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Post by Max C. on Aug 2, 2016 15:07:14 GMT -5
Since this topic has been addressed lately, it has likely come time to create a designated thread  What brand of electrical devices (switches, receptacles, dimmers, etcetera) do you prefer? Below are my impressions thus far: Cooper Wiring Devices (Eaton) - No complaints. Reasonable decorator switches. Lampholers appear sturdy, and GFCIs are solid. Residential-grade receptacles are surprisingly durable, however tamper-resistant models annoyingly-bare the "TR" logo on their face.
Eagle - Limited experience. Lampholers appear sturdy and spec-grade receptacles are adequate. Residential-grade switches seem average.
Hubbell/Bryant - A solid choice, overall. Excellent spec-grade receptacles, though I dislike that they include the Hubbell-logo stamped on their faces. "tradeSELECT" residential-grade switches seem alright. Older Bryant spec-grade switches are solid. Cord-caps seem more rugged than most. Intermatic - Reliable timers...what more is there to say... Leviton - A mixed bag. Standard, residential-grade Decora receptacles feel cheap, however the tamper-resistant versions are alright. Horrendous dryer/range receptacles (the Canadian models, anyway). GFCIs and spec-grade devices are reasonable. Decora switches have actually proven quite decent. Cord-caps are typically sturdy. Lutron - Positive experience. Excellent dimmers, GFCIs appear to be re-branded Hubbell and other receptacles are Cooper Wiring Devices with a decorative plastic cover. Nice occupancy sensors. Pass & Seymour (Legrand) - Overall, quite satisfied. Residential Decorator products (switches and receptacles) have proven durable, with few exceptions. The new Radiant-collection is gimmicky, with the "exciting" Legrand logo being stamped onto device faces, though quality has (thankfully) remained unchanging. Hospital-grade receptacles are outstanding, GFCIs are notably above others, and spec-grade devices in general are excellent. Trademaster vinyl wall plates are unbeatable in regards to strength. Decent and user-friendly cord-caps. Smith & Stone - Limited experience. Single pole switches appear to wear-out easily, while four-ways are sturdy. Dryer/range receptacles are solid. Vista Electrical - Limited experience. Reasonable-feeling combination switches, however their GFCIs appear unreliable and residential receptacles feel extremely cheap. Awful cord-caps. |
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Post by Parkman on Aug 2, 2016 16:10:46 GMT -5
Cooper Wiring Devices (Eaton) - Not as good as Leviton in my opinion but decent.
Eagle - Have dealt with alot (especially their older stuff). Has lasted 30+ years in a lot of houses I've been in based on when they were built.
Hubbell - No Experience
Leviton - Thumbs Up, have only had one defective switch ever and a GFCI once had a stripped out screw, other than that they are more or less my go to brand.
Pass & Seymour (Legrand) - Wallplates are ok but their Receptacles and GFCI's I don't care for. Their swtiches I've noticed to wear out faster.
Smith & Stone - No experience.
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Post by Jean Lemieux on Aug 2, 2016 21:56:38 GMT -5
Legrand is my favorite. Leviton is probably my second favorite. I like Lutron for some of their products too.
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Post by Parkman on Aug 2, 2016 22:44:26 GMT -5
Lutron is pretty good. Of course you pay a premium for a premium product like that.
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Post by fancollector12 on Aug 2, 2016 23:25:21 GMT -5
I like Lutron a lot. Pass and Seymour/Legend is pretty good too. I'm not even sure what the builders put in our house, probably Leviton, but most of the mare beginning to fail after nearly 16 years we've lived in our house (we had our house built new).
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Post by Daniel G. on Aug 4, 2016 21:23:08 GMT -5
Cooper Wiring Devices (Eaton) - In terms of residential devices, they seem decent enough.
Eagle - Decent devices, although I often find the plastic shell of their residential receptacles to break after years of use.
Leviton - I have found their residential receptacles, particularly from the '90s, to be crappy. The ones now seem a bit better. Their spec. grade stuff is pretty good
Pass & Seymour (Legrand) - Excellent devices.
