My Keypad

Since I am using Insteon technology in my house, I have a few KeypadLinc's (Remote-Controllable Keypad Dimmer) throughout. Here is my main keypad by the garage door, which we use as our main entry to the house.

Here is the original switch with the clear buttons. Click each picture to see a high resolution picture.

Here is an updated picture of the keypad with the top four buttons replaced with laser engraved buttons. They look much better, so once I have some extra money to spend on HA (Home Automation), I will upgrade the bottom buttons.

Let me know which one you like best. Other people have used colored buttons, such as red, blue, red, etc. to differentiate some buttons. I don't think I will be doing that.

CFLs Suck

There, I said it. Compact Fluorescent Light bulbs suck. I'm trying to be energy efficient so I bought a couple CFL reflector bulbs to replace some reflector flood lights in my ceiling cans (ceiling-recessed downlights). Specifically I got one GE 21710 (720 lumens, 6000 hours) and one GE 47478 (750 lumens, 10000 hours). Both are 15W CFLs equivalent to 65W incandescent. The 21710 package specifically indicated it was dimmable. The 47478 package didn't specify either way. Most of the CFLs are non dimmable. Anyway, neither is instant start. The delay was very noticeable. The 47478 did not dim with my Insteon SwitchLinc dimmer switch. The 21710 did not have enough "steps" or levels in dimming, and only went down to about 25% before turning off. I will now go to halogen bulbs

A good paper on Reflector Light Bulbs and Lighting Controls as it pertains to the Energy Act of 2007 (Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA 2007)) can be found here. The Compact Fluorescent Dimming: Buyer Beware paper is another good source of information.