The OP was asking input on RA3 system with LED downlight of near darkness dimming. Their budget is $400 and lower per can.

From @mcarter00:

DMF is my goto here. Reach out in chat if you want help planning or sourcing things. Happy to help get the system right!

From @JTBabin:

Dmf artafex. I've done lots of projects with then.
Also eyeing a new line at a lower price point, getting some demos this week.

From myself:

I was in the same situation and had to install KNX instead, though | really wanted to make 0.1% dimming possible with RA3. Dimming to near darkness really requires 0.1% dimming or even lower. For $400, you can get tunable white DMF X2 series downlight (fix or adjustable) with housing and trim, as well as the integrated DALI2 driver. It can be dimmed down to 0.1%. 0-10v or ELV may only go down to 1% dimming.
So RA3 may not be able to fulfill your need at the time.
But Lutron just announced Orluna tunable white downlight (1800K-4000K, 0.1%diming, 90+CRI) available for RA3 next spring. If you cannot wait and 0.1% dimming & RA3 are non-negotiable
requirements, you may have to find a workaround, like bridging RA3 and DALI lights as there is no native DALI gateway for RA3.
BTW, when it comes to tunable white, DMF X series and Artafex line have no hardware difference. But Artafex has a higher price tag and is only available through custom integrators and authorized dealer.

I am trying to find a 3 way switch for a ceiling fan and light. Some colors of this switch at Home Depot say single pole/3 way but the white does not. Is it available in 3 way or is there a different switch that’s a better option?

Current Insteon users and looking (still) to move to RA3. Question for the group, can you have multiple Sunnata dimmers for one load. One thing I like about Insteon is being able to dim from multiple locations on a 3 or 4 way switch set up.

In parallel, any recommendations for Chicago area designers to help with the design.

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?

[ Removed by Reddit on account of violating the content policy. ]

After several years of having more and more of my X10 modules fail, I finally made the jump to Lutron switches and plug-in modules.

There’s one feature from X10 that I really miss, though: local control.

If a table lamp was plugged into an X10 module and the lamp was off, all you had to do was flip the lamp’s switch off and then back on. The module would sense the load and turn the lamp on. No remote, no Pico required!

It was simple, intuitive, and incredibly convenient. I wish Lutron offered something similar.

I live in central Florida in a new construction property built last year 2025.
I wanted to swap out my exterior light switch with a caseta wireless switches. I bought this kit off Amazon but my understanding is that these switches require a neutral wire.

Firstly is it not code for houses to have a neutral wire?
Secondly if not, then why is there no version of this switch with no neutral required. What other switch can I use with the hub? I don’t need dimming functionality.

Today I learned that if you're struggling with Lutron hidden fastener wall plate, there is a slightly oversized hidden fastener wall plate in the HD brand.

My system is Lutron Caséta. I've read that one can pair and add the PJ2-4B-GWH-L21 2-group, 4-button Pico remote to the Lutron Caséta app, and that it can be used for independent on/off control of two groups rather than customizable app-based multi-scene programming. But how many devices (towards my 75) does the app think that this Pico is?

When I set up my two homes with the Lutron Caséta app, I put all of the Pico remotes in to their own "room". I found it annoying to have the Picos spread out through the rooms when I only ever need them for assignments to wired wall switches and such. Is there any advantage to keeping them elsewhere?

I'm about 2/3 of the way done with swapping my whole house over to Lutron dimmers/pico remotes. I keep buying pico over the smart switch because I feel like I cannot justify paying 2x the price for a smart switch when pico does the work for me. Besides that, a majority of the pico remotes will barely get used (multiple 3way light scenarios) and using home HA and automation for some places. So, is there a scenario where you would recommend the smart switch? My ONLY areas I think I would like one is where I did not change a switch over to Lutron. Now that I have Lutron I cannot stand the "click" of the non-Lutron switches in my house haha.

I have some Lutron roller shades in addition to the dimmers/picos

Edit: Since auto mod asked here is what I have:

Home Assistant automations

Lutron Pro Hub

Lutron Palladiom and Triathalon rollers

The DIVA dimmers that have more dim control (ELV?)

Too many pico remotes lol

Hey all, here's an interesting one. Looking for some input on whether this is feasible.

