fluid15

VPN was disrupting connection; however in that case your recommendation of using the IP address was spot on - THX!

The issue is it doesn't show a project, which it did in the past. I noticed it says disconnected in the bottom bar, not sure if that's part of problem or how to change that.

Looks good, I read the description - thx!

My Dealer helped me setup Composer HE when he was at my home a few months ago. I've opened it several times but it wouldn't let me make simple changes like rename devices (i.e. change names of dimmers/loads) so I've been disappointed and haven't used it. I'm trying again but after starting it (3.1.3), it connects to Local System but shows up in "Connect to Project" screen. My Dealer was out again for installing keypads and thought the system might be busy. But I've tried several times and same result. Any advice? Would my Project be in a folder I would search and double-click to launch? I'm a bit frustrated because I chose C4 for the user capability it supposedly has but haven't been able to do a single modification myself. TIA.

The cost sounds about right but depends on the size. The pricing I received was ~ $1200/window for 5'x6'. Keep in mind that cost is also driven by qty of motors so for your windows circled in red you probably don't need 4 separate shades. Talk to your Dealer/Installer but you can probably buy 2 large shades to cover all 4 and that way you're only buying 2 motors which is a big difference than 4. I don't know your dimensions but making a guess based on scale. I have one large window in front of our kitchen sink that is 10' wide x 4' tall. I have one shade that covers it, thus one motor (and it's quiet). From discussions with Lutron I believe max size for one shade is 12' x 12'. I've been holding off on getting the shades for our Great Room but it's inevitable. We have pretty good privacy so we've been on the fence but ultimately my wife would prefer the shades. It's a series of 8 glass panels, each 4' wide with the middle 2 panels are doors that slide away from each other. So when I set out for pricing I was thinking many individual shades but as it turns out the proposal is for 3 sections (thus 3 motors), at widths of 12'/8'/12'. So I could open only the center for walking in/out and have the rest down. I have the pre-wiring because I want to ease of mind to open/close them 100x/day without worrying about batteries. Also, if it's not too late consider building pockets in the ceiling for them to disappear when closed. It's a clean look.

I did have a few KASA switches installed a few days ago but haven't used the outlet (explanation below). 1. Outlet: I didn't use this after all because electrician informed me he had wired the outlet of interest (below BBQ island, for high pressure misting pump) to a switch location in the media closet. I figure it's easier to use a switch indoors and save the 1 smart outlet I bought for a future use. 2. Dimmer: using this for a sconce outside a door from garage to side-of-house. It's scheduled for on at night and off in the morning so this is a no-touch use case. 3. 3-way Loft switches: using this for a 'loft' we're in process of finishing which connects both kid's rooms. We're going to build ladders for each of them and know they'll be leaving the lights on so easier to have smart switches to shut them off instead of someone climbing back up there. I already tested with an Amazon Dot in a kid's room and it's simple. Being a C4 Forum no real highlight here since I haven't integrated into C4 yet. The point here is that for low-priority areas of a house these seem like a reasonable option at ~ $25/each. Quality of dimmer is acceptable but certainly lower than C4 and I wouldn't use them as substitute for my main lighting but for auxiliary areas they're fine. Original intention of smart outlets (not switches) is still of interest and will probably use those behind kid's TVs (we barely have any lamps in the new house).

I just ordered a few Kasa parts. My electrician is coming next week for some punch list items and I'll get to give these a try.

1) How much is the Chowmain driver? 2) With the driver, can you control any of the Kasa devices from a C4 keypad button? My use case would be using a single button on my C4 keypad to turn on both a switch (for ceiling fan) and misting pump (powered on from smart outlet) at the same time. 3) For the Kasa devices in your home, are any of those areas triggered by an occupancy sensor? Such as, after no motion for 'x' minutes turn off lights?

Great input from everyone, sounds like Kasa is a good option. My original inquiry was an outlet but if they're a good solution for the outlet (and integrate into C4 with the Chowmain driver) then I'm going to assume their dimmer/switches are probably a good route for the non-critical areas of my home. I have C4 lighting throughout our main areas but didn't extend it into my kid's rooms due to cost. In parallel to the outlet I've been considering setting up some Lutron RA2 Select devices in the kid's rooms and their Jack&Jill bath/shower (& play loft). But those are still $100+ a dimmer. The Kasa switches are only ~ $20/each - extremely affordable - can anyone think of a reason to pursue Lutron over Kasa for a kid's area?

As far as I know, C4 doesn't have a smart outlet, only a plug that goes into an outlet. I've seen a few 'smart' plugs that 'may' integrate with C4 (I heard of one from Blackwire), does any have recommendations, with approx. cost? My first idea for use is to put one under my bbq island for turning on/off the high pressure misting pump. I could use a plug but prefer the cleaner install of the outlet itself. TIA.

Good stuff, thanks all. I'm finally trying to carve out some time to learn Composer HE so I can make my own tweaks. We lived with 'suggested' programming by Dealer for several months and sent them changes to engrave the buttons and those are supposed to arrive next week. Even with completed buttons I still expect to modify/tweak and can incorporate some of the suggestions here.

I'm certainly leaning this way, thx for advice.

Thanks for input. It turns out the bridge/hub I have will only work for RA2 Select dimmers/sensors. If I choose to use the Caseta line I'll need to add the bridge specific to that one. I'm only using this for a few devices (<10?) so I'll have to consider if it's worth the cost vs. RA2 Select. Based on comments above, either could be integrated if desired.

I've read about each Lutron system in various forums and did consider RA2 Select as my primary Lighting system but eventually went with C4 lighting for our new home (completed). I have dimmers & keypads throughout ~ 2/3 of home but left out the kids rooms/bath and other low priority switches (i.e. closets, etc). I'm now considering putting some 'lower-cost' dimmers in a few places and don't really care if they're integrated into C4 system but if they could at some point it'd be a bonus. I already have a RA2 Select (RR-SEL-REP2) module/bridge - not sure formal name - that controls shading so I could have an instant system by adding dimmers. I like that it's simple and I could program it easier than using C4 Home Edition, which I haven't dove into yet. The cost of dimmers is where I'm going with this question/help - the C4 dimmers are about $130 [corrected]/each and the new C4 Essential ones are ~ $85 (?). If I can find Lutron dimmers cheaper is there a difference in using Caseta vs. RA2 Select? Not sure if they're interchangable. I like the idea of the Picos, my kids could have one next to their bed for turning lights on/off. Slightly OT: has anyone heard of the wifi dimmers by GEENI? They'd never integrate but only ~ $25/switch. For low priority areas I've considered these because their software interface is simple and seems stable. I've used one of their wifi plugs for a few years and now see they have switches/dimmers/outlets. I've used the plug behind the Playstation TV to control when it has power:) Kids still haven't figured out how I do this ... yet.

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