Alexa controls many smart home devices perfectly, but you must have noticed that sometimes smart light bulbs won’t respond to your voice commands.
It’s a common issue everyone faces at least once in every six months. I recently faced this issue with my bedroom light.
The problem occurs when Alexa fails to communicate with the light; the most common reason is an issue with your Wi-Fi network.
In this guide, we’ll discover why Alexa is not turning lights ON or OFF and how you can fix that.
6 Possible Reasons Alexa Not Turning Lights ON Or OFF
An active internet connection with a strong Wi-Fi signal is necessary to operate smart home devices with Alexa.
I’m assuming you followed the correct process while setting up your light bulb for Alexa because an incorrectly set up light bulb will not respond to your voice commands.
If not, please visit the lighting category page, where I have published many step-by-step guides to connect various brands of smart lights with Alexa.
Here are six common reasons why your Alexa does not turn on smart light bulbs-
1. The Light Switch is Off
If you want to turn your smart light bulb ON with Alexa voice commands, ensure the physical light switch is also ON.
Due to our regular habits, we unintentionally switch off the light button when the sunshine is outside to save electricity.
But smart lights require power; if you switch off the light switch, it won’t get power and will not respond to Alexa or the smartphone App.
2. Wi-Fi Has No Internet
If you remember the initial setup, we connected our smart light bulb to the home Wi-Fi network. It’s essential because smart light wirelessly communicates with the smartphone app or voice assistance device.
However, if your home Wi-Fi network has no internet, Alexa can not communicate with the light bulb and won’t turn ON or OFF with voice commands.
3. Light is Not Connected to Wi-Fi
From earlier information, you must have understood that the Wi-Fi network acts as a bridge between smart light bulbs and smart assistant speakers.
If any devices (Blub or Alexa) face a connection issue with the Wi-Fi network, they won’t function properly.
If your Alexa is listening to wake words, it means it’s connected to the internet, and the problem is at the light end.
Ensure that your smart light is connected to the Wi-Fi network. If you ever change your Wi-Fi password, don’t forget to update the new password in your smart light app.
4. Light Has a Pending Firmware Update
Smart light manufacturers frequently release firmware updates to improve performance, fix known bugs, and add new features.
Generally, these firmware updates are automatically installed overnight, but sometimes, pending updates make the light unresponsive.
So, if your Alexa is not controlling the smart light bulb, check for firmware updates in the smartphone app. First, download and install the pending firmware updates and reboot the bulb.
5. Issue With Light Bulb Hardware
A faulty smart light could be another reason why it is unresponsive to Alexa voice commands. If you’ve accidentally dropped your or it’s too old, then there is no option other than buying a new light.
However, you can perform a factory reset to ensure the problem lies in the hardware, not the software. You can refer to the owner manual to learn the factory reset process.
6. Issue With Alexa Hardware
Lastly, hardware issues on your Amazon Echo device could also be why the smart light won’t respond to Alexa voice commands.
You should replace your Amazon Echo device if it’s under warranty or buy a new one during the Amazon sale.
How To Fix Light Bulb Unresponsive To Alexa Voice Commands
Now, you know all the reasons why Alexa won’t turn on lights. Let’s find out how to fix this issue.
1. Restart Your Devices
If any smart home device becomes unresponsive to Alexa voice commands, the first thing you should do is restart all devices, including the Wi-Fi router.
Such problem commonly occurs due to network connection and internet issues, which are resolved after rebooting the Wi-Fi router, smart light bulb, and Amazon Echo device.
The easiest way to restart these devices is to unplug the power cord from the wall outlet and plug them again after 30 seconds.
2. Re-connect Devices to Wi-Fi
Have you changed your network SSID or Wi-Fi password recently? If yes, then you need to re-connect all devices with the new password.
Go to the Alexa app and delete all connected devices from the device list. Now, go to device settings and connect it to your Wi-Fi network with the new password.
Similarly, go to your smart light app on your smartphone and change the Wi-Fi password. Again, set up your smart light with Alexa, which will respond to your voice commands.
3. Install Pending Firmware Update
If there is any pending firmware update for your smart light bulb, please update it from the official smartphone app.
I have used smart light bulbs like Phillips Hue, Sylvania, TP-Link Kasa, Govee, Sengled, etc., and all have Check for Updates features in their official apps.
So, go to the smartphone app recommended by your smart light manufacturers, tap on smart light from the device list, and go to the Check for Updates menu.
If there is any pending software update for your light, download and install it. After installing firmware updates, reboot your device to let it automatically connect with Wi-Fi.
4. Factory Reset Light Bulb
If your light bulb encountered software glitches, it might not respond to Alexa voice commands. To fix this, you may need to perform a factory reset.
Refer to the owner manual of your smart light bulb and factory reset to bring it to its original condition.
Factory reset will fix all communication problems with Alexa or any voice assistant device.
5. Re-enable Alexa Skills
Another method to fix Alexa’s not turning on lights issues is disabling and re-enabling Alexa sills.
Go to the Alexa app on your smartphone and search for your smart light skill name. Next, tap on Disable Skill and confirm the action.
Now, power ON and OFF your smart light and wait for 30 seconds to get it ready. Now, Enable your smart light Alexa Skill and authorize the account login.
Echo device will automatically discover the connected device, and once the smart light is ready to use, say Alexa, turn off the smart light.
That’s all..! Your smart light is now connected to Alexa. You can turn off-on or change its brightness and color with voice commands.
Alexa Not Turning On All Lights in Group
Grouping your smart devices to pass voice commands in batches is great. It’s very useful when you use multiple Alexa devices or multiple lights that you want to switch ON and OFF simultaneously.
For example, if you’ve over 10 lights in the studio and want them to switch ON and OFF simultaneously, simply create an Alexa group and add them together.
Now, you can control them with a single voice command.
- Alexa, switch the studio lights ON.
- Alexa, switch OFF the studio lights.
You don’t need to pass the voice commands for each light. However, sometimes Alexa fails to turn on all lights in a group because some of them are facing trouble connecting to Wi-Fi.
To fix this, power cycle all the lights and Echo devices in that group. If this doesn’t work, change the name of the group.
Conclusion
If your smart light becomes unresponsive to Alexa commands, reboot your lights and router and ensure your Wi-Fi network has an active internet connection.
Also, check if any firmware is pending and ready to install. Finish the installation and reboot your device to be ready to function with Alexa voice commands.
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