Outdoor Christmas Lights with timers?

[the1kel1]

I'm looking to replace our old outdoor Christmas lights timers with some sort of automation system.  I've read things the past 2 days and the more I read the more confused I get on what system is right for me.  My use case is simple, I want to connect 3 or 4 outdoor outlets together so that they all come on at the same time and all go off at the same time.  I can't use 6 plug timers because each outlet is on its own circuit, due to overloading issues (kept flipping the breakers).
 
What should I use?  Insteon vs. Z-Wave?  I don't need some complicated expensive system, at least not to get my feet wet.  I really just need a system that can do a timer on and off, and the outdoor outlets.  I was looking at:
 
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The only thing that scares me with the Z-Wave is that it's RF.  Some of the outlets are on the side of the house with no windows nearby.  I'm assuming the remote would be the thing that turns them on and off with the timer setting, so I'm not sure I can strategically position it so that it works a majority of the time.  Anyone else doing this reliably without a huge system?  Thanks for any help you can provide!

[tbone321]

I use X-10 to power up my display elements and Insteon is the next wave of that.  It sends it's signals over the power lines but unless all of your devices are on the same side of the 220V line, you will need a bridge.  You will also need a device to send the signals to these devices.  X-10 used to have some stand alone times and controllers that could do it but I'm not sure what is available with Insteon.  There were many cool X-10 devices that were not carried over to Insteon which is why I'm still using X-10.  Smarthome is a big supplier of Insteon and carries many of those devices. 

[jnealand]

Before I got into light automation I used photocell timers that would turn things on at dusk and then turn them off 6 hrs later.  In fact I still use them in the back of my house where I put up extra lights on the deck and I've been using one to light my nativity up since I do not want any blinky there.  My neighbors love having the deck lit up.

[arw01]

Well, I have a full house of insteon.  The latest devices are both powerline and rf and by theory you don't have to worry about phases, but you need to control the devices and that adds more devices and more cost.  So if you are looking to spend a few hundred dollars to do this, then it's a great system.

Along Jim's line, I used a pair of mechanical timers and photo cells.  Work great, 6 hours after dark down it goes 

Keep reading here and you will find the slope very slippery!

[tbone321]

Actually, phases do matter, even with Insteon.  I have the beginnings of it as well and the first thing that they recommend that you get and I did was the phase combiners which is a set of transceivers that you place one on each phase of the power.  When one receives a signal, it transmitts it to the other unit which receives it and sends the signal on the other phase of the house power.  While some Insteon units can transmit and receive over the air, most do not and receive their commands on the power lines.  One advantage that they have over X-10 is that unlike X-10, they are not press and pray.  Insteon devices indicate that they received the signal while X-10 does not.

[the1kel1]

Thanks all for the replies! 

The issue I have with the dusk timers is they all seem to kick in at different times, and the house ends up looking goofy with only a portion of the lights on.  I was trying to have some sort of sure fire way that they would all come on at the same time.

With the Insteon, I believe the electrician did distribute the load over the 2 phases of power, so I would have to have some sort of receiver on the other half of the outdoor circuits.  That's kind of the reason I was looking at Z-Wave over Insteon, that and price.  Seems as if they've discontinued the Insteon timer that they used to make which would have been perfect for my use case.  Now you have to buy a $120 hub, and at that point I'm probably not going to do it.

But I have been reading this forum and $120 seems really cheap compared to all the elaborate things you guys do . 

[tbone321]

I think that they really dropped the ball with Insteon which is why I never moved over to it.