My bedroom has two light switches and both of them are in awkward locations. Because of the double door entry, access to one switch requires maneuvering around and behind one of the doors and it’s actually easier to walk across the room and use the switch in the middle of the far wall which is not near anything. This does mean that the room must be traversed in darkness when entering or exiting. A similar ill illuminated jaunt is required between the switch and the bed at night.
For years I have joked about getting a Clapper for the light. However, when I tried to persue that I learned that they don’t seem to make Clapper hard wired light switches, only outlet devices for lamps and other things that use a plug. Seeing the convenience allowed to Boy #1 with his voice activated lights, I decided to enact something similar. Since the master bedroom has a ceiling fan with six separate bulbs, I didn’t want to go with a Hue like we did for Boy #1 in Let there be light (part 1). Instead I decided to try the WeMo Light Switch.
It took awhile to get the switch installed, but it wasn’t particularly difficult. Most of the time was spent running back and forth to the circuit breaker and testing wires to figure out which was which–part of the complication was that I was replacing a 3-way switch with a regular switch. Also, the wire colors weren’t what one would normally expect. Once the switch was in, it worked like a switch should–I could use it to turn the lights on and off.
After the switch was installed, I then had to configure it to work with Alexa. It was similar to what I did for the Hue, so it went quickly. Again I was happy that I didn’t have to create a new account or do anything too quickly. I was expecting more difficulties, so I was pleased that things went smoothly
Anyway, as I approach my dark bedroom I can now turn on the light with a voice command. And when I’m nestled in my bed, done reading for the night, and ready to sleep, I can just bark out some words and have the light go out without the necessity for a mad dash.