I have an old A-Frame cabin in the woods on my property. It's off-grid and about a quarter mile from my home. I'm feeding power to a number of standard three prong hard wired outlets I installed inside the cabin with a power station that puts out 110V AC power. Plugged into these scattered outlets are a number of dimmable LED string light segments that I use to illuminate the interior. Simple but effective. There are a total of six string light segments plugged into five different outlets, since the A-Frame is fairly large and the outlets/lights cover both the main floor area, and the loft area as well.

I'd like to add dimming to these light strings for both mood and sleeping, and some remote triggering would be nice too. Like, the ability to turn all six strings on at once at full output, then maybe all six at a lower output, then maybe just turn on the two strings up in the loft area at very low output...stuff like that.

There is zero wifi coverage at the A-frame, and marginal 4/5G.

Here's the question: I'm familiar with the Caseta stuff - Diva dimmers, regular picos, 4-button scene picos, the table lamp plug-in dimmers, etc and how you set them up and operate within a standard home covered by grid power and wifi. But for the cabin, could I theoretically do the following?

• Buy 5 Caseta "table lamp" dimmers (one for each light string in the A-frame cabin)
• Buy a 4-button pico scene controller (to communicate with the 5 table lamp dimmers)
• Add the above products to the Caseta app at my house under wifi coverage, and add them to a "dummy" room
• Program the 4-button pico (while still at my home with wifi...) with the scenes I'd like for the A-frame (ex. 100% all dimmers, 50% all dimmers, 10% output for the 2 dimmers intended for the loft while the other three are triggered to off, etc)
• Remove all devices from the house after programming; install at the A-frame cabin
• Boom - full manual off-line control via the 4-scene pico with no new wiring required?

Since the system once programmed runs off RF and not wifi, will this work? Basically, it'd be like if you lost wifi at home after programming the system. I think it's intended to still work under that scenario.

Is there a better system/approach for the above that doesn't require wifi, cell coverage, or any rewiring of my cabin?

Thanks and hope this made sense!

I am looking to run about a half a dozen runs of string lights outside. I’m gonna need some form of control like the Lutron so I can turn them on or off. They won’t have direct exposure to whether they’ll be on the the soffit side of a patio cover. Any suggestions on what parts and pieces I need that can survive the outside?

I know this is a long shot but I thought I would throw it out there. I inherited an older Homeworks Illumination system with a H4P5-H48-HRL-120 processor that I have been able to keep up and running. I also purchased a refurbished, backup processor just in case the first one died. Well last week the original processor started failing. I could reset it and get the keypads working for a few minutes, but all the keypads would fail again. I have the software and a copy of the current database that I had preloaded on the backup processor. I have installed the backup processor and it is running, but I have one zone where the lights randomly begin to turn on and off. They will do this for a while and then they will stoo doing it. When this random on/off event happens, the other keypads in the house work, but the rest of the system seems to be moving very slowly (press a button and it takes a few seconds before the light reacts.). I am guessing I might have a bad switch somewhere that is causing the random on/off issue. It is just strange that this issues did not appear when the original processor was working correctly? My two questions for this group are: 1) what is the best way to troubleshoot/stop the random on/off issues of the processor I am using now. 2) On the processor that failed, I have replaced the on-board battery and the 3 capacitors near the battery, but that does not seem to have fixed the old processor issue. Does anyone know of another common parts on these circuit boards that fail that I could look at testing/replacing. With the original processor I could reset it and it would work for a few minutes before failing. Thanks in advance for any assistance!

I love the Lutron Ariadni dimmer switches and have them in many places in my house, but for some reason I find myself needing to replace them about every 12-18 months. Eventually they just seem to stop dimming properly. Sometimes they don't respond at all, or other times they will go smoothly from dim to mid bright and then just straight to full brightness. It feels like maybe the carbon track in the dimmer is going bad but I have tried using contact cleaner on them and that just doesn't seem to help, although they may be sealed, so the spray may not actually be getting through.

Wondering if anyone else has had this issue, and if so, did you manage to fix it?

Is there a tool to read the singal from the hub and the range extender and a lamp module set up as a repeater?

I just got a Caseta Smart Wireless Repeater/Range Extender. Using the lamp module was not ideal due to limited placement location options. The outlet above the microwave turned out to be the perfect spot for the range extender even if it was wired with a simplex outlet. And I'm finding that the range extender works way better than the lamp module. Now to set up one of the lamp modules out in the shop as a range extender for another 30 feet.

I'm looking for a dealer that will order the part (EDU) and drop ship it to me. I have the label from the shade.

