3 Way Dimmer in a 4-Way Switch Setup


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Old 08-31-18, 06:41 PM
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3 Way Dimmer in a 4-Way Switch Setup

I've purchased a Legrand 3-way dimmer switch and for the life of me cannot figure out why it doesn't work. I've done some basic wiring so I"m not a complete tool, but apparently I'm either doing something wrong OR the switch isn't working for my application.

The model is a Legrand LSLV603PWV. I've put it on both the line and load sides. I've put the two travelers on the lower two brass screws and common on the black screw. I know I've got the line/load and not the travelers as the line or load are black-white-ground in a single sheathing and the red/black/white/green are in another sheathing.

This is a 4-way setup and the "middle" is two brass/two black so I've left that alone.

I've tried both ends of the 4-way - line and load and the toggle works fine and keeps the 4-way working but the dimmer is worthless on either side. What might I be doing wrong or is the switch itself to blame -- i.e. not workable in this format? I just want to be able to dim the hallway lights from a single location and the other two are just on/off.
 
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Old 08-31-18, 07:35 PM
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I'll look it up but a smart dimmer will not work on a 4 way circuit. Usually..... a smart dimming system requires one dimmer and and in your case..... two slave dimmers.

That dimmer seems like it will work in place of one three way switch however at the very minimum..... you may to eliminate the 4 way switch.

Let me take this moment to say LeGrand sucks when it comes to installation help. You need to wade thru many selections to find wiring help when just a simple search would work.
 

Last edited by PJmax; 08-31-18 at 07:52 PM.
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Old 08-31-18, 07:59 PM
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A question...... why did you choose that dimmer ?

I have to tell you...... there are a load of dimmers on the market and I haven't had a lot of luck with many of them. They seem to function fine as a single pole but don't work correctly in a 3w application. I stick to a chosen few that always work well.

This should be the instructions for your dimmer. Not very detailed.
It looks like the dimmer requires at least 25 watts of load to work. Many don't work reliably until they get to 40 watts. It appears it can work at either end as it doesn't require a neutral and the 4w switch shouldn't be a problem.

legrand/passandseymour/resources/installation-instructions
 
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Old 09-01-18, 03:56 PM
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Ok, thanks guys... Any suggestions on a plug-and-play one that will work? I chose that one solely on looks and supposedly being a 3-way.
 
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Old 09-01-18, 09:49 PM
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I've sort of figured it out based on feedback here. This is a 4-way setup with 3 lights in a long hallway. I wanted to leave them dimmed to the minimum 24x7 so the "tunnel" never goes dark.

I bought a Lutron after reading so much feedback about load required to make them work and it dims a LITTLE bit. At least I know it's working. If I swap out the dimmable LEDs for incandescent, they dim more effectively. I assume the higher the load, the greater the dimming range...

I adjusted the little lever thingy to lower the dimming point to max but on LED it's still not low enough. On incandescent, I can get it to go off from the dimmer...

I may just suck it up and run incandescent as they will be ~ 40W total dimmed down and running 24 hours a day cost me about 3 bucks a month. I can live with that.
 
 

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