I bought this Boosterlinc to supplement my old Radio Shack timer-controller that just didn't seem to be working as well as it used to. I suspect that was because of all the signal-diminishing TVs and computers I've added in the house over the years (TVs and computers serve to diminish the control signals.) I plugged the Boostelinc into the nearest electrical receptacle, but had no discernable results. Then, as per the Boosterlinc installation instructions, I moved the Boosterlinc to the receptacle nearest the house power box which resulted in good control of all modules on the same electrical circuit (i.e., same phase circuit). However, there was still no control of modules on the other (i.e., opposite phase) circuit. I tried bridging the two circuits (in the power box) with a 0.1 microfarad capacitor to achieve phase coupling (a trick suggested on some web sites), but that didn't work. So, I then bought the SIGNALINC PLUG-IN PHASE COUPLER (FOR 3-WIRE 220V DRYERS) on Amazon and now have total control of modules all over the house. So, Boosterlinc is a good product that does what it's supposed to, but depending on your circumstances you may need the phase coupler as well to achieve best results.
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I used 2 of these to help bash through signal weakness and line noise on my x10 system 4 years ago. They work well. Like many x10 problem sovlvers, you'll need to experiment with them to find the best location by trying many outlets. Don't expect to walk up to the first outlet you see and plug it in and get perfect results. Start with one unit and move it around to several spots until you get good results. If you have things that work only when its in one spot, and other things that only work when its in another, you need two (or more)
To be candid, I love this device, but given the expense of this and other things I've done to keep x10 workign, I wish I would have broken down and gone insteon earlier. I'm converting to insteon now.
If you are really in love with and invested in X10 and need a little more upmf, this is what you need. It turns out that I am selling mine as I am down to two x10 thermostats and a few modules that work they way they are, everything else is going insteon.
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I have had the old Radio Shack version in our last home probably 15 years ago. I bought the X10 system for our new home and installed it myself. In this home we are powered from a 100amp electrical service and we had various weird intermittant system triggers. Many times the wall switches would not respond or some would seemingly come on with no controller input. I had contacted the Home Automation support several times and they exchanged several modules that were faulty. By the way, these newer X10 dimmers work differently. The old system came on and off like a switch and the dimmer function was available if needed. The new X10 design has a very stupid function of dimming on to a preset level based on how long you hold the button and then dimming off. To me, this design is a major problem for most people who just want a switch function with a dimmer option. I think if they had made that dim-on / dim-off as an option in the module it would be ok, but the old style off and on is far better in my opinion. After fussing with all the grounds on the many modules I have installed, most of the intermittant issue was resolved; however, some modules would still not turn on remotely or have dimmer control. The Home Automation support people were of no help. I read as much as I could on these PLC systems and decided to try this signal booster. It is not too cheep at around $ 100.00 but so far it has fixed every control issue in my home.
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I bought one of these because all of the outlets in a couple of rooms in my house had no X-10 response. I tried unplugging everything and using noise filters, to no avail. I then bought one of these signal boosters. I initially placed it in an outlet in another area of the house (the instructions said this was one of the many options to try), and it had no effect on the dead rooms. But then I placed this in one of the outlets in the dead rooms, and bingo!, all of the outlets immediately had 100% response. So for me, problem solved... for $99.
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My front post light inexplicably stopped working properly in response to the HCA software. The Smarthome transmitter would turn it on, but not off at night. Out of desperation, I purchased the Boosterlinc, plugged it in. All is now right with the world.
