It's only after a few months of moving in, we noticed some stuff are starting to break down. Ceilings, lighting, damp walls, rotted grout, leaks and even switches, to name a few. No, it is not the fault of the previous owner/s because to me, these are merely normal wear and tear. It's a matter of time before we start to repair them, budget allowing.
Switch Me On
One of the most pressing issue would be our Bathroom switch. Both Water Heater and Lights were placed into one 86mm x 85mm Clipsal Switch Panel. And this is one of the range from Schneider Electric. This is not an issue until I realised that cost to replace them and with the same function, is prohibitively expensive.
One of the models I loved was the Schneider Electric's Avatar On C (must have the 'C') which is like a piano key but stretches all the way to the panel's edges. Unlike their competitors, the small rectangular opening at the bottom does light up. Since the switch is needed to control the Water Heater and the light, I had to get a double-gang version, both with at least 20A capacity. And this is where the price went up. And did I mention that it is 'rare' as well? Rare as in it got 'SOLD OUT' and replacement stock is unknown. If the original wall cavity was constructed to handle two panels instead of one, I would have saved a lot of money by buying tow individual switches. Then again, this would make the whole design looked longer.
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| Long ago, I promised myself that if I ever did own a house, I would like to have those nice Schneider Switches. I was searching all the over the placed from local to Chinese B2C Platforms, electrical lighting shops and even here, at HomePro. |
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| And it must be white. So, of all the switches here, the one I wanted is not on display, meaning it was never stocked. The design I want is 7 from the left and two down. |
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| And the spec is a Double-Gang, 1-way, 20A in White. In the end, I got it for about RM80.00. I showed this to my Wife who responded with a very enthusiastic disinterest, 'meh' look. |
The Installation
Replacing the switch is a very straight-forward task. Or so I thought. I mean, all I need to do is to remember which wire goes where, remove the old switch, re-wire the new switch and then mount it back. But the sad thing is that the wiring for the old switch is not the same as the new model. But after some time of figuring things out, it got it done. And oh yeah, do tell everyone you're going to shut down the ELCB and the MCBs before you start..
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| In less than ten days, the switch has arrived. While I was going over it, my Wife gave me that, "Are you sure you can do this?" look. |
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| The rocking action of the plastic panels do feel nice but I just can't get over the feeling as if the other end of the plastic bounced. The experience is not solid plastic but more of a hollow feel. |
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| This is how the 1-way connection worked. The LED would light up when the Live (red wire) and Neutral (Black wire) have power. I was able to do this for the Water Heater (L2, N2 pairs) but for the light, it was a single Live Wire connection so there is no way the LED would light up and I do not want to use the Water Heater's Neutral. |
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| This is the front of the Avatar On C fascia. Unlike other switches where you need to pry off the bezel of some kind, you only need to remove the switch covers with a solid tug. I know, I know, because looking at where the fulcrum point is, the panel can weaken if I do it too often. Then again, I might want to if I can find some flat weights to stick under these two pieces. |
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| This is the interesting part. The light window is diffused and it creates a very soft red light. Because the whole switch assembly is closed up tight, there is no way for me to modify with a white LED. Um, no, forget I mentioned it. Not going to hack a RM80.00 item. |
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| Here is a nice surprise! Once the room's lights are off, the small rectangular window also has a brief glow-in-the-dark feature so that you know where the switches are located. |
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| Under dim lighting, the red indicator is there but if the room's lights are on, sometimes it is not so noticeable, forcing me having to look at the switch directly instead of a side glance. |
