A Z-Wave Blog

The ACT ZRW230 is the European equivalent of the ZRW103.  It is a Z-Wave wireless home automation light switch with a single paddle.

It looks like this when installed:

From behind:

Before going any further please note that I AM NOT AN ELECTRICIAN.  I strongly suggest that you use a qualified electrician to install these switches for you, and in any event make sure you obey local regulations.

Before you buy a load of ZRW230s, check your light switches to make sure you have three wires: the live wire, the load (which connects to the live when the switch is ‘on’) and a neutral.  If you don’t have a neutral then you won’t be able to use the ZRW230 unless you get a neutral wire installed.

All is not lost however, since you may be able to use an ACT ZRW232 dimmer instead.  The ACT ZRW232 dimmer does not require a neutral, so you may be able to use that.  Note however that it is a dimmer, meaning that it might not be suitable for all lights (fluorescent lights for example).

When I opened up my light switch this is what I saw:

As you can see, there is no neutral.  I got the additional neutral wire installed and wired up:

The Live wire goes into the "L", the Neutral goes into either of the "N"s, and the Load goes into "1".

"2" and "3" are not used for this installation.  You’ll destroy your switch if you put the Live wire into "3".

Once installed I used my controller to add it to the existing Z-Wave network:

If you have more than one switch controlling the same light

If you have more than one switch controlling the same light, then you replace one light switch with a single ZRW230 to control the light, and where you have other switches you should use a ZTW230.  The ZTW230 is purely a transmitter (it has no load).  You can configure it using the controller to send a message to the ZRW230 when it is switched on, and the ZRW230 will then switch on the light.  I’ve found that the ZRW230 can also be set up to act purely as a transmitter, with no load attached.

Conclusion

Once I got a Neutral wire installed I found the ZRW230 easy to install and configure.  It is extremely configurable.  For example I found it handy to make the switch send a signal to a second switch so that when it is pressed, two lights go on.