Lutron Caseta Integration

[ILoveC4]

Does Lutron Caseta integration support things like “Double Tap”?

Contemplating a hybrid of C4 and Lutron Caseta. 

[knowitall]

Nope and it takes twice as long to setup. 

I, personally, would never do a panelized lighting system because there is no going back. 

 

[therockhr]

39 minutes ago, ILoveC4 said:

Does Lutron Caseta integration support things like “Double Tap”?

Contemplating a hybrid of C4 and Lutron Caseta. 

No it doesn’t. If you want just basic lighting control though you won’t be disappointed in the integration. Works great. You could always mix in some Control4 keypads if you wanted. For the price, it’s hard to beat Lutron Caseta. 

[ILoveC4]

28 minutes ago, knowitall said:

Nope and it takes twice as long to setup. 

I, personally, would never do a panelized lighting system because there is no going back. 

 

Thanks, but I’m not referring to panelized lighting here. I’m talking about Lutron Caseta...drops in just like a C4 switch. I know there’s a driver, I just don’t know if it supports things like Double Tap. It doesn’t appear there is the concept of keypads either.

[ILoveC4]

1 minute ago, therockhr said:

No it doesn’t. If you want just basic lighting control though you won’t be disappointed in the integration. Works great. You could always mix in some Control4 keypads if you wanted. For the price, it’s hard to beat Lutron Caseta. 

That’s what I’m thinking! I’ll have to buy one and put it next to a C4 keypad and see how they look adjacent to one another. They’re less than half the price...

[chopedogg88]

yeah it works pretty well, the only thing you will notice is that if you create a scene in Control4 consisting of several Caseta lights, you'll notice a "popcorn effect" when you activate that scene...where all the lights won't come on/off together, they are kind of staggered in an unpredictable manner, because of the way that Control4 has to talk to the Caseta Bridge.  Not a big deal, but something to be aware of if that kind of thing bothers you.

and obviously it does take longer to setup because you have to define the lights in both systems, and then link them together, but not a huge deal.  and of course you won't get the zigbee mesh you would get with all C4 switches.

[LollerAgent]

I have a house full of Lutron Radio RA2 Select dimmers/switches, and I supplement them with C4 wireless keypad dimmers.  I have been happy thus far.

[Jack_Ckun]

i only use them. no issue and work well. i also use the pico remotes for volume control in some rooms.

Keep in mind there is a 50 device limit, also you will need the PRO hub to connect to control 4 not the one they sell at home depot.

[Darkimedes]

13 hours ago, chopedogg88 said:

yeah it works pretty well, the only thing you will notice is that if you create a scene in Control4 consisting of several Caseta lights, you'll notice a "popcorn effect" when you activate that scene...where all the lights won't come on/off together, they are kind of staggered in an unpredictable manner, because of the way that Control4 has to talk to the Caseta Bridge.  Not a big deal, but something to be aware of if that kind of thing bothers you.

and obviously it does take longer to setup because you have to define the lights in both systems, and then link them together, but not a huge deal.  and of course you won't get the zigbee mesh you would get with all C4 switches.

chopedogg88- create a scene in the Caseta app and have an advanced lighting scene call that Lutron ID- your popcorn with disappear completely.

 

ILoveC4- there is no double tap option in Lutron except for Homeworks. If you want to try this off a Pico in Caseta, you can leave that button unassigned to any loads in the Caseta app. Set up a variable and have the Pico button programmed to cycle through the variable. Each number gets a different scene, and then resets to off. Homeworks calls this a sequential. Using this in an ancient RadioRA2 scenario and even have the LED readout in RA2 following via programming, but the rest of the family had a hard time dealing with the change when I made it! 

You could run Caseta for the switching/dimming/fan control, and run C4 keypads for all the programming functionality and the Zigbee mesh. And make sure to get the SmartBridge PRO through distribution, jackstiffer is right- the HD SmartBridge (no PRO) does NOT integrate at all.

[chopedogg88]

thanks - yes I'm aware of that work-around, however when you do that then you can't manage/modify the scenes in Control4 (via composer or the C4 interfaces), or get proper scene tracking in Control4...so while it solves the popcorn issue, it creates other issues.

