Each sensor in our building activates only when motion is sensed.
If motion is still detected, the lights remain on until the set time after motion ceases.
Other sensors here activate when daylight is present, with their respective loads turning off when dusk arrives.
Motion-Sensors permit battery longevity by automatically turning the lights on and off as needed, thereby conserving energy.
Problem Pir Connectors
It should be noted that I've not found a fool-proof motion-sensor for 12v yet.
As seen in the photos, there are potential problems.
I've thus far tried fatter wire and thinner wire, yet the results are not promising at this time.
Life without them would be regressing, requiring constant attention to switches each time one enters or exits an area.
But of those sensors that are in working order...
As a perfect example of why auto-switches are necessary, consider when the sun doesn't shine for a week. With sensors, you can maintain a decent available voltage, without you could find yourself in a predicament leaving you in the stone-age without available electricity.
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Venturing off grid is definitely an adjustment.
With winter approaching, although not always the case, lighting and other power-habits may need to revert to becoming energy-conscious.
But the changes one must make to attain off-grid status are not so traumatic as one might pre-suppose.
In fact, the hardest part will be standing before the judgment of others when seeking to go off-grid.
Moving one's location is not always a welcoming task, especially if you were content in the location that no longer wants you (due to not conforming to a neighborhood "covenant", for example).
So rule of thumb is: Always have an exit plan in mind if the planned sequence of events should go south for you.
As for the investment, Solar Panels produce electricity that will probably outlive most people reading this. It takes only one member of a family tree to make forever electric power for generations to come (long after that member becomes deceased).
Is off-grid electricity stable?
In a word, yes, off-grid electricity is certainly able to be made stable.
About the only item you'll ever need to replace in an off-grid power system. are the batteries (every 5 or more years, if not abused or neglected). If using inverters, add that to the list of fail-able items.
Contrast the investment with the yearly amount you will have thrown to an entity that may have "lobbyists" that bring bagfuls of money to "our" representatives (curtailing their better ethics, manipulating their decisions), and you have aided and abetted your own demise.
Leave something good behind on this earth that will outlive you and me. In regards to Solar Panels, it takes a hammer or falling tree to break them.
Mom's Kitchen lighting was found to be less than acceptable. 
Even with all of the kitchen lights turned on did not produce enough light to reach critical food preparation areas.
The lights are energy-efficient LED strip lights and now will enable my mom to better see her workplace.
';-)
Win-Win!
While installing the under-the-cabinent lights, the glass tiles you see forming a picture-frame effect were installed. 
Under the Cabinent Lighting Installed! 
Even with the kitchen lights turned off, the cabinent lights save the day. 
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