Time triggers. Inelegant?

Configuration
1

I’m struggling a little with simple time triggers.

A simple switch triggers to go on at a set time.
The same switch triggers to go off at a set time.

Is the only way to ensure these events happen to use:

  trigger:
    platform: time
    minutes: "/1"
    seconds: 0
  condition:
    condition: time
    after: '23:00:00'

Any other trigger may not get activated if for any reason HA isn’t running at that precise time. If I am right it seems a little inelegant to me. IfI am wrong, please tell me :slight_smile:

2 
    ` automation reduce stairs brightness:

alias: Stairs - Reduce brightness at 11pm
initial_state: True
hide_entity: False
trigger:
platform: time
at: '23:00:00'
action:
- service: scene.turn_on
entity_id: scene.dim_s
- delay: '00:01:00'
- service: scene.turn_on
entity_id: scene.dim_s

I give up trying to format it!! You get the idea

3

If i understand you correctly, you just want to fire something at 11pm. This is what you would want:

trigger:
  platform: time
  at: "23:00:00"
action:
 - service: light.turn_on
   entity_id: light.mylight1

using “/1” in the minutes catagory will execute that every minute. With the condition you posted, your automation would occur every minute, on the minute from 11pm to midnight (excluding midnight).

4

are you asking how to ensure the automation runs if home assistant is down at 11pm for example?

there’s obviously a lot of overhead with triggering every minute. if it’s an important automation, i’d instead have additional automations when home assistant starts. so something like:

automation:
  trigger:
    platform: homeassistant
    event: start
  condition:
    condition: time
    after: '23:00:00'
    before: '06:00:00'
  action:
    ...
5

actually, to make it cleaner and not repetitious, i might do this:

- alias: "turn on light"
  trigger:
    platform: time
    at: '23:00:00'
  action:
    - condition: time
      after: '22:59:59'
      before: '06:00:00'
    - service: light.turn_on
      entity_id: light.some_light

- alias: "turn off light"
  trigger:
    platform: time
    at: '06:00:00'
  action:
    - condition: time
      after: '05:59:59'
      before: '23:00:00'
    - service: light.turn_off
      entity_id: light.some_light

- alias: "startup"
  trigger:
    platform: homeassistant
    event: start
  action:
    - service: automation.trigger
      entity_id: automation.turn_on_light
    - service: automation.trigger
      entity_id: automation.turn_off_light

automation.trigger will only run the “action” (the usual trigger: and condition: statements are ignored).

6

Thanks everyone, I have gone with something like @creakyshrimp suggested. It seems to cover everything.

- alias: check lights at startup
  trigger:
    platform: homeassistant
    event: start
  action:
    - service: automation.trigger
      entity_id: automation.dining_room_light_on_at_dusk
    - service: automation.trigger
      entity_id: automation.dining_room_light_off_at_11pm
    - service: automation.trigger
      entity_id: automation.dining_room_light_off_if_everyone_goes_out

- alias: dining room light on at dusk
  trigger:
    - platform: template
      value_template: '{{states.group.family_presence.state == "home"}}'
    - platform: numeric_state
      entity_id: sun.sun
      value_template: '{{ state.attributes.elevation }}'
      below: 5.0
  condition: 
    condition: and
    conditions:
    - condition: state
      entity_id: group.family_presence
      state: "home"
    - condition: numeric_state
      entity_id: sun.sun
      value_template: '{{ state.attributes.elevation }}'
      below: 5.0
    - condition: time
      before: "23:00:00"
  action:
    service: homeassistant.turn_on
    entity_id: switch.dining_room_light

- alias: dining room light off at 11pm
  trigger:
    platform: time
    at: "23:00:00"
  condition:
    condition: time
    after: '22:59:59'
  action:
    service: homeassistant.turn_off
    entity_id: switch.dining_room_light

- alias: dining room light off if everyone goes out
  trigger:
    platform: state
    entity_id: group.family_presence
    from: 'home'
    to: 'not_home'
  action:
    service: homeassistant.turn_off
    entity_id: switch.dining_room_light
7

condition in this template is pointless because the trigger will always occur after 22:59:59. Other than that, everything else looks good.

8

@petro
I think I might be starting to get the hang of this :slight_smile:

And yes, the condition is unnecessary, it was a throwback to some old logic before I was using

platform: homeassistant
event: start

Thanks!!

9

Yes yes, that makes sense. If you had another trigger in that automation, the condition would be useful!