Are Leviton 6633-P 3-way Dimmers Legal?

[gary]

I am in the process of finishing a large custom home which is subject to the new California title 24 energy requirements. Virtually all incandescent lighting now needs to be controlled by a dimmer or "vacancy" switch. I installed dozens of Leviton "SureSlide" dimmers throughout the house. These are the classic Decora style slide dimmers I've used for years. The new Leviton 6633-P has a small horizontal toggle switch below the slider which allows the device to be used as a single pole "preset" dimmer. It can also be used as a 3-way dimmer in conjunction with a standard 3-way switch. The problem is, the device has no trimmer to adjust the minimum light level. You can turn the lights completely off with the slider, as you must do with the single pole dimmers, but when you try to turn them on at the other end of the 3-way circuit you are SOL. I called Leviton customer support yesterday and told them I couldn't find the trimmer adjustment. I was told there was no trimmer on this model & I would have to "train" my customer to not use the slider to turn off the lights on 3-way circuits. I pointed out that their literature states that all their pre-set dimmers have trimmers to adjust the minimum light setting. I was told that was simply a misprint!

I find it incredible that it would be legal to market such a device. Consumers will inevitably be forced to negotiate dark hallways or stairwells because someone "forgot" to turn off the lights with the pre-set switch instead of the slider . Please tell me that 3-way dimmers must be designed so there is always some minimal level of illumination when the circuit is energized from the other end!

 

[steve66]

I'm not from Calif, and I don't have to deal with title 24, but I don't know of any requirement that 3 way dimmers have a low end adjustment. That would be handy, but as far as I know, its not required.

Consumers will inevitably be forced to negotiate dark hallways or stairwells because someone "forgot" to turn off the lights with the pre-set switch instead of the slider .

Just a personal opinion (don't take it as being directed at the original poster - I've seen other similar posts about 3 way dimmers), but:

We have really become a spoiled society, haven't we? Should there really be a code requirement that says we should never have to walk in the dark? Even in our own house? What the heck did people do before electricity or light bulbs? They still had stairways back then.

 

[acrwc10]

What the heck did people do before electricity or light bulbs? They still had stairways back then.[/QUOTE]

Candles.

 

[gary]

Sure, I guess I could tell my customers that if they are too dumb to remember not to turn off the hall lights with the slider, like they do with all the other lights in the house, maybe they should eat more carrots and work on their night vision.

Legal or not, this is an incredibly stupid design for a 3-way dimmer. It should not be possible to dim the lights to the off state, thus rendering the remote switch useless.

I definitely don't think it would satisfy 210.70(A)(2)(c). (Where one or more lighting outlet(s) are installed for interior stairways, there shall be a wall switch at each floor level, and landing level that includes an entryway, to control the lighting outlet(s) where the stairway between floor levels has six risers or more.) A required 3-way switch should function all the time.

I believe this came about as a result of Leviton's effort to cut costs and maximize profits by developing one product to replace four different products. The new 6633-P functions as a single pole or a 3-way slide dimmer with a preset switch. A small internal switch can be used to turn the internal "locater" light on or off. It thus replaces the old 6621-P, 6631-P, 6623-P, and the old 6633-P. (The old 3-way models did have trimmers and worked fine.) I applaud their effort to design a more versatile product but think they used poor judgment in eliminating the trimmer.

 

[Dennis Alwon]

As you have found out some three ways are not user friendly, however the code only requires a single switch to turn lights on when you enter a room.( article 210.70) A three way is a luxury (if it works correctly). So I guess it is a legal switch.

 

[brandon2177k]

You should check into P&S Multilocation dimmers. There is a "Master" which can be used as a single pole, and there are "Slaves" which can be added as
3-way's and 4-way's as long it is wired like you would normally wire a 3-way or 4-way. The nice thing is that you can preset them to any level and just tap them, the light will ramp up to whatever the preset is, and you can do this anywhere, doesn't matter if it's a "master" or "slave".
Check out this link
http://www.passandseymour.com/pdf/M06.pdf