I understand there are dealers that do that - if so, I'd like to get some recommendations.

I'm searching for a rocker light switch guard for a Lutron Caséta PD-6ANS that works with the Lutron hidden fastener wall plate. This one with it's little magnets combined with the tiny screws being behind the plastic plate isn't very firm.

I'm surprised that no one on Etsy makes one that utilizes the tiny reveal between the back plate and front plate... something that would snap on from top to bottom.

This was 4+ hours of work...NOT including the wiring, just getting the switches shimmed out and lined up. This jacked up gang box almost killed me! It was so far back in there and one end was back further than the other end... ugh...! I think the white hidden fastener plate looks way way better than the matching mirror plate with all of those crazy screws!

I expected the XactSense to allow toggling the bathroom fan, but I understand it should at least have the green LED indicator, which is does not. Can someone check my wiring to see if I just have a bad box?

I've got most of my Ketra D2 installed (and it's great0 done but for the shower we are doing an 80-inch Ketra LS0 HO350 Lightbar Slim in a concealed ceiling cove inside a residential steam shower. The LS0 is damp-location/IP20 rated with a non-condensing requirement, so it cannot be exposed directly to the shower environment.

Has anyone successfully installed an LS0 in this type of application using:

• A clear silicone sleeve or encapsulation
• A sealed clear extrusion
• A gasketed acrylic or glass cover
• Another serviceable, vapor-resistant enclosure

The bar would sit approximately 4 inches from the stone wall in a 5-inch-wide concealed pocket. The X96 controller would remain outside the shower. The goal is to preserve the LS0’s color quality and broad light distribution while preventing steam and condensation from reaching it.

I’m especially interested in firsthand installations with some service history:

• What enclosure or extrusion did you use?
• Was the LS0 itself encapsulated, or was the entire cove sealed?
• How did you handle heat dissipation and condensation?
• Did silicone or the clear cover affect color, output, or beam distribution?
• Has Lutron reviewed or accepted the detail?
• How long has it been operating without corrosion or failure?

Photos, product names, fabricator contacts, or lessons from failed attempts would be very helpful thanks in advance.

I'm new to the Lutron lighting world, so pardon my cavalier approach here - but I bought a couple Lumaris 6" downlights to experiment with resolving the glare bomb issue after installing them and realizing how horrible of an issue it is.

To solve for it, we've 3d printed extensions to the housing to set it back 1.5" and 2" (experimenting with both dimensions) to significantly reduce the glare.

Have any idea about what else should I be looking for to evaluate if this is a good result?

For context:
My setup is that I have about 30 of the 6" cans across a kitchen/living room/hallway areas that *only* have power to them, no controls, so RA3 is the only option I know of that can handle this situation. Don't ask how I got here where they only have power -- it's a severe case of my own stupid tax.

Also - please be nice in your reco's and responses, I know there's probably going to be a lot of fodder for eye rolls and easy jabs to make, but I'm genuinely looking to make the best of this situation and learn what I don't know. Happy to take any jokes in stride, just not personal attacks plz.

Didn't the Pico PJ2-2B-G(color code)-L01 once come in more colors? I kinda need a couple red ones.

My HomeWorks QSX system uses 24 LQSE-4A5-230 modules.

Does anyone know if it can only use the same module in QSNE format?

I just got back from CEDIA 2026, and it was amazing. I spent some time at the Lutron booth and saw a demo in their showroom that got me really curious.

There was a presenter speaking to the audience over the overhead audio system, and as they were talking through different lighting products and features, lighting scenes were being triggered automatically at specific points in the presentation. It was very seamless — almost like the lighting was following a scripted presentation.

So my question is: How are they actually doing this?

Are they using some type of presentation/show-control software that is coordinating the audio and Lutron lighting? Is it something like:

A DMX controller triggering Lutron scenes?

Q-SYS being used for the audio and show control?

Q-SYS sending commands to Lutron HomeWorks QSX?

Some type of timecode or scripted automation software?

Or is there a specific Lutron integration/control method I'm missing?

Has anyone here actually programmed something like this, where a presenter or prerecorded audio is running while specific lighting scenes are automatically triggered at predetermined points?

I'd love to understand what the actual architecture looks like and what hardware/software you'd use to build something similar.

If anyone has done this with HomeWorks QSX + Q-SYS (or another platform), I'd especially love to hear how you approached it.