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Post by Cole D on Aug 5, 2016 20:35:09 GMT -5
Interesting thread. I don't have much experience with Cooper/Eaton, which is what Eagle became, and little of P&S. I will say P&S faceplates with that texture they have just look odd to me, but they do seem very durable.
I'd say Levition is pretty good quality. My house is a mix of original Leviton toggles and standard grade receptacles that just turned 40 years old, and newer Leviton from the last 10 years. All of the original switches work, and the outlets still work though some are worn out and won't hold plugs well. The newer toggles and receptacles are holding up about as well as the old ones have.
The only thing I don't like about the original receptacles is they are push in wiring only, there are no side terminals, and I wonder sometimes how the connections are holding up. Funny enough the original switches are both side terminal and push in, and they used the terminals on all of them. The island receptacles were spec grade and were the only ones with side screws in the house that I've seen.
I also have a few of the Leviton Decora switches from 2008 or so and they have held up ok. I've always felt the decora receptacles seemed cheap, and when I think about it, I rarely see them used, builders almost always go with standard receptacles even if they use Decora switches.
Can't say much about Lutron, but the controller on my Fasco is one and I think it's pretty good quality. No complaints.
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Post by Max C. on Aug 9, 2016 14:04:39 GMT -5
Cooper Wiring Devices (Eaton) - Not as good as Leviton in my opinion but decent. Their single-pole decorator switches appear slightly lower-quality than Leviton's... Eagle - Have dealt with alot (especially their older stuff). Has lasted 30+ years in a lot of houses I've been in based on when they were built. Many old Eagle devices show up at the ReStore, most of which still fully functional. Leviton - Thumbs Up, have only had one defective switch ever and a GFCI once had a stripped out screw, other than that they are more or less my go to brand. Their GFCIs, while solidly-built, have a mediocre response-time when compared to Pass & Seymour. Yet, they appear overly-sensitive to arcing in old, worn-out switches. Nevertheless, their Décora switches last for years. Pass & Seymour (Legrand) - Wallplates are ok but their Receptacles and GFCI's I don't care for. Their swtiches I've noticed to wear out faster. Standard switches, or "Decorator" style ones? I have experienced a couple single-pole Pass & Seymour Decorator switches failing randomly, however their residential-grade receptacles are far superior than Leviton's if you ask me. Smith & Stone - No experience. Considering Smith & Stone is a long-defunct Canadian brand, I am not surprised Leviton - I have found their residential receptacles, particularly from the '90s, to be crappy. The ones now seem a bit better. Their spec. grade stuff is pretty good Their newer Décora receptacles are also cheap junk. I had installed several last year, only to rip out every single one of them shortly afterwards due to poor blade contact and miserably flimsy straps. With these characteristics, you would expect they might have been some third-rate generic brand, however nope...they were 100% legitimate Leviton Décora! Maybe they were part of a "bad batch?" Interesting thread. I don't have much experience with Cooper/Eaton, which is what Eagle became, and little of P&S. I will say P&S faceplates with that texture they have just look odd to me, but they do seem very durable. They are certainly "odd" when compared to other manufacturers. However, their strength is worth it in my eyes  I'd say Levition is pretty good quality. My house is a mix of original Leviton toggles and standard grade receptacles that just turned 40 years old, and newer Leviton from the last 10 years. All of the original switches work, and the outlets still work though some are worn out and won't hold plugs well. The newer toggles and receptacles are holding up about as well as the old ones have. As with ceiling fans, vintage typically means quality... The only thing I don't like about the original receptacles is they are push in wiring only, there are no side terminals, and I wonder sometimes how the connections are holding up. Funny enough the original switches are both side terminal and push in, and they used the terminals on all of them. The island receptacles were spec grade and were the only ones with side screws in the house that I've seen. Push-wiring (or backstabbing) is something I cannot stand  As with your house, all of the receptacles at my place were push-wired (although they actually included screw terminals), while the switches were not...strange, huh? Given the high-amperage loads that are present, spec-grade in kitchens receptacles are worthwhile. I also have a few of the Leviton Decora switches from 2008 or so and they have held up ok. I've always felt the decora receptacles seemed cheap, and when I think about it, I rarely see them used, builders almost always go with standard receptacles even if they use Decora switches. That is rather bizarre actually. Here, using two device-types in a new house would be unthinkable. |
