Aug. 01, 2006 - by Mike Pearson

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With $200 and a couple of free hours, you can install a convenient and energy-efficient lighting control system.

Not so long ago, lighting control systems were only available inhigh-end or custom homes at a high installation cost. Today, newproducts and technologies put lighting control within reach of anyhomeowner.

In a networked home lighting system, keypads and controllers are usedto remotely turn lights on and off and to change their intensity.Imagine the convenience—and the cost savings—of being able to punch abutton on a keypad by the front door and turn off all the lights inyour home when you leave for the day, or the security of having akeypad in the garage that turns on selected downstairs lights so younever go into a dark house.

A number of do-it-yourself lighting automation solutions have recentlybecome more attractive with the inclusion of wireless technology. Thebeauty of some of the newest “wireless” systems is that they use radiofrequency technology in conjunction with a home’s existing wiring tomake installation easy and control more comprehensive. These productswork with what you have—there’s no need to worry about running wires orhiring an electrician.

Lighting Control:

Where Do I Start?
The hardest part of home lighting automation is understanding what’spossible and then deciding where to start. Fortunately, given today’stechnology, you can implement your automation projects in stages: youmay decide to start with one room or, say, the main floor and thenextend the network.

We’ll begin this lighting automation project by replacing a singlelight switch with a keypad that remotely controls selected lights onthe main floor. A number of lighting scenarios, or “scenes,” can becontrolled from keypads, but we are going to focus on only one scenefor the sake of simplicity.

We will set up the first button on the keypad for an “I’m Home” scene.When we’re done, pressing the “I’m Home” button will turn on the porchlight, the family room lamp, and an overhead florescent light in thekitchen.

Lighting Control Equipment List
To implement the “I’m home” scene, you need to create a network betweenthe keypad and all of the lights you want to control. That is, you needto ensure that every light source in the network is connected to aremotely controllable hardwired switch or plug-in module. In this case,we are concerned with the keypad, the porch light, a family room lampand the overhead florescent light in the kitchen.

Our shopping list looks like this:

• One programmable keypad to replace the light switch by the front door (it already controls the porch light).
• One lamp module for the family room lamp.
• One relay switch for the florescent kitchen light.
• Two RF signal devices.

RF signal devices are integral to a wireless system. They create thenetwork by simultaneously transmitting and receiving messages acrossradio frequency and your home’s existing wiring. There is noinstallation necessary for RF signal devices; they simply plug intoexisting outlets. And the really good news is that, once installed,they have you covered for some time to come. You will be able to addmany additional light sources to your network without buying additionalRF signal devices.

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