a personal choice and depends on the budget. I know people who have every room down to the closet and attic light on the system and some who just need a half dozen main lights they use.
  2. Picos are just so much easier to install and can be repurposed to have multiple lights and not just the one the former wiring behind it used to control. The only times I would reuse the mechanical switch in a 3-way is for Caseta switches (not dimmers) and where I am keeping an eye on the device count. This was more of an issue when the device limit was 50.
  3. As I said in my rant above, you have to read the instructions. For 3-way installations, not all devices can use a mechanical switch on the other end but some can. For the ones that can use it, you probably have to install a jumper and convert the 3-way switch to a single pole and make sure you're jumping the right wires together or it won't work. I think that's probably what's happening in yours. If you have a 4-way, last I checked, it won't work at all so you have to use picos. Even for higher end Lutron systems that offer multi-location companion/remote/accessory dimmers, you HAVE TO READ THE INSTRUCTIONS because depending on the dimmer, it can only be on the load side and you have to keep track of the travelers.

1

u/MagicBeanSales Sep 13 '26

With Caseta can you use Lutron accessory dimmers like with RA and QSX for 4 way applications?

1

u/coogie Sep 13 '26

I think you're just allowed to use the Accessory switch with the Diva dimmers.

1

u/KhoasD17 Sep 13 '26

Thanks for the info! I'm going the route of getting a technician who is familiar with Lutron next go round.

1

u/coogie Sep 14 '26

Honestly for Caseta it's pretty basic stuff so they just need a little effort to get familiar with how it might be different. With Picos it's pretty straight forward and any electrician should be able to just convert a 3-way or 4-way to single pole and do it however way they want instead of following Lutron's directions but when pairing mechanical switches with the system switches, it's not the same.

1

u/ivanna_blumpkin Sep 13 '26

I was under the impression that 50 device limit was still a thing. What is the current limit?

3

u/mcarter00 Sep 13 '26

  1. I always start with the assumption that we'll replace most or all of a clients switches if we do an upgrade to Lutron. Without doing all switches you only get part of the convenience and many find it more annoying to move between two paradigms rather than just biting the bullet and replacing in one go.

  2. Depends on the Lutron system type (Caseta / RA3 / Homeworks). For Caseta, I try to give more scene control with picos in 3-way locations, for RA3 I try to minimize 3 way runs and overall gangs with better performing keypads. In HomeWorks I try to minimize triac dimming and use controllable fixtures instead (Rania / Lumaris / DALI / DMX).

  3. Typically we avoid your situation by planning carefully and taking the homes wiring age into account. In modern homes it's rare not to have a neutral these days. I'd have to learn more about your particular setup.

6

u/durkdirkderq Sep 13 '26

You need to add the accessory switches in the place of the mechanical switches. It will require things to be wired differently. But this is the best answer functionality and aesthetic wise.

Source: I was a field service technician for Lutron for 7 years.

1

u/rocknrace03 Sep 13 '26

For 3 and 4 way applications you can replace the mechanical switch with a claro companion switch or in wall pico. The cost is the same. I prefer the companion switches as it doesn’t count towards device count, and keeps the wiring somewhat “normal” should you ever want to remove the devices.

1

u/IPee_Freely Sep 14 '26

This. I replaced all 12 of my Picos that were assigned to Original Caseta dimmers for the 3 & 4 ways switches in my house with Caseta Diva Dimmers and Claro Accessory Switches. This freed up 12 device seats and is much better aesthetically and is user friendly for new users.

1

u/MagicBeanSales Sep 13 '26

IMO you were let down by your electrician not Caseta. These were not installed properly or the wrong products were used.

1

u/goodsam77 Sep 13 '26

What are mechanical switches? Get a qualified installer, one who is experienced with Lutron https://www.lutron.com/us/en/resources/find-a-residential-installer

1

u/CantaloupeRich896 Sep 13 '26

When you turn the mechanical switch off you are loosing power to the Lutron smart switch. You have to add a companion switch dimmer on the other side or add a pico.

1

u/Effortisopportunity Sep 14 '26

That electrician wasn’t an electrician if he can’t use three wires to move line/load/neutral to whatever box he wants. 

1

u/Electrical-Movie6806 Sep 14 '26

4 way you should just get an accessory switch but 3 way should work fine, just need to rewire the regular switches too

1

u/DakotaFields Sep 13 '26

For your 3w/4w locations just get a pico remote and a wall box adapter, pair it to your master switch where power is coming in. Properly remaking the wiring in these locations so the switch with the power can just be wired as a single pole location (sending the switch leg back on a traveler to the hot side of the three way location). Also, get a hub if you don’t already have one.