How to use a smart light with a rocker switch?

[nickodemus]

Hi there,

I have bought some of the wifi LED down lights and I really like the ability to change the white temperature and turn on/off with a smartphone or motion sensors.  

We have traditional rocker light switches though. Which means when they are in the “off” position, I can’t control the lights with the wifi functions (smartphone or sensors). 

Does anyone know if there is a way to use the rocker switches like normal (walk into and out of a room, turning the switch on off), but also use the wifi feature when I need even if the switch is in the off position?

[Jason]

Great to see you join in the discussion and make your first post @nickodemus. Welcome to the community. 

Let me tag one of our resident experienced electricians and smart home aficionados in the community @CSParnell.

I'm sure @EricL will also be happy to assist when he is back on the site later today. Thanks for your patience in the meantime. 

Jason

[CSParnell]

Hey @nickodemus 100% you can achieve this by adding in the Bluetooth motion sensors and then taping off your traditional switches with clear tape so they don't get turned off. And why I say tape them off sounds rough it's because if you get power brown outs or wifi drop outs you need to turn power off to those lights for around 30 sec to get them back onto the network. 

I have been running this method for about 18+ months and it works well.

For cupboards and pantries I use the same method but I use door sensors that way when the doors get left open after 'x' time the light turns off.

[EricL]

Hello @nickodemus 

Thats spot-on advice from @CSParnell. It's important to leave the option of turning your LED lights off manually so that you have the option of resetting them. One option you can explore is to 3D print a cover shield to prevent people from accidentally turning the wall switch off. 

If you have any other questions we can help with, please let us know.

Eric

[CSParnell]

@nickodemus @EricL The other added advantages of controlling lights this way is you can set changes in colour temperature, brightness, length of time to stay on depending on the time of day.

Eg. During the day you may set the lights to be Cool White in colour, full brightness and stay on for 5 min before turning off.

Between 5pm and 9pm you may set them to DayLight. 65%

And 9pm to 5am the next day you set them to Warm White, 35% dimmed and 2min time.

Not only are following the Circadian rhythms but you are also following the solar cycle for energy use

[nickodemus]

Thanks so much for the prompt replies @CSParnell @Jason @EricL, good to be part of the community. 

That advice all makes perfect sense and certainly agree that the colour changes are beneficial.

I might not have been 100% clear in my question. The issue I have is that I love the smart light functionality.... my wife, not so much. It means she uses the light switch and usually turns the switch off. That means I can no longer use the smart functionality of the lights as there is no power going to the bulbs. 

Is there any chance way to modify the existing rocker light switches so that I can use the smart functions, even if the switch is in the off position? Or do I have to buy new push button smart switches (which my wife also unfortunately does not like!)? 

[CSParnell]

@nickodemus 

The only way to get around it is to change the rocker switches to smart switches or smart switch inserts and then change the smart lights back to normal lights otherwise you run the issue of flashing lights from loss of power on and off 3 times. 

The rocker switch replacement have Dimmer functionality for LED and you can set your lower limit to avoid flicker or fail.

[nickodemus]

Thanks for your reply @CSParnell. I didn’t know that you could switch a smart switch back to regular rocker switches so I’ll give that a go! 

[CSParnell]

@nickodemus 

General rule for these brand devices with switch control.

If the light or globe is the automated device then leave the stock standard 240v rocker switch in place.

If you are changing over the wall plate or individual smart rocker switch then leave your light or globes as non smart, one exception if you want to colour change.

If you want full autonomous control over your lights when you enter or exit a room then add a motion sensor to either situation to control the lights, globes or switches. If you are controlling the lights and globes with the motion detector and the switch is stock standard 240v then you want to tape it off so the lights or globes don't go offline.

Hope that makes sense.