Douglas Low Voltage Switches
Douglas low voltage light systems were 24V 2-wire systems installed in Canadian homes in the 1970's and 1980's. Unfortunately, Douglas switches and wall plates were discontinued by the manufacturer with no direct replacement parts. The good news is that Touch-Plate switches have been found to work with some basic switches*. See the switches below or shop Touch-Plate Switches and Cover Plates for all 2-wire light switch color and style options.
Douglas Low Voltage Lighting
Douglas low voltage lighting systems are typically found in houses built in Canada the 1970's and 1980's. Unfortunately, Douglas switches and wall plates were discontinued by the manufacturer with no direct replacement parts. Please see the examples at the top of this page for examples of Douglas 2-wire low voltage light switches, wall plates, and master panels. The photos represent what was previously manufactured and is used to assist in the identification of your current low voltage system.
Douglas Light Switches
Note that the Douglas was a 24V 2-wire system, so when replacing them with the Touch-plate light switches each button controls both on and off functionality. Some of the Douglas switches were rockers with one direction being both ON and OFF, some rockers had both ON and OFF directions, and others had this functionality split into a pair of black and white buttons. Each rocker or each pair of black/white buttons would be replaced with ONE Touch-Plate button. We recommend confirming that your current switches have two wires - the 24V and the common - then testing one switch to confirm it works and is compatible with your particular Douglas switches and light fixtures. Touchplate offers switches in white, black, almond and ivory. Shop Touch-Plate Switches and Cover Plates for all 2-wire light switch color and style options. If trying to replace more sophisticated switches such as infrared sensors, we recommend testing one to see if they can be configured to work.
Please note that any advanced Douglas switches using IonWorks protocol (WR800X, WR-860X switch modules, WRN-230X Data switches, etc.) would NOT work with the Touch Plate switches.
Similar Switches That May Have Been Used
These similar switches were used in Douglas systems, Delta systems, Panasonic systems, among others. This should a 2-wire switch with a push button (much like Touch Plate's - push the same button on/off), with the primary difference being in the pilot light function. These switches had a third wire for the pilot light function which likely had a diode on it. The diode reversed the polarity so that when the light was ON one type of polarity lit the Green LED and when the light was OFF the other type of polarity lit the Red LED.Compatible Douglas switches and the switchplates may be replaced with Touch-Plate Lighting control stations listed above and on the Touch-Plate Lighting page. If you need to replace relays or transformers, you may need to upgrade your whole system. There is a chance that the relays and transformers/transverters might work but we do not know if anyone has tried this with success yet. (Please let us know if you have success.) Standalone relay power packs are available on the Touch Plate section of the site that can be used to replace single control stations as long as the it is not connected to any of the old parts and is on a separate circuit.
We can provide you with a quote for upgrading your Douglas low voltage lighting system. Use our contact form to request our Douglas System Upgrade Form to get started.
