Timer
The timer integration aims to simplify automations based on (dynamic) durations.
When a timer finishes or gets canceled the corresponding events are fired. This allows you to differentiate if a timer has switched from active to idle because the given duration has elapsed or it has been canceled. To control timers in your automations you can use the actions mentioned below. When calling the start action on a timer that is already running, it resets the duration it will need to finish and restarts the timer without triggering a canceled or finished event. This, for example, makes it easy to create timed lights that get triggered by motion. Starting a timer triggers a started event unless the timer is paused, in that case, it triggers a restarted event.
Timers will be restored to their correct state and time on Home Assistant startup and restarts when configured with the restore option.
However, automations using the timer.finished event will not trigger if the timer expires when Home Assistant is not running.
Configuration
The preferred way to configure timer helpers is via the user interface at Settings > Devices & services > Helpers and click the add button; next choose the Timer option.
To be able to add Helpers via the user interface you should have default_config: in your configuration.yamlThe configuration.yaml file is the main configuration file for Home Assistant. It lists the integrations to be loaded and their specific configurations. In some cases, the configuration needs to be edited manually directly in the configuration.yaml file. Most integrations can be configured in the UI. [Learn more], it should already be there by default unless you removed it. If you removed default_config: from your configuration, you must add timer: to your configuration.yaml first, then you can use the UI.
Timers can also be configured via configuration.yaml:
To add a timer to your installation, add the following to your configuration.yamlThe configuration.yaml file is the main configuration file for Home Assistant. It lists the integrations to be loaded and their specific configurations. In some cases, the configuration needs to be edited manually directly in the configuration.yaml file. Most integrations can be configured in the UI. [Learn more] file:
# Example configuration.yaml entry
timer:
laundry:
duration: "00:01:00"
Configuration Variables
Alias for the timer. Multiple entries are allowed.
Initial duration in seconds or 00:00:00 when Home Assistant starts.
Set a custom icon for the state card.
When true, active and paused timers will be restored to the correct state and time on Home Assistant startup and restarts. If an active timer was supposed to end while Home Assistant is stopped, the timer.finished event will fire on startup for that timer. The finished_at property in the event data will provide you with the time that the timer was actually supposed to fire which you can use in automation conditions to decide whether or not to act on it.
Pick an icon from Material Design Iconsmdi:. For example mdi:car, mdi:ambulance, or mdi:motorbike.
Possible states
| State | Description |
|---|---|
idle |
Timer is idle because the timer finished, was canceled or was never started |
active |
Timer is currently running because it was (re-)started |
paused |
Timer is paused because it was paused |
Events
| Event | Description |
|---|---|
timer.cancelled |
Fired when a timer has been canceled |
timer.finished |
Fired when a timer has completed and includes finished_at date/time in event data. finished_at should usually be now, or within the last several seconds, but if the restore property is true, finished_at may be further in the past since this event will fire on startup for any timers that would have ended while Home Assistant was stopped. |
timer.started |
Fired when a timer has been started |
timer.restarted |
Fired when a timer has been restarted |
timer.paused |
Fired when a timer has been paused |
Actions
Action timer.start
Starts or restarts a timer with the provided duration. If no duration is given, it will either restart with its initial value, or continue a paused timer with the remaining duration. If a new duration is provided, this will be the duration for the timer until it finishes or is canceled, which then will reset the duration back to the original configured value. The duration can be specified as a number of seconds or the easier to read 01:23:45 format.
You can also use entity_id: all and all active timers will be started.
| Data attribute | Optional | Description |
|---|---|---|
entity_id |
no | Name of the entity to take action, e.g., timer.timer0. |
duration |
yes | Duration in seconds or 01:23:45 format until the timer finishes. |
Action timer.change
Change an active timer. This changes the duration of the timer with the duration given. You can also use entity_id: all and all active timers will be changed.
| Data attribute | Optional | Description |
|---|---|---|
entity_id |
no | Name of the entity to take action, e.g., timer.timer0. |
duration |
no | Duration in seconds or 00:00:00 to add or subtract from the running timer. |
Action timer.pause
Pause a running timer. This will retain the remaining duration for later continuation. To resume a timer use the timer.start action without passing a duration. You can also use entity_id: all and all active timers will be paused.
| Data attribute | Optional | Description |
|---|---|---|
entity_id |
no | Name of the entity to take action, e.g., timer.timer0. |
Action timer.cancel
Cancel an active timer. This resets the duration to the last known initial value without firing the timer.finished event. You can also use entity_id: all and all active timers will be canceled.
| Data attribute | Optional | Description |
|---|---|---|
entity_id |
no | Name of the entity to take action, e.g., timer.timer0. |
Action timer.finish
Manually finish a running timer earlier than scheduled. You can also use entity_id: all and all active timers will be finished.
| Data attribute | Optional | Description |
|---|---|---|
entity_id |
no | Name of the entity to take action, e.g., timer.timer0. |
Action timer.reload
Reload timer’s configuration without restarting Home Assistant itself. This action takes no data attributes.
Using the action
Navigate to Developer Tools > Actions and select the timer.start action, then click the Fill Example Data button. Now change the entity_id and duration and select Perform action button.
Examples
Set a timer called test to a duration of 30 seconds.
# Example configuration.yaml entry
timer:
test:
duration: "00:00:30"
Control a timer from the frontend
# Example automations.yaml entry
- alias: "Timerswitch"
id: "Timerstart"
# Timer is started when the switch pumprun is set to on.
triggers:
- trigger: state
entity_id: switch.pumprun
to: "on"
actions:
- action: timer.start
target:
entity_id: timer.test
# When timer is stopped, the time run out, another message is sent
- alias: "Timerstop"
id: "Timerstop"
triggers:
- trigger: event
event_type: timer.finished
event_data:
entity_id: timer.test
actions:
- action: notify.nma
data:
message: "Timer stop"
Control a timer manually
With the script integration you would be able to control a timer (see above for a timer configuration sample) manually.
script:
start_timer:
alias: "Start timer"
sequence:
- action: timer.start
target:
entity_id: timer.test
pause_timer:
alias: "Pause timer"
sequence:
- action: timer.pause
target:
entity_id: timer.test
cancel_timer:
alias: "Cancel timer"
sequence:
- action: timer.cancel
target:
entity_id: timer.test
finish_timer:
alias: "Finish timer"
sequence:
- action: timer.finish
target:
entity_id: timer.test