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Post by Parkman on Aug 9, 2016 17:08:35 GMT -5
Standard switches
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Post by Max C. on Dec 9, 2017 4:51:28 GMT -5
Out of curiosity, what are everybody's thoughts on the new Pass & Seymour (Legrand) Radiant-Collection? How about their Adorne line? Has anybody here tried PlugTail? So many questions |
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Post by Cole D on Dec 9, 2017 8:17:30 GMT -5
The Radiant Collection looks interesting, a lot of neat devices such as switches there. I have seen those USB combo outlets installed in restaurants, my new Taco Bell has those. Plug Tails seems like a nice idea, but will the same connector blocks be used in the future if you have to replace the device? I remember around 2005 Leviton had a series called Acenti. It reminds me of the Adorne Collection. It was very expensive and I don't think it caught on well at all, it was discontinued shortly after. Have you ever seen Slater wiring devices? They had a decora style line in the early 1970s, I think it may have fit a decora cover but not sure. I saw some of the outlets at Habitat, they had grooves in the face going up and down. I should have gotten them, next time they were gone. Someone must buy stuff from there. Here are some pictures of the Slater Medalist line www.flickr.com/photos/14519740@N07/15233087224/in/dateposted/www.flickr.com/photos/14519740@N07/15668024920/in/photostream/www.flickr.com/photos/14519740@N07/15829553736/in/photostream/www.flickr.com/photos/14519740@N07/15667850038/in/photostream/The problem with a lot of these techy devices, GFCIs, nite lites, dimmers etc is fitting them in the older boxes like my house has. They're not as deep and even fitting a Decora device can be difficult if there are a lot of wires behind. |
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Post by Cole D on Dec 9, 2017 8:33:17 GMT -5
One thing I've noticed lately with Leviton, since I've started getting back in to collecting pull chain fixtures, is their plastic and porcelain lampholders seem to have very difficult to use pull chain switches. Very stiff compared to other brands. Now this was on a fixture I found at the flea market, so it could have been used often, but I have also heard of their switches failing after only 20-30 pulls.
The new fixtures I've gotten from GE and Pass and Seymour Legrand seem to have smoother pull chains, and the GE is designed with a bigger hole so the chain isn't dragging against the fixture itself.
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Post by Max C. on Dec 10, 2017 0:10:51 GMT -5
The Radiant Collection looks interesting, a lot of neat devices such as switches there. I have seen those USB combo outlets installed in restaurants, my new Taco Bell has those. The device lineup is neat, however their stamped-logo is (somewhat of a pet peeve). Plug Tails seems like a nice idea, but will the same connector blocks be used in the future if you have to replace the device? Apparently, all receptacles use one connector configuration. Single-pole and three-way switches each have their own. I remember around 2005 Leviton had a series called Acenti. It reminds me of the Adorne Collection. It was very expensive and I don't think it caught on well at all, it was discontinued shortly after. One Acenti duplex receptacle actually come into the local ReStore in the past. Somebody actually bought it fairly quickly, if memory serves. For anybody looking to acquire some... www.fruitridgetools.com/search-results?q=acenti&page_num=4Oh, so you're 20A GFCI! I was wondering who that was Those catalog clippings are awesome! Slater devices have come into the ReStore (Medalist included), and I actually purchased an old 20A spec-grade toggle switch recently. |
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Post by Cole D on Dec 10, 2017 0:30:28 GMT -5
No, not me. I just used their pictures. They do have some neat stuff.
Yeah that happens at my Habitat too. I will see things and pass and when I change my mind they're gone. I saw a two prong GE duplex outlet there, next time it was gone. I can't imagine who would be buying this stuff. Surely no one else here collects such things as old wiring devices.
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What brand of electrical devices (switches, receptacles, dimmers, etcetera) do you prefer? Below are my impressions thus far:
As with your house, all of the receptacles at my place were push-wired (although they actually included screw terminals), while the switches were not...strange, huh? Given the high-amperage loads that are present, spec-grade in kitchens receptacles are worthwhile.