Security light... are on/off switches common?

[d000hg]

Our new house has several security lights with motion sensors. It's in the country so very helpful when you go outside at night.

However there's two issues, which being new to the house we aren't sure about:

1. There are seemingly no switches to turn the things off. When it's the day they don't come on, when it's the night they do. But barring finding what fuse they're on, I don't see a light-switch or anything. Should I want to inspect them or change a bulb I want to ensure they're off.
2. These lights would be great for external use - BBQs, etc. But there is similarly no manual override to just turn them on as outside lights.

Is this typical? I'd ideally like a switch with 3 positions: off/auto/on and rather expected this would be a standard feature but I cannot find one anywhere.

Also - is it relatively easy to connect one sensor to multiple lights? Or to have the same light connected to two sensors, e.g. a light on the corner and sensors on both sides?

Ta.

 

[stem]

It all depends upon the original installer. They could have been wired via an isolator for maintenance, and the vast majority have the terminals available inside to allow them to be wired to an override switch so they can be left permanently switched on.

Grid switches are available in the format you mention, but not often used for this purpose.

If you require several lights to be operated from one sensor then normally a stand alone sensor would be used wired to all of the lights. The total current drawn by all of the lamps would have to be less than the maximum rating of the sensors switching capacity, although this is not so much of a problem if LED's are used instead of halogens.

Some lights with integral sensors can be wired to additional lights, again as long as they are not overloaded.

Some lights can be made to stay lit by switching them on and off quickly. Assuming that you have a switch of course!

 

[EFLImpudence]

Some lights can be made to stay lit by switching them off and on quickly. Assuming that you have a switch of course!

 

[d000hg]

Are the lamp and sensor typically in series so the sensor is simply a switch delivering power to the light(s)? So when you talk about terminals to on the sensor, effectively this allows me to 'short-circuit' the sensor but I'd have to put in an additional cable directly to the sensor?

That seems like if I wanted to be able to have a switch to turn it off and a switch to turn it always-on, I'd need two separate switches on two separate cables?

 

[stem]

Here's a couple of sketches for you.

Using a 2 way and off switch, to give Auto / Off / On



Using separate isolator and override switch

 

[d000hg]

That's most helpful, thanks. So the security light is 'smart' and designed with the external sensor in mind, rather than 'dumb'.
I hadn't thought of a two-way switch with dual live connections though now it seems obvious. Presumably a 3-position switch could allow my original on/auto/off options with one of the positions not connected up, though it might not be worth the hassle.

The hope would be that I already have a 4-wire (including earth) cable coming from the light then I guess, in terms of the least-effort option

 

[stem]

So the security light is 'smart' and designed with the external sensor in mind, rather than 'dumb'.

The security light is usually just a basic light with a combined PIR and dusk till dawn sensor built into the same enclosure. I wouldn't really call them smart.

Presumably a 3-position switch could allow my original on/auto/off options with one of the positions not connected up, though it might not be worth the hassle.

You would need to use all three of the switches wiring terminals. The supply live goes to the 'Com' (Common) terminal which is connected to one other terminal when the switch is up, and the other terminal when the switch is down. With the switch in the central position, it is not connected to either of them, so is off.

I have omitted the earths in my diagrams for clarity.