Lights on when kitchen is occupied

Devices & Integrations
1

Hi All,

I have been trying to think of the cheapest way to have the following occur. I have my lights in my kitchen all set up on motion and lux sensors. For the most part they work great, but I have found that if you are sitting at the sink of oven for too long the lights will turn off. So I am looking for suggestions on how to get the sink lights to stay on if you’re washing (Bottles or Dishes) or prepping food to cook. I thought about extending the delay before it turns off, but I don’t want to leave these light on longer than they need to be if someone isn’t at the sink.

Here are my requirements:

  1. Sensor can not be in the sink. (a Probe for a moisture sensor is
    acceptable but where would I place it and how would I get it there?)
  2. Lights off after motion stops and/or water is turned off.
  3. Lux Level Settings
  4. Do not want to use beacon. We don’t always have a phone or sensor on us

Extra Credit:
Apply the same logic if the oven is on.

1 Like
2

Previous discussion of the same problem. No clear solution winner, but the discussion is interesting.

3

+1 extend the delay time. The difference in runtime and expense is trivial.

otherwise you add a PIR sensor at the sink, underneath the cabinets looking down.

4

Honestly I think Z-wave isn’t the right application here. Just get an occupancy sensor that’s built into the kitchen. Those work much better.

5

The issue isn’t really zwave, it’s using a motion sensor’s inactivity to power off lights.

People can and do run into exactly the same issue with traditional nonnetworked occupancy sensors. You get the thing where you have to wave your hand in order to keep the lights from going off. It’s all about where the coverage is. If your lightswitch points into your kitchen, It catches more motion than if it’s on a wall where you just pass it as you walk into the room but after that you’re out of its range.

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6

Would a pressure mat connected to an open/closed sensor in front of the sink work?

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7

I hadn’t thought about that. I kind of like that idea. THANKS!

8

+1 on longer turn off light delay. How mine is configuration.

adding a toddler seemed to work really well too

3 Likes
9

This isn’t an option. We have a breakfast bar and the lights shine on our TV in our Great Room. So I obviously want the lights to turn off as soon as people are done by the sink.

10

You can put a motion sensor somewhere at the kickboard so it can sense your feet movement and also it’s hidden. Of course I don’t mean right in front of your feet.

11

Look at the lens of the motion sensor and reposition it so that you are more likely to cross between zones with small movements in the trouble spots.

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12

What is the fuel used for your oven? If electric, it’s a trivial problem to solve with any number of the “home energy monitor” devices out there. If natural gas or propane, you may have a few options, but most of them would involve performing electrical surgery on your oven. My tolerance for that sort of thing is pretty close to zero (explosive gases+DIY electrical work… you know…)

Consider placing a temperature probe somewhere near the oven. Even in an adjacent cabinet, you’re likely to detect a significant increase in temperature.

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