[4walls]

Hello,

I purchased the Leviton PR180 to wire into a 3-way switch installation. My setup is exactly like the wiring diagram in the instructions, but I cannot get the #1 switch (original 3 way switch) to turn the lights on after the motion detector has timed out and turned off the lights.

I have tried to switch the wires as the installation instructions guide you to do, but to no avail.

My friend is an electrician, and he could not get it wired to work properly either. The instructions seem to be very poorly worded especially in regards to the jumper that must be installed on switch #1 (which in my opinion would create a situation in which the 3 way switch could no longer operater properly).

Any comments?

[tkrussell]

Someone else had a similar problem, review this post and see if it can help you:

https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/showthread.php?t=21225

Walker seems to have a real handle on wiring these sensors

[4walls]

Thanks for the quick reply and reference to the other thread. I did read that one over and a few other similar ones as well. I am unable to get the switch working properly however.



This is the wiring diagram that comes with the switch. My installation is virtually identical to the diagram.

The instructions state "Replace wires from the common terminal and one switch terminal with short jumpers. Connect the two jumpers 'Line Hot' and 'Traveller A' together with wire connector."

This seems a little ambiguous to me and the wiring diagram isn't clear to me either. Do I leave Traveller A connected to switch #1? Does the jumper go from Traveller A on Switch #1 to Line Hot at Switch #1? Why do they talk about two jumpers?

Here is what I have done.
- left all wires on Switch #1.
- jumper wire installed between Traveller A and Line Hot on Sw #1.
- installed PR180 at location #2 as shown above.

Troubleshooting guide with the PR180 states that when power is restored and PR180 is turned to ON position, then:
- if light turns ON when Switch #1 is in either position (as mine was), then turn PR180 to AUTO
- now when PR180 is in AUTO, Switch #1 cannot turn lights ON. So the instructions say to reverse Black and Yellow wires on the PR180.

I followed the directions to reverse the wires and then the lights would only come on if Switch #1 was in the UP or DOWN position. This prompts you to reverse the Red and Yellow wires on the PR180.

Nothing seems to make the switch operate correctly. I cannot get Switch #1 to turn the lights on. I also exchanged the PR180 at the hardware store for another unit in case my original unit was faulty, but this did not help.

Any suggestions?
Thanks.

[Christopher Grant]

The diagram is partially correct.

The actual wiring is correct except for the colors of the wires on the sensor.

Black should be red.

Red should be Yellow/red.

And yellow should be Black.

The three way switch acts as a remote trigger to activate the sensor from a remote location.

In other words, the sensor needs constant power on the red lead. The black lead goes to the light, and the yellow/red lead triggers the sensor to activate for the timed period when its state changes either from on to off, or off to on.

[4walls]

Thanks for the reply, but my electrician tried to wire it several different ways (as I had tried before I called the professional in to 'do it right'). Neither he nor I could find a wiring combination that worked.

We could not get the remote 3way switch to trigger the motion detector switch. I may have mentioned previously that we also tried another switch, thinking that the switch itself may have been faulty, but a different (same model number) switch did not rectify the problem.

I would be curious to know if anyone has ever had this switch working so that the remote 3way switch is fully operational still.

[klricks]

I also have same problem as 4walls. The other 3 way switch does nothing.

Note that the diagram that I have is different than the one that 4walls posted and also different then what Chis Grant said.
My diagram shows. Red to light, Yellow/red stripe to traveler B and black to full time hot (same as diagram).
I tried to connect as Chis Grant said and it made no difference.
It is as though the other switch is not there.
Could have bought the single pole model and made it function like this for $5 less...

Also Note: In order to wire as shown, you need 2 jumpers. Only one jumper came in the package.

The instructions say nothing at all about the function of the other switch.

Kevin

[4walls]

This is a strange one. It seems that some people have been able to get the 3way switch working, but I never did. I had an electrician work on it and he wasn't able to make it work properly either.

So now I, like klricks, spent $5 too much for the 3 way switch and installed it anyway. The other switch at the end of the hall is just for show now. Luckily for me, the motion detector is quite sensitive, so I can do without the other switch in the circuit.

[klricks]

OK my switch seems to be working now.
I have it wired as Chris Grant said.

