External welcome lights - PIR plus override?

[dpm_dpmartin]

I have 3 external welcome lights on my house. They are all operated from a single on / off switch inside the house.

I am interested in changing these to be PIR-enabled, so that they will turn on when I am coming home in the dark (sooner than we think).

However, I've been told (in a very brief conversation with an Electrician) that my choice would be simply - leave as is or have PIR light fittings installed.

In an ideal world... I'd like to change my light fittings to PIR-enabled lights, so they switch on when movement is detected, but also retain an override to the on position (or both on and off) so the lights aren't solely activated by the PIR function.

Is this normal practice? Would I need a second switch to control the override aspect I'd like, or might I get a switch with a three way rocker - like, maybe, up = off, middle = PIR control and down = on?

 

[EFLImpudence]

//www.diynot.com/diy/threads/replacement-external-light.410898/

 

[dpm_dpmartin]

I've read through that just now, thanks, but it's not obvious to me where the thread covers the answer to my question... it seems to be talking about whether it's best to have an integrated light and sensor or a separate light and sensor?

Did I miss the nugget?

 

[TheVictorian]

I have one of these and think its a great product:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Steinel-W...770?pt=UK_Garden_Lighting&hash=item1e7a7b15ea

Basically I have it set so it turns the lights on for 4 hours when it gets dark and then it automatically switches to PIR mode after that.

 

[bernardgreen]

Untitled

• bernardgreen
• 30 Sep 2012
• 4

The square boxes are PIRs and the round symbols the lamps.

As drawn there is a PIR in each lamp.

Alternatively the PIR can be a separate one, ( or more than one )

The two points to take care over are

[1] can the PIR(s) switch the total load of all the lamps.

[2] the PIRs must be a type that has a Live, Neutral and Switched Live. Those that have only Live and Switched Live may not work reliably when there is more than one PIR

A third point is to avoid those PIRs which have a built in over ride function. These use a couple of short ON-OFF-ON sequence of power to put them into over ride ON. This can result in the lamp being ON all night after a glitch in the mains supply.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

(sooner than we think)

There are only 17 Saturdays left until Christmas...

 

[EFLImpudence]

What happened to all the other days?

 

[dpm_dpmartin]

Untitled

• bernardgreen
• 30 Sep 2012
• 4

The square boxes are PIRs and the round symbols the lamps.

As drawn there is a PIR in each lamp.

Alternatively the PIR can be a separate one, ( or more than one )

The two points to take care over are

[1] can the PIR(s) switch the total load of all the lamps.

[2] the PIRs must be a type that has a Live, Neutral and Switched Live. Those that have only Live and Switched Live may not work reliably when there is more than one PIR

A third point is to avoid those PIRs which have a built in over ride function. These use a couple of short ON-OFF-ON sequence of power to put them into over ride ON. This can result in the lamp being ON all night after a glitch in the mains supply.

Thank you... is my reading of this (that I will end up with another dedicated override switch - that is in series with the switch that controls my lights today?) correct? Or do I have 1 switch still, but it's now the override and my to-be-installed PIRs are always said to be, in effect, on?

 

[bernardgreen]

If you adopt that method you will have a 2 gang switch ( two switches on one plate ) to replace the single gang .

One switch is the over ride OFF. When that is OFF no lamps will light. When it is ON then the PIR(s) will control the lamps provided the second switch is OFF. The second switch will over ride the PIR(s) and turn the lamps ON provided the over ride OFF switch is not overiding to OFF

 

[dpm_dpmartin]

Got it. So my external lights are controlled by 1 switch that is leftmost in a set of 3 on the same plate (others do hall and landing lights)... so I'd need to find a 4-way switch of the same style and then this can be achieved. Or a separate single switch (but that'd not look the business).

Many thanks.

 

[dpm_dpmartin]

4-gang plate, I probably mean.

 

[eddieed]

I did this recently.

We had 2 PIR lights on the side of our house. We had a switch on the inside but all this did was either enable them to be on or off and still controlled by the PIR. We wanted to be able to override the PIR like you do.

The only way I found to do this easily was to get 2 none PIR replacement lights and a seperate PIR. This PIR had an override function that if you flicked the electricity on and of twice within 3 seconds they would override and stay on. I think we got the PIR from Screwfix but I cannot be certain. You then just had to flick them off and on again to turn them back to PIR mode.

I moved the individually controlled PIR lights onto the front of my garage where I don't want to be able to over ride them.

HTH

 

[AndyPRK]

exactly Eddie.

Many PIR/lights now have the function of

an override function that if you flicked the existing switch off and on quickly within 3 seconds they would override and stay on.

Therefore no wiring changes (or new switches) are required within the house.

 

[bernardgreen]

4-gang plate, I probably mean.

Yes a 4 gang plate

 

[JohnW2]

The only way I found to do this easily was to get 2 none PIR replacement lights and a seperate PIR. This PIR had an override function that if you flicked the electricity on and of twice within 3 seconds they would override and stay on. I think we got the PIR from Screwfix but I cannot be certain. You then just had to flick them off and on again to turn them back to PIR mode.

Indeed. As Andy has implied, I think that many/most PIRs (both standalone and in lamps) seem to have that facility (and have done for a good time).

Kind Regards, John