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Author Topic: Upside down light switches?  (Read 12678 times)

brian maddox

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Re: Upside down light switches?
« Reply #30 on: May 03, 2017, 09:12:16 AM »

To add to the strangeness, I found this sort of switch on my cruise ship in Holland as well as my hotel room in Paris. You have to put your room key into the slot to energize the room lights. Makes sense since it guarantees you'll turn out the lights when you leave the room, but I've never seen anything like it in the USA. And yes, you have to push the switch "down" to be ON.

I've seen this quite a bit in countries other than the US.  I think i even saw it at the Aloft Hotel, which is a european based chain with a number of locations now here in the US.

It's a great idea.  Definitely shows how much more energy conscious people are in other countries.
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brian maddox
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Tim McCulloch

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Re: Upside down light switches?
« Reply #31 on: May 03, 2017, 10:56:44 AM »

Another thing I noticed in Holland is that their 230-volt hair dryers get hotter than heck compared to the 120-volt ones in the USA. And the Euro power pin size is larger on the hair dryer so they won't fit into the bathroom power receptacles. And yes, you have to push the switch on the hair dryer "down" to be "on".

Hair dryer?  What is this "hair" you speak of, stranger?  I have a vague recollection of such a thing and none of it was gray...
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Tim McCulloch

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Re: Upside down light switches?
« Reply #32 on: May 03, 2017, 10:58:46 AM »

To add to the strangeness, I found this sort of switch on my cruise ship in Holland as well as my hotel room in Paris. You have to put your room key into the slot to energize the room lights. Makes sense since it guarantees you'll turn out the lights when you leave the room, but I've never seen anything like it in the USA. And yes, you have to push the switch "down" to be ON.

Less intrusive in concept than the motion/heat detectors that have been installed in hotel rooms.  Some folks get creeped out when their room's infrastructure is spying on them, others don't seem to notice/care.
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"If you're passing on your way, from Palm Springs to L.A., Give a wave to good ol' Dave, Say hello to progress and goodbye to the Moonlight Motor Inn." - Steve Spurgin, Moonlight Motor Inn

Daniel Levi

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Re: Upside down light switches?
« Reply #33 on: May 03, 2017, 11:17:53 AM »

I've had the same thing as noted above but weirdly only in one hotel in Britain and not one of the ultra cheapies, one was a mechanical switch the card pushed down and one was obviously some form of light gate. You could hear the contactors closing quite loudly when it activated. Seemed to only control the lights on the second version.
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Jonathan Johnson

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Re: Upside down light switches?
« Reply #34 on: May 03, 2017, 12:43:57 PM »

Anyway, as I see it...A 1 way switch only works with DC and a 2 way is good for AC  ;D ;D

I figure a "1-way" switch can only be off or only be on. A "2-way" switch can be off or on.
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Stephen Swaffer

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Re: Upside down light switches?
« Reply #35 on: May 03, 2017, 12:49:18 PM »

Another thing I noticed in Holland is that their 230-volt hair dryers get hotter than heck compared to the 120-volt ones in the USA. And the Euro power pin size is larger on the hair dryer so they won't fit into the bathroom power receptacles. And yes, you have to push the switch on the hair dryer "down" to be "on".

My guess is the Chinese manufactur just uses the same design, putting a different voltage rating on it for manufacturing efficiencies. ;)

OT, but we are getting better at power usage.  I quoted 240 watt/24000 lumen fixture for a job back in September-just completed a change order to go to a 150 watt/24000 lumen fixture at virtually no change in cost.  That's a crazy improvement in 8 months!
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Steve Swaffer

Jonathan Johnson

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Re: Upside down light switches?
« Reply #36 on: May 03, 2017, 03:28:56 PM »

OT, but we are getting better at power usage.  I quoted 240 watt/24000 lumen fixture for a job back in September-just completed a change order to go to a 150 watt/24000 lumen fixture at virtually no change in cost.  That's a crazy improvement in 8 months!

Let's hope that the life is as long as promised.

Some of the mass-market LED light bulbs (A19, 60W equivalent) are failing at a rate faster than incandescents! I cannot recommend products from Feit Electric sold by Costco at this time -- searching online, it looks like a lot of other people are experiencing the same problem.
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David Buckley

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Re: Upside down light switches?
« Reply #37 on: May 03, 2017, 09:57:23 PM »

but I've never seen anything like it in the USA.
Does Hawaii count as the USA?  Because I've certainly bunged my room card in one there!
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Scott Holtzman

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Re: Upside down light switches?
« Reply #38 on: May 04, 2017, 12:40:44 AM »

Does Hawaii count as the USA?  Because I've certainly bunged my room card in one there!

The building I had an event at the other night was full LEEDS.  The US is waking up in the cities.  The rural areas with the cost of power underwritten by the REA are a whole different story.  This borders on politically.

My wife is part of the problem, nothing annoys me more than to come home to over 3k square feet of conditioned space with 18ft ceilings on the first floor to find it heated or cooled to human comfort ranges with lights on with just the dog at home.  It's insane. 

The Celebrity Lines ship I was just on had those euro rockers and the awesome hair dryer but not the room card key thing. 
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Scott AKA "Skyking" Holtzman

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Steve M Smith

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Re: Upside down light switches?
« Reply #39 on: May 04, 2017, 03:03:44 AM »

All of our street lights here are LED.  They are a vast improvement over the sodium lamps we used to have.  The electricity bill will be much lower and there is no longer a horrible orange glow in the sky.  This has pleased astronomers and those who like photographing the Milky Way.

My house is almost all LED now too.


Steve.
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Re: Upside down light switches?
« Reply #39 on: May 04, 2017, 03:03:44 AM »


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