Red to Traveler A & hot wire.
Yellow/Red to Traveler B
Black to light.
(This is NOT liike the printed instructions say and NOT like the image found on the Leviton web page).

Now when the other switch is changed the green LED will come on for a few seconds and the light will come on IF the room is dark enough (depending on the setting of the sensitivity control).

Note: When I turn the other switch one way, the light comes on immediately, turn it the other way and there is a 2 or 3 second delay before the light comes on.

I wish that throwing the other 3 way switch would override the daylight control but keep the time delay.
My setup is in a laundry room/ garage entry. With the switches only 6' apart.
When I am just passing through, I don't want the light to come on in daylight. When I am unloading the dryer or something, I may want the light on. In this case I have to either cup my hand over the sensor window or turn the slider switch to ON and hopefully for my sake not forget to turn it off... Not as easy as fliping the other 3 way switch would be.

Another possibility for your problem. The PR180 must be at the switch location which has the cable that goes to the light.
The original 3 way switch must remain at the box with the full time hot wire.

I think it will work for situations where the hot feed is at the light box instead of one of the switch boxes. The PR180 still has to be at the correct location but, you could easily change the wiring inside the light box to have the PR180 at the other switch location.

In my case I would like the PR180 facing the garage door instead of facing the kitchen so the liight does not come on from motions detected in the kitchen area. I can't do that because of the way the wiring was done.


Kevin

[klricks]

Here I am again making a reply to my own message...
I got an email from the tech support at Leviton.
Evedently there are 2 revisions of the PR180.

The older one has Red, Black and a (solid) Yellow wire.
The newer one has Red, Black and a Yellow/Red striped wire.
The wiring of these are different depending on which rev. you have.

Also I was wrong about having to have the PR180 in the box that goes to the light. These will work at either the box with the hot wire or at the box with the wire leading to the light box. The tech sent me 4 pictures that show how to wire the PR180.

I don't think even a real electrician would be able to figure these out without the diagrams. At least the user would not want to have to pay for the time it would take to figure things out. Without knowing, I wouldn't have just tried every combination for fear of destroying the device. It's a wonder why the proper documentation is not in the box or even on the Leviton web site.

Here are the 4 diagrams:



Old version with PR180 at box with hot wire:






Old version with PR180 at the box with wires going to light box:





New version with PR180 at box with hot wire:





New version with RP180 at box with wire going to light:



Hope this helps
Kevin

[dfbishop]

I have had the same problem as 4walls and klricks – namely, the sensor works fine but the remote 3-way switch has no effect. The hot wire is in the box with the 3-way PR180 and the load wire is in the box with the remote 3-way switch. I wired it according to the above diagram from klricks:

New version with PR180 at box with hot wire

This is my third PR180 from Home Depot. The first had been opened previously and was dead in the water on installation. The second and third sensed fine, but the remote switch had no effect. I spoke at length with a Leviton technician who said the above wiring diagram was correct. Strangely, he said that shorting the black and yellow wires at the sensor would not work, even though as I understand it, that is exactly what the standard 3-way switch is doing (a single pole, double throw switch, right?). Anyway, even though “it goes against 100 years of policy”, the supervisor at Leviton agreed to send me one that works and I will try it out. Does anyone understand the circuit inside the PR180? It seems to need to be able to handle having 110 coming in on the yellow/red line if someone throws the remote switch while the light is on, and also turn on 110 to the black wire when the remote switch connects the two brass terminals when the light if off. The technician also said it didn’t matter which position the remote switch was in when the light times out, it would trigger the sensor when it was switched. This suggests there is some printed circuit in the sensor handling the situation. The technician also said that one needed to wait for at least 30 seconds after the light went out before the remote switch would work. Oh for the good old days when you could get a schematic diagram of the internal electronics and really understand how things work.

[klricks]

Eventually after getting the wiring correct and playing with different delay settings, and other things that I list below, I got mine to work. Not sure exactly what made it work, but part of my problem was that I expected more from the other 3 way switch.
I was thinking it would override the daylight sensor but it does not.

The 3 way switch will only turn the light on when the light has timed out AND it is dark enough for the sensor to turn the light on. Tape over the sensor to test it.

