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[don byrne]

I have been using lamp modules to control
Christmas candles and they have worked
fine.  My wife wanted to change the bulbs
to ones that look like a candle flame and
flicker.  Now when the module turns off (at
least what would be normal bulbs) the bulbs
dim but do not go out totally.  On an
extension with 2 candles one will go out
and the other will still flicker low.  If I
unscrew the one flickering the other bulb
will come on.  It seems that some how a low
voltage is still getting to the bulb and
that the bulb may not require much to
work.  I have also tried this with an
applicance module and it does the same
thing.  Does anyone have a clue how to
resolve?  Or maybe there is so little
voltage on the bulb that it won't take from
it's life.

Thank you and Merry Christmas
Don

[Tom F]

All the X10 modules display this "current leak"--it's actually a feature.

You see, by allowing a small current through a device, you can detect when the non-X10 switch on the device is switched off.  That way, if you don't have a remote control handy, you can still turn a light on by just cycling the device switch off and on.

Other vendors sell modules with a programmable current sense mode which can be disabled.  X10's modules must be disassembled and a wire on the circuit board snipped to make the change.  For details, look at: http://www.idobartana.com/hakb/index.htm

The X10 lamp module was designed for 40-300 watts of incandescent light, which won't power up with the trickle of current.  Those little candle lights are just too darned efficient.