I have found myself wishing that there were a thick wall plate with a recess in the middle for a traditional toggle type light switch. The thick part of the plate would either be flat so that you could stick the plastic 'adapter' that comes with a pico remote to it, or it could have a raised 'adapter' built in as part of the wallplate to just slide your pico onto.
The goal would be to cover a traditional light switch, replacing it with a pico remote as the 'switch' for everyday use, but still maintaining the physical switch and allowing (relatively) easy access to it when needed by just removing the pico.
It seems simple enough... I haven't found anything like it though. I even checked on thingiverse, thinking that it would be easy enough to 3d print if there were a design for it out there, but came up empty.
What prompted me to post about it just now was an ebay auction I came across for a Sage by Hughes light switch. The photo shows the back of the switch, and it looks like maybe it was designed with a very similar thought in mind - cover the existing switch with a wireless remote control that looks and acts like a light switch.
Disclaimer: I have not tried either of the above, and they may not work as I suspect. What I have done is used magnetic switch covers (ones like these and these; screw-in ones should work too, but I think they're uglier) and then mounted a Pico on the wall next to the switch. Replace the wallplate with one that has an extra gang, and then the Pico will look like it belongs. (I'm sure you're also aware that Lutron's Pico kit should include wire nuts to replace the existing switch entirely. Perhaps you rent and can't do this, or are like me and afraid to do it in the odd case that you ever do need to turn off that switch. Picos don't have air gaps, that's for sure.)
Also, it's not a Pico and it's much more expensive but can work directly with Hubitat (or Hue): the Lutron Aurora is designed to mount over an existing toggle switch and solve the same problem it sounds like you might be trying to solve. The Lightify Dimmer can do the same. I know, not what you're asking since you presumably already have the Picos, but just something else to consider if you haven't.
Basically you can add another plate opening and mount on it's side or you can just remove the switch all together - hard wire together and then mount this over it. Lots of options.
Unfortunately not. I want the existing light switch to stay right where it is, covered up, but not permanently disabled or removed. On top of the cover, stick a pico. Picture about 3 single gang plates for a toggle switch, stacked on top of each other. Now make that one plate. The switch would be in the center hole, but recessed below the face of the plate. Then stick a pico to the front of that plate, covering the hole in the center.
That's part of what I mentioned above, but that alone won't do it--it's just the bracket. What you'd need is their full "wall mount kit," which includes screws and wire nuts and everything you'd need to mount it over an existing (now hardwired-on) box. I was a mistaken because I forgot that this isn't included; it's an additional accessory I just happen to have a few extra of; the Pico can definitely mount on a wall on its own--not on top of an existing box--without that if you're creative enough, however.
Thanks bert, there's some great stuff in that response. The link for the light switch cover for a hue dimmer looks like it just might be close enough. The decora version is almost exactly like what I was picturing, though I would have had it replace the existing wallplate rather than cover it. The toggle version is a little different, but it would do the job. In fact, I think i'll go ahead and order one and give it a try.
Even better, your suggestion of a hue dimmer version lead me to search thingiverse again, where I found printable versions of the same thing. I'm not much of a 3d modeler, but I think I could modify one of these to properly hold a pico instead of a hue dimmer.
In fact, when I bought my picos, I bought the wall mount kit version. Someone on ebay was selling those kits for cheaper than the remote alone on amazon, so I've got a few of those plates and adapters lying around.
@rob121 The difference is, to use the pico wall mount kit, you physically remove the switch and wire nut the hot together, so the light fixture is always powered. I still want the physical switch to be there and accessible on the rare occasion that I want to cut power to the fixture, whether to change a light bulb, or to work on the fixture, or just to flip the switch on and off several times to reset a zigbee bulb.
On another thread, about a week ago, we were talking about the little plastic piece that comes in the back of the Pico. If you could build up the plate to clear the switch and then put a blank (no hole) on top, you could then stick the little Pico mounting on top of all of that.
So yes, you can use the Pico mount adapter that goes in a decora switch plate. The kit comes with drywall anchors so you don't have to have a box behind it. Then you use a 2 gang wall plate such as the Leviton 80405 which has a single switch opening and a decora opening. So you would have the pico on the left and the manual switch on the right. This would solve your problem
If you can figure out how to build up the underneath plates to clear the switch, I would think attaching the Pico to a plain plate and then use a Command Strip to hold the plain plate on top of the switch. You could easily pop it off when you need to access the switch.
3D printing would likely end up with a more elegant solution . . .
Interesting use case - I don't think I have ever seen this.
This is what I suggested above. It will solve the "how to mount a Pico like a normal switch" problem, but if you don't live alone (or don't trust yourself), you'll need another solution for the "how to not use the actual switch" problem, which I also covered.
I have a somewhat similar use case but instead of Pico remotes I went with Inovelli switches. I replace the existing switch and then configure the Inovelli to not respond to local control. That way I can use the buttons on the Inovelli to trigger events in Hubitat (similar to the Pico) but if I need to cut power to the circuit in the wall I can do that through software on the devices tab in Hubitat.
In one bathroom I have another twist to this. Right now there is a single gang box that houses both a light switch and a plug. It is the only plug in the bath room. The plan is to hard wire the light switch, add a duplex outlet, and then use a double gang face plate to mount a Pico next to the outlet.
Ultimately the lights will run on motion and contact switches but I want a physical on/off to put guests at ease. That will be the Pico so they can push the off button even though it isn't needed.
Ah, the ole neutral wire gotcha. I didn't know you needed a solution without a neutral. I also didn't realize the switches were different than the dimmers there. That's good to know as most of my locations have neutral available but I just pulled a switch the other day that may not.
Then again I pulled another plate off the wall (no switch, just a taped over slot) and got very afraid. My house was build in 1954 but it has been expanded on three separate occasions. For the most part everything is as expected but there are some fun things. There are three (or was it four?) circuit breakers. In a closet there is a what looks like a breaker panel behind a shelf - the shelf keeps the door from opening. I pulled the shelf and it is a gutted fuse box. I started to poke around and there was a shower of sparks. It seem there is a live wire floating around in it. =8^o
But the Hue dimmer is magnetic, and the pico isn't. How do you plan on keeping the Pico on the bracket but still being able to get it off the wall to access the switch behind it? With my picos, if i want to remove them from the wall, i have to take the faceplate off. There's not enough give in the wall brackets to get them free of the bracket with the faceplate still on.
That's a great idea...but you'd still have to take the faceplate off and the OP said he wants to be able to access the switch. That's the part that I'm stuck on....being able to access the switch without removing anything.
(I'm sure you're also aware that Lutron's Pico kit should include wire nuts to replace the existing switch entirely. Perhaps you rent and can't do this, or are like me and afraid to do it in the odd case that you ever do need to turn off that switch. Picos don't have air gaps, that's for sure.)