[OceanDad]

I use some Caseta pieces, all integrated very easily and rock solid with the Smartbridge PRO.  Best thing is that you can use a Pico remote with a wall plate to create the look of an original wall switch anywhere you want.  No wires needed and it takes 10 minutes to install.  In our home, the developer installed a Vantage panel lighting system originally.  I integrated that into C4 using the Cinegration driver and it works very well.  However, some loads did not have discrete switches in the right places, and some loads were just on dumb switches.  Caseta has let us sort all of that out at minimal cost, and very easily.  We also use quite a few of the Lutron lamp/outlet dimmer switches.  Much cheaper than the C4 equivalent with the same functionality.

Like I said, rock solid, integrated into C4 and Vantage scenes, and those Pico remotes seem to last forever.  Haven’t replaced a battery yet in almost 2 years.

I also used Pico remotes engraved for Sonos control and shade control in a few places to make everything match cosmetically.  Cheap, easy to program in Composer, and have been totally reliable.

 

[mallom]

10 minutes ago, chopedogg88 said:

thanks - yes I'm aware of that work-around, however when you do that then you can't manage/modify the scenes in Control4 (via composer or the C4 interfaces), or get proper scene tracking in Control4...so while it solves the popcorn issue, it creates other issues.

I also prefer doing the all the lighting scenes via Control4 to take advantage of the "Ramp Rate" feature. It creates a great effect.
 

[WhyPhy]

In my opinion, the Caseta switches don’t look quite as nice. It also isn’t capable of custom engraving or programed LED colors to indicate state (i.e. red when garage door is open.) But if you’re ok with C4 keypads next to Caseta dimmers, it’s hard to argue against it  

The pico remotes are awesome. 

[ILoveC4]

So the PICO remotes are basically their solution for 3 way switches, and they're battery powered. Is this correct?

And the PICO remotes for audio and the 2 button PICO remotes can be added and fully integrated in to Control4?

What happens if I go over the 50 device limit? Do I need to setup a second system? Could those take to each other? Just wondering if I could do an upstairs system and a downstars system. Something that. Wanting to go the C4 route, just trying to evaluate cost differences.

[therockhr]

15 minutes ago, ILoveC4 said:

So the PICO remotes are basically their solution for 3 way switches, and they're battery powered. Is this correct?

And the PICO remotes for audio and the 2 button PICO remotes can be added and fully integrated in to Control4?

What happens if I go over the 50 device limit? Do I need to setup a second system? Could those take to each other? Just wondering if I could do an upstairs system and a downstars system. Something that. Wanting to go the C4 route, just trying to evaluate cost differences.

No they have a 3 way switch in the Caseta "Pro" line. Lutron PD-10NXD-WH You can get it at authorized dealers online. I have a few. They work fine.

Yeah i think you can have the pico's trigger off things in control4 if you want.

The device limit goes to 75 on July 8th. If you need more than that you would have to get 2 hubs. They would all look like 1 system in control4 but within Lutron it would be 2 systems. If you have a system over 75 devices I would look towards another solution like Ra2. 

[ILoveC4]

If anyone on here is a Caseta Pro dealer/distributor and wants to give me a quote, please reach out. Like I said - would like to stick with C4 lighting but need to evaluate the cost difference.

[mallom]

If anyone on here is a Caseta Pro dealer/distributor and wants to give me a quote, please reach out. Like I said - would like to stick with C4 lighting but need to evaluate the cost difference.

The good thing about Caseta is that you can buy and install it yourself. I usually buy my dimmers from ebay/amazon.

After you install, pair and program everything on Lutron’s side of things, just get a C4 dealer to add them to the system.

Just make sure that you are not dreaming or having a stroke when buying the bridge. It has to be the PRO version. Its the only version that can be integrated with C4.

The Pro and Non Pro look and work the same, but the Pro version has a submenu that enables integration via Telnet.

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.com%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F401781498236

My suggestion is:
Buy a Pro bridge, one dimmer and one lamp dimmer, bench test it with the bulbs you are used to and see if meets your expectations before committing to a larger order and/or integrating with C4.

