I have 3 Switchlinc 2386 switch's in a 3 gang box. 2 are running 4) 120W bulbs, and the other is running 3) 120W bulbs. All works o.k. however the switch's are getting hotter than I am comfortable with. I remember reading some where about replacing the plastic 3gang box to a metal type as it would act as a heatsink. Also I think that it said something about removing close by insulation. What are your thoughts and suggestions. Thanks!

Hi,

You're running 480 watts on a 600 watt switch. You're certainly within the specs of the switch but you should expect some heat. Three of those switches will get crowded in there but it's OK. Replacing the switch box sure sounds like a lot of work. If anything, I might consider switching to a 1000 watt switch (although it's not necessary).

Martin
Martin@AutomatedOutlet.com

Well Martin, I can't say that I agree with you,

1. When you install 2 or more of these switch's together the power handling drops by 200 watts. ( I am unclear if you have 3 switch's together whether the center switch drops by 200 or 400 watts.

2. As far as I could find out the only difference with the 1000 watt switch's is a larger triac which will not run any cooler, only last longer

Perhaps Larry Fine can shed some more light on this as he certainly seems to have the most knowledge on these kinds on things.

Boinggg!!!

The derating usually works like this:

1 unit, 600 watts
2 units, 500 watts
3 or more, 400 watts

So, you are actually exceeding the ratings a tad on two of them. The little-but-useful idea might be to place the 3-fixture unit in the center.

You could always use a steel plate with a thick smear of conductive goop behind it, and maybe drill a few 1/4" holes in the top and bottom of the box. Watch the wires, both inside and outside the box!

Larry
www.fineelectricco.com

Thanks for the reply Larry,

I took this right out of the switchlinc manual.

Mounts in a single or multiple-ganged j box (200W of load control is lost on 600W switchlinc for each immediately adjacent dimmer installation; 600W Load control becomes 400W with a switchlinc to the immediate right or left

So what does this mean for the center switch in my situation?

I was thinking that the coolest-running dimmer would be the least harmful, just to keep the others apart. According to the manual, you are overloading two of yours, w/480 watts, while the third is just under, at 360 watts.

Could you live with 90-watt bulbs instead of the 120's? That you use dimmers indicates that you don't need 120 watts per all the time. If all you want is on-off control, non-dimming units could be used.

If you must keep the bulbs you have now, I still think the best compromise is to place the lower-loaded dimmer in the middle postition. The best scenario would be to use three separate boxes.

Larry
www.fineelectricco.com

Larry,

I do have the 3 bulb circuit in the center position, The room in question is a large finished basement with 10ft ceilings. Yes I could use 90W bulbs but it is a little dim at times. Let me ask you this, if I set the default on value of the switch's to 75% (if I under stand this correctly that would equal 90W) and just use full on say for cleaning and such would that be o.k. If not would you suggest going to the 1000W switch's or perhaps a differant type of bulb (I have tried halogen floods but it gave a much more uneven look) is there some other type of bulb to look at? As I said the basment is already finished so changing to 3 seperate box's would be tough now. Thanks again RWI

Any other thoughts Larry?