Throwing the 3 way switch does nothing when the ambient light is above the threshold setting. (It really does something- the green LED will come on for a few seconds just like when the PR180 detects motion, however the daylight sensor keeps the light off).

The 3-way switch will not ever turn the light off. Only the timer timeout, (or manual OFF on the PR180), will turn the light off.

There is a 1 to 3 second dely when you flip the 3 way swich. Depending on which position the switch is in.

Do not use CF bulbs - Use incandescent only.
Put the PR180 switch in manual ON for a few minutes before attempting to use auto mode.

Kevin

[Architect]

OK new problem for all... I had the device wired [incorrectly] w/o the jumper. The switch on the PR180 worked or so it seemed, correctly.

With the PR180 in the off position, the light was off. The 3-way switch on the opposite wall did nothing.

With the PR180 in the on position, the light came on and the 3-way switch on the opposite wall controlled the lights as required.

Now the problem... With the PR180 in the motion setting, the lights activated when you enter the room, but with only 50% [plus or minus] voltage.

I am running this with a fluorescent fixture in the laundry room. I changed the light out so I have tried magnetic and electronic ballasted, both with the same result--- 50% power and a flickering fluorescent bulb.

I am in the process of wiring the switch with the jumper, but I can't see how that is going to do anything to correct the 50% power issue.

Also, why would Leviton require a magnetic ballast? Talk about the stone age.

[Architect]

OK new problem for all... I had the device wired [incorrectly] w/o the jumper. The switch on the PR180 worked or so it seemed, correctly.

With the PR180 in the off position, the light was off. The 3-way switch on the opposite wall did nothing.

With the PR180 in the on position, the light came on and and the 3-way switch on the opposite wall controlled the lights as required.

Now the problem... With the PR180 in the motion setting, the lights activated when you enter the room, but with only 50% [plus or minus] voltage.

I am running this with a fluorescent fixture in the laundry room. I changed the light out so I have tried magnetic and electronic ballasted, both with the same result--- 50% power and a flickering fluorescent bulb.

I am in the process of wiring the switch with the jumper, but I can't see how that is going to do anything to correct the 50% power issue.

Also, why would Leviton require a magnetic ballast? Talk about the stone age.

Well! As suspected making the change and correctly installing DID NOTHING. Frustration does not even begin to dezsccribe where I am right now.

I've spent $20 on the motion switch, $60 for another light, $10 on a box of wire nuts [couldn't find mine in time to do the job]. I threw the old 3-way switch away but there's another $7 I'll spend to restore the laundry back to where it was before I started this whole mess.

Let's see that's almost $100 for what?

[GregSr]

This is exactly what the manufacturer should have included with the product!

[Jasonv56]

The line wiring diagrams are incorrect. The black sensor wire is the power and needs to be connected to the hot wire typically black. The Yellow/Red and Red go to the travelers. Red to the A traveler and yellow/red to the B traveler. Make sure your not using fluorescent lighting in the circuit. It messes the sensor up. The 3-way switch turns the lights on in either position and then the sensor times them off. It took a conversation with 3 Leviton tech support folks to get this working right. The wiring diagram in the instructions is not correct. Just make sure the sensors black wire is always has power.

[Computer-Genius]

OK Folks Forget everything you have read above it is all BS and will not work with this switch. I hate signing up for forms but this is just to easy and I figured since so many forums have helped me on other subjects I may as well not be a douche and contribute at least something.

OK first off you probably have 4 wire in your box right.
If your me you have 2 black a red and a green of plain copper for ground.

Now electricians are usually not the smartest bunch so I am going to assume the color codes are off but even if there not you will have to figure out what wire is the hot. To do this it can be a little dangerous so be very alert when you do what I am about to tell you.

The way these switches work is you have one hot and 2 carriers. The hot and one of the carriers can sometimes be the same color. You will need to isolate the hot.

This is really quite simple. Leave the breaker on the switch will need to be live for this test.

On your junction box take 2 of the 3 wires touch them together. Please take note what 2 wires you connect, your lights may or may not light up at this point. Go to the other switch and change its position now do the same test with the same to wires and you should have an opposite effect than you did the first time i.e.. If they lit up on the first test they will not light up now or visa versa. Now take the 3rd wire and touch it to one of the other 2. the wire that gives you light no madder what other wire you touch it to is your hot.