I have 2 bridges in my system, 4000 sqft home, bridges are in located in the middle of the house and I call all mu scenes using C4 keypads. Its flawless.

PROS:
- cheap
- diy
- quality
- Great range
- Instant feedback
- Works with LEDs, MLV, ELV (this model is a bit more expensive) and etc
- Fan controller can be found for ~$50
- 1 lamp dimmer can be used as range extender
- can be used with c4 keypads
- You can create scenes within C4 advanced lighting agent
- Ramp rate configurable within C4 scene
- If you main c4 controller goes down, your lighting still works via lutron app (even if the internet goes down, but local network is still working AFAIK)
- If you decide to move away from c4 one day, I guarantee you that Caseta will be compatible with your new HA platform.

CONS:
- Limited integration with C4
- No double/triple taps
- Dimmers cant be engraved (AFAIK)
- Dimmer/pico looks is not for everyone
- Since its not c4 zigbee, they wont help extend your mesh network
- You may experience “popcorn” effect when using multiple bridges. Its not horrible, but could be a deal breaker for some people. It doesn’t bother me at all, since I cant see all the lights that Im dimming at the same time. Lol


If you can stick with C4 lighting, do it. If money is a problem and you can live with the limitations, there is no other system, in my opinion, that beats lutron Caseta/RA.

[mallom]

Oh man... Just noticed that this is an old thread and everything has already been explained before. Hahah. Sorry!

[LollerAgent]

Interesting, @mallom so you don't build your lighting scenes in C4 (using the Advanced Lighting Scenes agent)?  You build the scenes in Lutron and then just call them from C4?  I have RA2 Select, and I build all lighting scenes in the Advanced Lighting agent and just call that scene from keypads, etc.  It seems to work fine, but you aren't the only person that has told me scenes should be built in Lutron.

[mallom]

Im not sure if you mean to quote my last post, but its the complete opposite of what I said.

You can create all your scenes within C4 if you want to. Thats how I do it.

I think some people prefer to create on Lutron’s side to minimize the popcorn effect and maybe reduce the CPU load on C4 controller, since all the processing would be done on Lutron’s side.

I have approx 70 dimmers/switches/fan total, 2 bridges and only use C4 Advanced lighting for scenes and ramp control. You cant configure ramping on Lutron’s side (AFAIK).

[LollerAgent]

23 minutes ago, mallom said:

Im not sure if you mean to quote my last post, but its the complete opposite of what I said.

You can create all your scenes within C4 if you want to. Thats how I do it.

I think some people prefer to create on Lutron’s side to minimize the popcorn effect and maybe reduce the CPU load on C4 controller, since all the processing would be done on Lutron’s side.

I have approx 70 dimmers/switches/fan total, 2 bridges and only use C4 Advanced lighting for scenes and ramp control. You cant configure ramping on Lutron’s side (AFAIK).

Ahh - my bad, gotcha!

[ILoveC4]

Does anyone have a picture of a C4 Keypad Dimmer installed next to a Caseta dimmer?

[LollerAgent]

11 hours ago, ILoveC4 said:

Does anyone have a picture of a C4 Keypad Dimmer installed next to a Caseta dimmer?

I know this isn't Caseta, but I thought I would post just to show you what the Lutron RA2 Select dimmers alongside a C4 keypad look like.  RA2 Select's "Maestro" style dimmers look a bit nicer than the Caseta dimmers in my opinion.

 

 

IMG_2619.HEIC

[ILoveC4]

1 hour ago, LollerAgent said:

I know this isn't Caseta, but I thought I would post just to show you what the Lutron RA2 Select dimmers alongside a C4 keypad look like.  RA2 Select's "Maestro" style dimmers look a bit nicer than the Caseta dimmers in my opinion.

 

 

IMG_2619.HEIC 794.11 kB · 2 downloads

Thanks. Is that a Lutron faceplate? I'm leaning hard towards all C4 lighting stuff. Hope to get a final cost determination on the Caseta Pro line today so I can put this to bed.

[LollerAgent]

No - these are Cooper Aspire plates.  They are a fraction of the cost compared to C4/Lutron faceplates, and they look/operate just as good in my opinion.