I am a novice Smartthings user. I have several light switches ans outlets that all work great with the standard Smartthings app controls.
I am planning to purchase the Ecolink Z-Wave PIR Motion Detector to turn on my outside lights when i pull into the driveway. I know it is an indoor unit, but it should be ok for my application.
My question is how i make this work with the lights. Can I somehow set my light switches to turn on when the motion detector senses my car, but only after dusk? I do not have the skills to do any custom programing, so I am curious to see if I can just make this work using the standard app features.
First things first: I would be surprised if the ecolink will work for you. The problem with using PIR motion sensors outdoors is the number of false alarms. A warm breeze, a cloud passing over the sun, a spider crawling over the device, etc. All of these can cause many false alarms. Not only does this mean that your Automation will run at the wrong times, but it will tend to use up the battery on the device very quickly. So it’s not impossible, but it’s not that likely, either.
Instead, for the use case you describe, I would suggest considering using a presence sensor ( which might just be your phone, or could be a key fob device that you carry with you). That way the lights will come on as you arrive and you don’t have to worry about outdoor weather conditions.
Alternatively, there are many nonnetworked motion sensitive lights which work very well and are worth considering if you just want a driveway application that works for any car that arrives. Many of these have a light sensing feature so they will only turn on when it’s dark. I personally like the Mr. beams brand, but there are many others. So just another option to consider.
Anyway, as far as your original question, once you’ve established what your trigger will be ( your phone arriving or a specific sensor), then it’s easy. You should be able to use the official smart lighting feature and limit it to a specific timeframe.
I use the Smart Lighting app turn on lights after dark with a motion sensor. As JD said when using the motion sensor during the day I get false positives but so far working great at night.
It doesn’t seem like anyone replied to the original question. I have a motion sensor triggering my Caseta switch and I’ve set a rule for on at sundown and off at sunrise, but they are coming on by the motion sensor during the day.
How do I disable the activation of the switch during the day?
it should work, but some people have been reporting problems with the sunset/sunrise triggers for a week or two so you may have run into that.
We need to ask a couple of questions first.
One) what country are you in?
Two) what specific model of the smartthings hub are you using?
Three) which smartthings mobile app are you using, classic or “smartthings ( Samsung connect) “.?
Four) is this an automation that used to work and stopped working recently? Or is this a new automation that you are creating now?
Five) What did you use to create this automation? Was it a routine in the classic? The official smart lights feature? The automation creator in the new app? Webcore? Something else?
Never seemed to work, but I’ve only had the items since the New Year. The lights will be on during the day. The lights o on and off at night as they’re supposed to
I first tried to create in Lutron with sunset and sunrise parameters, then recently I did the same in Smartthings as an automation
