But have you run into any issues with wiring or needing a neutral wire for the switches? Some of my older circuits don’t have one, and I’m not sure if it’s worth the hassle to rewire just for automation.
Man, I feel you on the neutral wire headache. My last house was built in the 60s and apparently, neutrals were optional back then... who knew? Honestly, I ended up using a couple of Lutron Caseta switches since they don’t need a neutral. Not the cheapest, but way less hassle than tearing into walls. If you’re not itching to rewire, there are a few options out there that play nice with old wiring. Don’t let the lack of a neutral kill your automation dreams—there’s hope!
Totally get the neutral wire pain—ran into that myself when I started tinkering with automating my porch lights. If you’re not up for rewiring (and honestly, who is?), there are a few ways to work around it. Here’s how I broke it down:
1. Checked if any of my existing switches had a neutral—surprise, some did, most didn’t.
2. For the spots without a neutral, I looked into smart bulbs instead of switches. Philips Hue worked out okay, but you have to leave the old switch on all the time or else they lose power. That’s kind of a hassle if you’ve got folks in the house who just flip switches out of habit.
3. Like you mentioned, Lutron Caseta is solid and doesn’t need a neutral. Not cheap, but way less mess.
4. Another thing I tried was a battery-powered remote stuck over the old switch (Aqara makes one). Not as elegant, but no wiring needed.
Honestly, unless you’re already opening up walls for something else, I’d lean smart bulbs or Caseta for older setups. Swapping out a few bulbs is way easier than fishing wires through plaster... ask me how I know.
Honestly, I’m still kicking myself for not checking the switch boxes before buying a bunch of smart switches.
Yeah, I learned that one the hard way—spent a weekend sweating in the attic just to give up and go with smart bulbs for the porch. The only thing that bugs me is having to tape over the old switch so no one flips it off. Feels like a hack, but it works for now. Caseta’s tempting, but man, the price adds up fast if you’ve got more than a couple zones.“Swapping out a few bulbs is way easier than fishing wires through plaster... ask me how I know.”
Honestly, taping over the switch is such a classic move—I’ve done it more times than I care to admit. I totally get the Caseta appeal, though. It’s slick, reliable, but yeah, those costs snowball fast if you want whole-home coverage. Have you looked into those magnetic switch covers? Not the prettiest, but at least they’re less janky than tape. Curious—do you care more about aesthetics outside, or is reliability the big thing for you?
I’ve tried those magnetic covers—honestly, they’re a step up from tape but still kinda clunky. For me, reliability wins out, especially for outdoor stuff where I don’t want to mess with it in bad weather. Have you ever had issues with smart bulbs losing connection outside?