Now that we no what wire is hot you can connect it to the black wire on the motion switch.

Now take the black or the yellow wire. Doesn't matter which one, and tie it into one of the non hot or ground wires.

That's it if you chose the yellow tape off the red and visa versa if you choose the red wire. If you connect both red and yellow to the 2 ground wires you will create and endless loop and get 1 of 2 effects. 1) flickering of the bulbs or 2) the light will go off after time out and immediately fire back on.

The reason this is happening is because when the motion switch breaks the circuit between one ground it switches to the other and when it does this it finds there is a new circuit and fires back on. It is a design flaw.

If you wire this to the above instructions your secondary switch will be able to turn the motion switch on or off but if the secondary switch is off the motion switch will not have the ability to turn the light on. This is the trade off you get when using this switch in a 3 way system.

Also please don't forget to wire your ground it is there for a reason people. And on second though I don't want to be responsible for killing anyone so were insulated gloves when doing this if you are at all questioning you ability to work on live wires.

I have a website that isn't up yet for my company but there is a under construction there now but depending on when you read this it may be up so check it out.

DNSCT.com
If you have a question email me at [email protected]

[Cobraguy]

What??

[Jasonv56]

So, all I know is this. I connected the sensor up the way as I described it above and it worked as it's suppose to. I even received confirmation from Leviton tech support. Whether you think it's BS is up to you. Please note that my sensor connection was on the line side. If your sensor is on the load side then the black wire would typically be connected to the traveler that you jumpered to the power back on 3-way switch side which is now the line side. This would have been the red wire for me. And my lights did flicker and turn and off, but that was because I had energy saver bulbs in the circuit. The only thing I would suggest doing is checking out what side is the line side using a tester or volt meter.

[JPWhite]

I have had the same problem as 4walls and klricks – namely, the sensor works fine but the remote 3-way switch has no effect. The hot wire is in the box with the 3-way PR180 and the load wire is in the box with the remote 3-way switch. I wired it according to the above diagram from klricks:

New version with PR180 at box with hot wire

This is my third PR180 from Home Depot. The first had been opened previously and was dead in the water on installation. The second and third sensed fine, but the remote switch had no effect. I spoke at length with a Leviton technician who said the above wiring diagram was correct. Strangely, he said that shorting the black and yellow wires at the sensor would not work, even though as I understand it, that is exactly what the standard 3-way switch is doing (a single pole, double throw switch, right?). Anyway, even though “it goes against 100 years of policy”, the supervisor at Leviton agreed to send me one that works and I will try it out. Does anyone understand the circuit inside the PR180? It seems to need to be able to handle having 110 coming in on the yellow/red line if someone throws the remote switch while the light is on, and also turn on 110 to the black wire when the remote switch connects the two brass terminals when the light if off. The technician also said it didn't matter which position the remote switch was in when the light times out, it would trigger the sensor when it was switched. This suggests there is some printed circuit in the sensor handling the situation. The technician also said that one needed to wait for at least 30 seconds after the light went out before the remote switch would work. Oh for the good old days when you could get a schematic diagram of the internal electronics and really understand how things work.

Same here,

Works fine in place of the load side 3-way switch but misbehaves when replacing the line(hot) switch instead which I wanted in my application.

In addition I found that with compact fluorescents even when the lights were off there was a tiny flicker in the first stage of 2 of the 4 bulbs. I ended up putting the unit in the laundry room as a single pole application with an incandescent bulb, works just fine there. I did try the unit in the downstairs bathroom where we have two compact fluorescents, it functioned just fine, but there was a discernible buzz coming from the bulbs. The switch is rated for both incandescent and fluorescent, so is a disappointment.

JP

[danzak]

The prior diagrams were very helpful; but I still could NOT get the switch to work.

I'm implementing this in a stairwell application in a rental property, so I want the light to come on automatically at entry at either top or bottom of steps.

The description of how to wire TWO sensors was VERY HELPFUL and worked. I diagramed it out, consistent with the other diagrams offered.

Thanks for the help folks! Hopefully my apartment hall lights will now be off! It's amazing how many tenants don't understand how a light switch works. (grin)

Regards,
j
^--aka Snidley Wiplash