FAQ - The Settings & Best Practice Guidelines
Trigger Sensor - Binary Sensors
This is the trigger sensor that will turn ON âLights - Switches â Scenesâ and âNight Lightsâ. The trigger can be any Binary Sensor you like and you can add as many trigger sensors as you like.
You can also add a schedule as the trigger. This will add a trigger based on time of day. For more information + Pro Tips Click Here
NOTE: When adding multiple trigger sensors, in particular a sensor that can remain in an ON state for long periods of time, it is recommended to group these sensors together as the automation will function correctly. Sometimes depending on many factors, just having 2 or more trigger sensors prevents the automation from function correctly and grouping these sensors together helps. For more information on how to set up group sensors please Click Here. Example of these sensors are;
- Presence sensor
- mm wave sensor
- Contact sensor
- Door sensor
- Window sensor
- Garage door sensor
- Motion sensors with long inbuilt delays
If you find your trigger is not triggering the automation then see below under âLights - Switches â Scenesâ.
If you would like to create a template trigger sensor so you can use it in the blueprint Click Here for some examples. This is a realy good read, and I would strongly recommend you take a look at it. This shows how you can make this blueprint even better. The âBee In The Hiveâ sensor is the one I realy love
, it will take your automatons to the next level.
Lights - Switches â Scenes
This is where you select what lights, switches or scenes you would like to turn ON. The automation only supports entities. Having the ability to select areas and devices is a nice quick easy way to find your entities. When selecting areas or devices, click the expand button â<>â as shown below. This will expand out your area or device so you can quickly find your entities. Your final selection should look all green and only have lights, switches or scenes entities.
Areas 
Devices 
Entities

Scenes To Turn OFF
If you have selected a scene to be turned ON above in âLights - Switches - Scenesâ or below in âNight Lightsâ and you would like it to be turned OFF after the time delay, you must create another identical scene with everything OFF and select it here. See below example.
Time Delay
Once the trigger no longer detects any motion or it returns to its OFF state the automation will start the time delay before turning OFF the lights. This allows for a buffer zone where you may need time to exit the area before the lights will turn OFF. The buffer zone can also be used to wait and see if the trigger, triggers again within a time period before turning OFF the lights. It helps to smooth out your lights by keep the lights ON so you donât have your lights turning ON and OFF every time the trigger is triggered. If your lights keep turning OFF while youâre still in the room consider extending the time delay to give the buffer zone more time to wait for the trigger to be triggered again. Sometimes if this doesnât work and your using 2 or more trigger sensors you may need to group the trigger sensors. See trigger sensor above for more information.
Light Control Options
This allows you to select what option you would like to control in your light entity.
- Brightness â Your light must be able to support brightness control by being able to dim the light in Home Assistant.
- Colour Temperature - Your light must be able to support colour temperature by being able to adjust the colour temperature in Home Assistant. Some LED lights that can change colour may also support colour temperature.
- Transition â If your lights support brightness or colour temperature then this is the time it will take to transition to the next state. A state change can be from OFF to ON, from ON to OFF, from normal lights to night lights and from night lights to normal lights.
For each option you select you also have the ability to adjust the setting. More information is next to each setting.
If you have selected an option and your light doesnât support it then the light will simply just turn ON.
Dynamic Lighting
This will constantly adjust your lighting brightness % to a floating lux value. Example - When it gets darker your brightness will increase and as it gets lighter your brightness will decrease. This will only work for normal lights. Priority will be given to dynamic lighting option even if you have selected to âUse brightnessâ in the âLight Control Optionsâ. For more information Click Here.
Trigger Sensor By-pass
The by-pass allows you to regain manual control your lights, switches and scenes. When you turn ON the by-pass the automation will be paused. When you turn OFF your by-pass the automation goes OFF pause. For the automation to work correctly the by-pass entity cannot be included in, âLights - Switches - Scenesâ and or âNight Lightsâ selections.
If you donât have a physical switch to use as a by-pass you can create one in Home Assistant that will allow you to use the by-pass. If you would like to create a by-pass switch in Home Assistant then follow the steps below.
How to create a By-pass switch
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First go to Settings / Devices & Services / click on the âHelpersâ tab / click â+ CREATE HELPERâ and select âToggleâ.
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In the name area, enter a name that best suits you. For this example we will put âSensor Light By-passâ. Then click save.
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Go back into the automation and in the âUse The By-pass Options (Optional)â select an option you would like to use and then in the corresponding âBy-pass Switchâ search for the name you created, in our case âSensor Light By-passâ. Then click save.
