Node-red: let motion control lights only outside bigtimer windows

NimdaBE · February 23, 2025, 3:06pm

Hello,

Maybe this is a stupid question but i cannot seem to create following in node red:

i want several time windows where i want the lights to be permanently on (for example between 6 and 9 in the morning and between 6 and 10 in the evening)
i want to let the motion senser turn on the lights outside these “permanently on” time windows

I can get both working seperately, but i cannot prevent that the motion senser turns off the lights when it’s returning to the “off” state and the bigtimer time window is still in the “on” state. When bigtimer is off the motion sensor can turn the lights on or off when needed. I’ve tried with switches, boolean gates,… but i cannot seem to get it to work.

Maybe there is a super simple solution and am i making stupid mistakes… I’m using bigtimer because i also want other time windows for weekends and holidays, so i think using individual time ranges will make managing this more complex…

Thanks for pointing me in the right direction…

hatemsms · February 24, 2025, 1:19pm

am not an expert but i can give you what i have already working on my home

i used bigtime to switch on LED from dusk - 50 mins till 11pm everyday and it work perfectly

as i said i am also learning ,no expert and willing to help

hatemsms · February 24, 2025, 3:04pm

also you can use within time node if you want the light open in specific day /weak /month

rgerrans · February 26, 2025, 1:19am

How I handle these type situations is by setting a variable triggered by the BigTimer on/off events. Then I use a Switch node as a logic gate after the motion detector node to only allow the on/off from the motion detector if not during the permanent “on” state.

Hopefully that helps.

576csazp · October 28, 2025, 10:51am

Hi @NimdaBE, I suspect you have resolved this challenge by now, but for anyone else looking - I hope this helps.

This is what I am using currently, I’m sure it could be adapted for your needs with multiple timers in parallel linked in the same way as the existing one.

When motion is detected
If the time is between: 00:00 → dawn
The motion sensor IS able to turn the light(s) ON
If the time is NOT between: 00:00 → dawn
The motion sensor is NOT able to turn the light(s) ON
The light(s) are optionally proactively turned OFF
If it is “dark enough” the lights will come ON, else they will go OFF
The light(s) will come ON only if they are OFF
An optional “night scene” can be triggered for the light(s) ON
The light(s) will stay ON for a set time-out (two minutes in this case)
The light(s) will then be turned OFF
Repeat…

JSON Flow

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