Screwless Plates

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frankft2000

frankft2000

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Location
Maine
I just installed a nice lutron switch in my own house. It has the screwless plates which I have never used but seem to be real nice. My question is...is there a neat way to remove the screwless plate after it has been intalled? I pulled on it as hard as I dared to. Do I just pull harder, or is there a secret to removing them, or are they just disposable? thanks
 
Screwless

Screwless

use a small screwdriver on the bottom and pry it a little and it should pop right off. They look nice but sometime a real pain.
 
scubad3932 said:
use a small screwdriver on the bottom and pry it a little and it should pop right off. They look nice but sometime a real pain.
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You may be thinking of the "Leviton" brand ones??? Which I personally think are P'sOS!!!! They have a little knotch for that purpose. I can never get them to sit right with the right reveal - even on level-5 walls or perfectly flat glass...

The "Lutron" ones you risk damaging the device or plate with a screwdriver. (or sometimes whats worse is damaging the wall its on...) What I do, and this works well with 2-6 gang ones as well - is to pry either the top or bottom with a bit of finger tension, then give it a little shift work left and right. And it will pop right off. (be carefull with the metalic ones not to pry too much.) Once you have this trick down they are really easy.
 
We love the look of the Lutron plates, but unless the customer specifically spec's them they aren't getting them. A 2 gang plate is about $6. Larger mulitgang plates are stupidly expensive.


sc-2-st.jpg
 
infinity said:
We love the look of the Lutron plates, but unless the customer specifically spec's them they aren't getting them. A 2 gang plate is about $6. Larger mulitgang plates are stupidly expensive.


sc-2-st.jpg
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Screw that.

(Sorry, but someone HAD to say it!)
 
Since most customers have a hard time noticing the difference between Almond and Ivory, I think it is overkill to have 5 gloss levels and 40 color shades for cover plates and switches, but Lutron doesn't.

But this is the new world of the snap-on cover plate.
 
danickstr said:
Since most customers have a hard time noticing the difference between Almond and Ivory, I think it is overkill to have 5 gloss levels and 40 color shades for cover plates and switches, but Lutron doesn't.

But this is the new world of the snap-on cover plate.
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I think most people have a hard time between off-white and white... :grin:

You would not believe the pause I get when asking what color devices are installed at their house...
 
Thanks.

This plate came with the dimmer. I wouldn't buy these plates unless it was in the specs. Also I don't think I'll be taking off any plates untill I HAVE too.
 
they're pretty hard to break when pulling off. just give them a hard tug and they'll come off. i usually just use them in kitchens; black/black for black appliances, black/stainless for stainless appliances, and when white appliances are used i usually just try and get a shade to match the backsplash. looks nice.
 
Screwless Plates

infinity said:
We love the look of the Lutron plates, but unless the customer specifically spec's them they aren't getting them. A 2 gang plate is about $6. Larger mulitgang plates are stupidly expensive.


sc-2-st.jpg
Click to expand...
Thanks for the picture. Remember back in the day when we used only Ivory or Brown? Semper Fi
 
danickstr said:
, I think it is overkill to have 5 gloss levels and 40 color shades for cover plates and switches, but Lutron doesn't.
.
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My customers don't think it's overkill and I am a hero when I tell them that I can pretty much match any tile they are getting for their kitchen. Who cares how much they cost. They don't cost me anything.
 
electricmanscott said:
My customers don't think it's overkill and I am a hero when I tell them that I can pretty much match any tile they are getting for their kitchen. Who cares how much they cost. They don't cost me anything.
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I agree, they don't cost me anything either, they make me money.

Mamm, if you would like purple plates, with pink dots, we will do our best to provide them, if you have textured plates, we can help with that also, here is our tear sheet, with special pricing for custom plates, -----(Mamm, may I get you a glass of water, or call a doctor?)

I find it's best to try and please the customer, when they make personal decisions like plate design and color, this is when your opinion can turn off a customer, you might try and make a suggestion, but don't push it.

I see so many posts where pricing seems a big concern, your not paying for the material, the customer is, not only are they paying for it but if you sell them up, and you have a decent mark-up on the material, you can buy an extra peach pie after the sale!

The only problem I find with the snap on plates is, the reveal can be hard to align at times.
 
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why bother

why bother

I just pull them at the top, I just installed 75 dimmers and remote control dimmers in like a million dollar house I hate those things but they looked nice and I got paid by the hour
 
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