As I embark on upgrading my home automation setup, I’ve been diving into the transition from my trusty ‘motion and mode lighting apps’ to the newer ‘Room Lighting’ feature. After years of reliable service on the first floor, I’ve decided to tackle the basement this weekend, one room at a time. The idea is to spread the process over a few weekends to learn the ropes of Room Lighting before diving into the more complex first floor scenarios.
The basement has always been a fun space for my kids, who love turning the lights on and off to mimic nighttime. I’ve noticed the override capabilities in Room Lighting, but I’m still figuring out how to reset these overrides automatically at a specific time, say 3 AM. From what I gather, creating a virtual button to undo the override and setting up a time-triggered Simple Automation rule might be the way to go. It’s a bit of a puzzle, but I’m excited to crack it!
One thing I’m particularly curious about is whether Room Lighting can trigger scenes at an ‘off’ event. My current setup uses a ‘sleep’ scene to turn off all lights, but it seems like Room Lighting might require adjusting my scenes to support being turned off. This means I might need to revisit my Rule Machine apps and ensure they’re compatible with the new system. It’s a bit of a learning curve, but I’m confident I can work through it.
I’ve also been pondering the use of Zone Motion Controllers versus Room Lighting. While Zone Motion Controllers have been reliable, they do seem to get a bit finicky every few months. Room Lighting, on the other hand, appears to integrate motion sensing more seamlessly, which is a big plus for my open-floor-plan first floor with multiple entrances.
If anyone has tips or tricks for a smooth transition, I’d love to hear them! Happy automating everyone, and here’s to making our homes smarter one room at a time. 