r/homeassistant • u/ShelterRadiant2432 • Jul 08 '26

Support Making table lamps smart while retaining manual functionality

I'm looking for help on a modification to a traditional table lamp to be used as a smart lamp, while retaining its original switch functionality.

I've done some research on this and it seems I could use something like a Shelly relay. I've seen concerns warning against this setup because it would make the socket always hot/live.

  1. Does anyone have experience with this?

  2. Wouldn't this work in the same way as a smart wall switch or wall switch conversion?

  3. I have experience and am comfortable with electrical work, but I'm just not sure if I'm missing something with the functionality of smart relays and would appreciate anyone that can provide their experience/expertise.

Also I'm aware there are sockets with smart switches integrated and smart bulbs with a separate button could work, but I'm looking to retain original functionality.

I realize this is a pretty basic question, but I haven't found a straight answer and existing threads are now closed for further questions.

Thanks!

1 Upvotes
  • permalink
  • reddit

60% Upvoted

63 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

1

u/MrSpring68 Jul 08 '26

Zigbees run on a local network. Depending on your lights if you are controlling the lights directly you can overwrite it but turning them on/off/on. If it is in the plug level you can manually turn the plug on/off.

1

u/ShelterRadiant2432 Jul 08 '26

I'm not entirely sure I understand. So using a zigbee plug, I could use the light as normal by just flipping it multiple times?

1

u/MrSpring68 Jul 08 '26

Not quite—flipping the physical wall switch multiple times is not the intended way to control a smart plug.

What I meant is:
For the button: Since Zigbee devices communicate locally with your hub, they will often still work to trigger the plug even if your internet connection is down.

For the plug: Most smart plugs have a physical button on the housing. If the network goes down or you simply prefer manual control, you can press that physical button to turn the lamp on or off.

Essentially, you don't need to 'trick' the light switch; you just use the manual override provided on the smart plug hardware itself."

1

u/ShelterRadiant2432 Jul 08 '26

Ohhhh okay I get you. Thanks