Product Support ---poor!!

[ricka2]

Take a look at the product line support for the X10 module light switches ---simple push button on the swich is not available to purchase from this company!!!  Pennies to make and replaceable, yet this company does not provide as an available purchase!  Outrageous. 

( Rick ) are there replacement push buttons available for the x10 wall switches? my buttons are splitting in halve and need to be replaced
( Greg ) Give me a minute to find your answer
( Greg ) Sorry we do not have replacement buttons for the switches.
( Rick ) that is not good. i have hundreds of dollars into this system in my home
( Rick ) who is the manufacturer so I may contact them direct?
( Greg ) We are the manufacturer. We do not have any replacement buttons. All of our products has a 1yr warranty. If you are still in the 1yr we can set up a replacement and send you out a new one.
( Rick ) then you manufacturer an inferior product. I will post my experience with X10 on the forums. Your company certainly does not provide for the customer
( Rick ) a 2 cent plastic button and you provide no means to replace. Outrageous customer support
( Rick ) Please relay my disppointment to your company. I have my entire home X10 with all wall switches x10...over 30 switches installed
( Rick ) so your company warrants a wall switch in a home for 1 year. Poor product support. No one replaces wall switches every year so you should have replacement buttons available to sell to the customers.
( Rick ) But I understand...you are a salesperson and not in the position to spend time with customers for a simple button replacement....
( Greg ) We do offer up to 5yrs replacement warranties when placing orders on all X10 products.
( Rick ) 5 years ...great...and that would cost the user how much? ridiculous. do you replace wall switches every five years? I don't believe so. The product has a replaceable button -- -the buttons should be able to be purchased.
( Greg ) We do have a 5 pack special on the WS467 for $49.99.
( Rick ) 5 buttons for 50 bucks. again ridiculous
( Greg ) I am sorry that is all we can do.
( Rick ) all you do is nothing. thanks. I will be posting this script on your forums so others know of this company and the product.

[Knightrider]

Rick,
Sorry to hear of your misfortune.  Check this out: http://idobartana.com/hakb/modifying_wall_switch.htm
Look under the section of "Replacing the button".
Maybe this will help you out.

[Charles Sullivan]

I think you have to be fair here.  A WS467 Wall Switch sells for about $10.  The cost to X-10 for stocking replacement buttons (paperwork, inventory control, instructing customers how to replace the button, etc) would be high enough that they'd probably have to charge $5/button to break even.  And then customers would scream they were being ripped off.

Consider the cost of replacement parts for automobiles, even from third-party suppliers.

[Jsnlong]

Coming from a manufacturing point of view.......They already stock and inventory the part or they would not be able to make them. I doubt X10 stocks them here in the US since this stuff is made in china and Charles is right the part doesn't cost that much to sell replacement parts for them...X10 would be consider a throw away product much like a cheap universal TV remotes(not a Icon or harmony  )

Automotive parts cost so much cause there is to many companies involved in getting replacement parts..

The part manufacture
The Car company
The Vendor/supplier to dealerships
The dealership
the repair company (if its not the dealship)

And they all have a markup!!! 

[HA Dave]

( Rick )  my buttons are splitting in halve

I have a couple of these switches... been in service as part of my original order to X10 5-6 years ago. It really sucks that your "buttons" are cracking. Can they be repaired with epoxy and then epoxy coated and painted?

[dave w]

FWIW
I have to weigh in with Charles. The part may cost 10 cents to mold, but setting up for consumer sales is costly. In a previous life at a Motorola manufacturing plant, I was told (and saw how) a $3 transistor would be +$30 by the time it got into the technicians hands. Most of that was "handling charges" incurred throughout the manufacturing, packaging, inventory keeping, transfer though at least four different warehousing stockrooms, etc, etc, etc. Unless you really see the process it is pretty easy to have the "can't cost that much" view.

Besides, selling replacement parts would curtail X10 product sales. And that would be anathema to X10.

Periodically these switches fail when the light bulb burns out. Save the defective switch for parts scavenging such as this.

[Dan Lawrence]

That's what I do.  If a wall switch fails and is replaced, the button from it goes in the spare parts box.  I've had 2 replaced over the years and kept the buttons, at least one split in half, so the spare replaced it.

[bitman]

When I first read the OP, I thought, wow are you using a hammer on them?
Then today I noticed a crack on a wall switch that is just about a year old.
That does it.
I'm buying expensive standard toggle "designer" switches from Leviton.
I never liked the push buttons anyway.