# Using Alexa Binding to control room/lights

**URL:** <https://community.openhab.org/t/using-alexa-binding-to-control-room-lights/119858>\
**Category:** Beginners\
**Created:** [March 29, 2021, 12:10pm UTC](https://community.openhab.org/t/using-alexa-binding-to-control-room-lights/119858 "2021-03-29T12:10:59Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Xolinlevh](https://community.openhab.org/user_avatar/community.openhab.org/xolinlevh/32/69643_2.png) [@Xolinlevh](https://community.openhab.org/u/Xolinlevh)\
**Post date:** [March 29, 2021, 12:10pm UTC](https://community.openhab.org/t/using-alexa-binding-to-control-room-lights/119858/1 "2021-03-29T12:10:59Z")

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Hey all -

Im running OH3 and have a number of smart bulbs which do not have a binding to OH (Sylvania Smart+) but do to Alexa. Is it possible to build a setup where I can ‘control’ these lights via the Alexa binding? I’ve added it and the rooms/lights are discovered in OH, but none of them have any channels i can setup. I’d like to be able to setup a on/off, brightness, and color picker control for them somehow.

Thanks for any insight!

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**Author:** ![JustinG](https://community.openhab.org/user_avatar/community.openhab.org/justing/32/55948_2.png) [@JustinG](https://community.openhab.org/u/JustinG)\
**Post date:** [March 29, 2021, 2:33pm UTC](https://community.openhab.org/t/using-alexa-binding-to-control-room-lights/119858/2 "2021-03-29T14:33:41Z")

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The amazon binding is not for control of other devices through alexa. There is extensive documentation for how to get your openhab items connected to alexa or other voice assistants.

> **[openHAB Skill For Amazon Alexa](https://www.openhab.org/docs/ecosystem/alexa/)**
>
> Alexa is an intelligent personal assistant developed by Amazon and designed to run on smart speakers and devices such as the Amazon Echo and Echo Dot.

As you can see this is for OH → Alexa only. There is no way that I am aware of to import Alexa enabled items into OH.

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**Author:** ![rpwong](https://community.openhab.org/user_avatar/community.openhab.org/rpwong/32/36036_2.png) [@rpwong](https://community.openhab.org/u/rpwong)\
**Post date:** [March 29, 2021, 4:43pm UTC](https://community.openhab.org/t/using-alexa-binding-to-control-room-lights/119858/3 "2021-03-29T16:43:38Z")

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Actually, there is a binding for that. It’s just a little confusing because there’s also an Alexa skill.

As @JustinG notes, the “Amazon Alexa Smart Home Skill” enables you to control openHAB with Alexa commands. In contrast, the “Amazon Echo Control” binding enables openHAB to see and control Echo devices, and also devices that have been connected to an Echo.

> **[Amazon Echo Control - Bindings](https://www.openhab.org/addons/bindings/amazonechocontrol/#amazon-echo-control-binding)**
>
> This binding can control Amazon Echo devices (Alexa) and Smarthome devices connected through Alexa or a skill.

Note, however, that there are limitations. In particular, the binding will only poll every ten minutes, so updates are slow. If you press a physical switch, openHAB might not know for up to ten minutes, and that’s how long it will take for any rules to run. However, commands sent from openHAB should run normally.

The documentation is still written for OH2, so you’ll have to do some interpretation to figure it out in the OH3 UI, but the concepts should still hold up.

Unfortunately, I can’t help you any more than that, as I don’t have any Echo devices.

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**Author:** ![barneyd](https://community.openhab.org/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/b/46a35a/32.png) [@barneyd](https://community.openhab.org/u/barneyd)\
**Post date:** [March 29, 2021, 6:58pm UTC](https://community.openhab.org/t/using-alexa-binding-to-control-room-lights/119858/4 "2021-03-29T18:58:24Z")

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I’ve done a similar thing to control by BG smart socket. The socket is called socket 1 so I have a rule that watches my switch item and sends a command string “Turn socket 1 on” or “Turn socket 1 off” to the Alexa binding when the item state changes.
