Mike Lamb Posted May 23, 2015 Report Share Posted May 23, 2015 This light switch had a teeny button on it. I have not seen this before. It toggled like a rheostat switch. Sometimes the light would turn on when I flipped it and sometimes it would not. Click to Enlarge 14.62 KB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted May 23, 2015 Report Share Posted May 23, 2015 Rheostats don't toggle, they're not switches. What did the teeny button do? Marc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Lamb Posted May 23, 2015 Author Report Share Posted May 23, 2015 I have seen dimmer switches that move up and down at a light switch. A rheostat is a dimmer switch, right? I pressed the little button but nothing special seemed to happen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted May 23, 2015 Report Share Posted May 23, 2015 A rheostat is a variable resister. I suspect dimmer controls are solid state, thought they mimic rheostat action. I'm sure in ages long gone rheostats were used to control brilliance of incandescent bulbs. Technology changed but the term stuck. So this little button isn't a lamp instead? Marc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Lamb Posted May 24, 2015 Author Report Share Posted May 24, 2015 So this little button isn't a lamp instead? Marc I don't know. Maybe. I wrote the switch up as defective and have moved on. I was just curious. Thanks, Marc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tim5055 Posted May 24, 2015 Report Share Posted May 24, 2015 I've seen folks put dimmer switches in place of a three way and they had the same effect, sometimes they worked, sometimes they didn't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mlparham Posted May 24, 2015 Report Share Posted May 24, 2015 Home inspector's last words, "I wonder what this switch does?" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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