Note: You can also set the âTrigger Sensor By-pass - Time Delayâ to your liking.
How to add by-pass switch to a dashboard
- In a âDashboardâ click âEdit dashboardâ then click â+ ADD CARDâ click on âButtonâ or âEntitiesâ and in the entity field again search for the name (entity) you created in our case âSensor Light By-passâ. Then click save.
- Then click âDONEâ.
You now have a âSensor Light By-passâ switch to pause your sensor light automation 
There are also a few extra by-pass settings to set when using this option. More information is next to each setting.
By-pass 101 - For more information on the by-pass then please Click Here
By-pass Auto OFF
This is used when you turn the by-pass ON and you would like the by-pass to automatically turn OFF in a set time delay.
It can also be used as a timer to turn the lights ON and then OFF if you have chosen to use âEnable the By-pass - Turn lights ONâ. When you turn ON the by-pass it will turn ON your light. When the by-pass turns OFF in its set time delay and the trigger is OFF it will turn your light OFF.
Conditions
All the conditions are global and can work alongside with the other conditions. You can select one or all of them but if enabled each condition must pass for the lights, switches or scenes to turn ON. Example: If you enable all of them and one of them has not been met, then the automation will not run.
Sun, ambient & time can also trigger your automation. This will only happen when the âtrigger Sensorâ is ON at the time the sensor crosses over it setting. Example: If your motion sensor is ON (motion detected) and you are using the sun as a condition, if the sun is above the âSun Elevationâ setting the light will be OFF. If the sun then crosses from above to below the âSun Elevationâ setting then the light will be turned ON. The same theory applies for ambient and time and also works for turning your lights ON and OFF.
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Sun
This is used for adding a condition to only work when it is dark or below the âSun Elevationâ setting.
I thought about âSunsetâ and âSunriseâ but HA recommend using sun elevation as it works better throughout the year. So I took their advice and used the sun elevation.
If you would like more information on this and how to set it up correctly see or FAQ Click Here
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Ambient
This is used for adding a condition to only work when it is dark or below the âAmbient Light LUX Valueâ. There are some extra settings to select when setting this up so it will function correctly. More information is next to each setting.
If you would like to use 2 or more ambient light sensors see our FAQ on how to set this up Click Here
If you are having a problem with site condition setting and your just using scenes then Click Here
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Time
This is used for adding time conditions. You have a start time, end time and weekdays.
For more information on the time settings see our FAQ Click Here
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Device Tracker
Home Assistant can track your devices (mobile phones) location to a set zone via the mobile app device tracker. Enabling this option will only allow the automation to run if a device is in the zone. This can be useful if you have pets triggering the trigger sensor turning your lights ON and OFF when no one is home.
Night Lights
Night lights allow you to set different lights, switches and scenes by using a time or sun condition to choose when these lights will be active. It has a few settings that are the same as normal lights but you will notice it has two different options.
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Night Lights - Use The Light Control Options - You have the option to select âIf lights are ON, adjust the lights when crossing overâ option. It will apply the light control settings to any light that is already ON when crossing over from normal lights to night lights and from night lights to normal lights.
Without selecting this option, if the light are already ON and a night light condition crosses over, then they will keep the current state assuming you are up a bit latter at night or have some friends over and you donât want the lights to go into night mode. Once the lights turn OFF, night mode settings will be applied the next time they turn ON. That is not always the preferred option in every area⊠so you get to choose what scenario you would like by just ticking a box
If any lights are different from normal lights to night lights and are OFF, they will turn ON to the light control settings or OFF if required regardless if you tick the option or not.
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Night Lights Conditions - If you choose to âEnable entity state optionâ the night lights will be active when the selected entity is ON. If you choose to âEnable time optionâ the night lights will be active during the set time period. If you choose to âEnable sun elevation optionâ the night lights will be active when the sun is below the âSun Elevationâ setting. You can enable both conditions if you like but they both must be met for the night lights to work.
For more information on the entity state, Click Here
For more information on the time settings, Click Here
For more information on the sun settings, Click Here
TIP: If you would like to have lower softer lights come ON when going to the bathroom at night, you can use âNight Lightsâ and set one or all of the night lights conditions when you are normally sleeping. Then set up your lights to your liking. Now when you get up between the set time period at night to go to the bathroom your lights will come ON to your liking.
Night lights will still have to pass all the conditions set for normal lights.
For more information on the time settings see our FAQ Click Here
For more information on the other night light settings that are the same as normal lights please refer to the above.
Hope this helps to explain some of the settings 
Enjoy
Blacky 
Back to FAQ: Click Here