I am contemplating using Indigo and an Insteon ApplianceLinc to control my outdoor landscape lights. I currently have a Pinnacle 600 Watt transformer (2x 300W circuits) in a weather-proof box. The lights are being controlled via an electro-mechanical plug-in timer inside the box. The Pinnacle owner's manual states the transformer is "X-10 ready". My questions are:

1. Can I use an Insteon ApplianceLinc in place of the current plug-in timer?
2. Has anyone used this setup any have suggestions for Indigo?

Thanks in advance.

I use the outdoor appliancelincs for my low voltage transformers and they are very reliable. Not sure what the X10 ready thing means but if it accepts X10 commands the Indigo should be able to control it.

Thanks for the quick reply. Do you use the outdoor ApplianceLinc inside the transformer box or at the outlet?

My transformer has a dedicated timer outlet inside the weather-proof box. That's where you plug in a timer then plug the transformer into that. I want to plug an indoor Insteon ApplianceLinc into that outlet in place of the mechanical timer I'm using now. I believe it should work if fine as long as the ApplianceLinc size allows it to fit into the space. Since it will be inside a weather-proof box, I believe it will be "survive" the elements.

Thanks again.

One of mine is just plugged into an outdoor GFI recepticle in the wall - no box. The other is plugged into a waterproof box but the unit itself is outside the box (it has a cord between the plug and the box). If your waterproof box is large enough for a normal ApplianceLinc then it may be OK, although you also have to consider the temperature variance - the outdoor AL will tolerate a wider range of temperatures.

My outdoor transformers are the kind that sit outside anyway so they aren't enclosed in anything.

Thanks. The temperature issue could be a deal breaker as I live in AZ!

I am installing some landscape lighting. The installer is going to use multi-tap transformers so there will be more than one zone per transformer. Is there a way to control by insteon at the 12v level. I have thought about i/0 linc or ezio4 but not sure if contacts would take load. Maybe add 12v automotive relay and control relay? With easydaq's problems, not sure I want to use them. Has anyone done something similar or any suggestions?

I'll put in a plug for the outdoor AL as well. It's been working perfectly for over 2 years
thru Montana winters. I did have a standard Malibu light timer originally but garaged that
in favor of Indigo control. All my outdoor lights are LED now, just got a hefty 12v power
supply for them and couldn't be happier.

Carl

terrydew wrote:I am installing some landscape lighting. The installer is going to use multi-tap transformers so there will be more than one zone per transformer. Is there a way to control by insteon at the 12v level. I have thought about i/0 linc or ezio4 but not sure if contacts would take load. Maybe add 12v automotive relay and control relay? With easydaq's problems, not sure I want to use them. Has anyone done something similar or any suggestions?

I went with the Outdoor AL for my application. My multi-tap transformer (600W, 2 circuit system in a stainless steel weatherproof box. BTW, National Electrical Code doesn't allow larger than 300W per circuit for low voltage/landscape lighting circuits.) is set up with an outlet inside the box for a mechanical timer or electrical timer. I simply plugged the Outdoor AL into this outlet and powered the transformer circuits with that. The transformer circuits are powered at the same time so there is no way to set different schedules at the 110V level. Since installing the Outdoor AL and setting up the control via Indigo, I've had no trouble with it at all. It has held up to the extreme heat (105º+) of Arizona summers very well.

I've not tried to control the lighting at the 12V level via Insteon. You're idea about using an ezio4 should work but I'm not familiar with the load capacity of either the I/O Linc or the ezio4. Good Luck!

Was setting up my ezio4 for this project and tried to create an action that would turn all 4 outputs on. There was not an option to turn all on even though there is one to turn all off? Is there something I missed or is that the way it works?

The allowed load on the ezio is only 1/2 amp so I am going to use the ezio to control some $6 radio shack spst 12v automotive relays to control the 12v loads. Putting everything in a 8x8x4 carlon box from home depot. On paper it should work but uncertain how ezio will hold up.

terrydew wrote:Was setting up my ezio4 for this project and tried to create an action that would turn all 4 outputs on. There was not an option to turn all on even though there is one to turn all off? Is there something I missed or is that the way it works?

Indigo doesn't have a UI action to turn all outputs ON at once, but should be possible to do with a raw INSTEON command. You can use the INSTEON Commands plugin action Execute Raw INSTEON Command. The Command bytes to use are: 0x48 and 0xFF.

Thanks Matt. That worked. This is my first use of raw commands. The command worked but I had to manually get the status to have the correct status reflected on the home page. I added a get status action with a delay because the status wanted to execute before the raw action even thought raw listed first. Is this the correct way to do it, or are there raw commands that do the same thing but get an acknowledgement ?

Yeah, I think you did it the best way -- via a normal status request with a small delay.

The 12 v control works great after I figured out the 12 v is ac not dc. My first attempt the relays buzzed like a bee. I couldn't find any 12 vac relays so back to Radio Shack for a 12 v adapter. With the adapter feeding the relay coils through the EZIO4 everything worked. I used a 5 pin socket Radio Shack sells which made the wiring easy. They also clip together to form a 4 relay unit.

If anyone is interested I can send part numbers. This definitely is a way to control low voltage but high amp loads.

terrydew wrote:The 12 v control works great after I figured out the 12 v is ac not dc. My first attempt the relays buzzed like a bee. I couldn't find any 12 vac relays so back to Radio Shack for a 12 v adapter. With the adapter feeding the relay coils through the EZIO4 everything worked. I used a 5 pin socket Radio Shack sells which made the wiring easy. They also clip together to form a 4 relay unit.

If anyone is interested I can send part numbers. This definitely is a way to control low voltage but high amp loads.

How about sending a pic of your setup in the Carlon box? I'd like to do something similar with my landscape lighting. I'm expanding my system to add more fixtures (LED bulbs) into my backyard. Thanks in advance.