Questions about Rako dimming products.

[NickSE]

I have emailed Rako with these question too, but would also like your input

1: Do the dimmers use 2Way communication, so they respond with
their status when controlled by a PC/remote? For example if i had a touchscreen that controlled the lightning it should be able to show the status of the channels e.g. "kitchen lights OFF" based on the reply from the dimmers that make up this zone.

2: Can the RF dimmers handle a full house setup so ALL Rako enabled
channels can be turned off/on via single command with instructions for
each dimmer so whole house mood scenes can also be acomplished.

3: How do they compare to other RF produtcs like Lutron RA or
Zigbee, Z-Wave are they lower end quality?

4: Do the dimmers require a battery, or is it the controller?

[JohnS]

I have some to install.....

1. not sure yet.
2. yes
3. not compared but I belive them to be high quality
4. the contoller needs a battery but it supposedly lasts months/years, the dimmers are powered from the mains

[NickSE]

Originally Posted by JohnS

I have some to install.....

1. not sure yet.
2. yes
3. not compared but I belive them to be high quality
4. the contoller needs a battery but it supposedly lasts months/years, the dimmers are powered from the mains

Thank you for the answers John, sounds good sofar, will you post it here if/when you find out about the 2 way question? :-)

[NickSE]

I just heard from Rako, and their dimmers aren't using true 2way commucation so that's a shame.
Does anyone here know any 2way dimmers available on the Uk market? I'm not sure why LutronRA isn't available here

[vex]

The batteries in the controllers last years!

An installer of mine has had them in his house for 3 years without needing to change the battery

No batterys in the dimmers as the take power from the 230v feed.

Rako is a great product but Ulti is also worth a look at. Same type of solution but the dimmers are mounted in the faceplate. Great for retofit market. Webbie is www.ulti.biz for an excellent demo.

[richardS]

I have a whole Rako system - just a note...although the guys at Rako have been absolutely first class at dealing with things - and I really want to emphasise this - as they have been absolutely brilliant - I have had a problem with a 500W dimmer (I've now had 3 changes - so this must have been/may still be a problem/manufacturing error) - which tripped out for no particular reason. The lighting attached totalled 350W and the unit was in a room with plenty of cool air - but still it tripped out (all 3 have done the same) - so very irritating. I have now swapped over the 500w dimmer unit( external aerial) with an older Rako 500W unit (internal aerial) and this seems to have finally resolved things - but no "new" (external aerial) unit that I received from Rako ever cured the problem.