Daylight Detector
Daylight Detector emits a redstone signal proportional to sky light — drives automatic lighting and time-based contraptions.
Description
Daylight Detector emits a redstone signal tracking the current sky-light level: signal strength fifteen at noon under clear sky, decreasing as evening approaches, and zero at night. Right-clicking inverts the behaviour, switching to a night-mode variant that emits strength 11 at midnight under open sky and zero at noon — useful for automatic streetlight controllers that activate after dusk. Rain caps the daytime signal at 12 and thunderstorms at 10. Common uses include automatic doors that close at night, sky-light-driven brewing-stand timers, and redstone clocks that run only during the day. The signal follows the sky light at the block's position: overhead shade lowers it, full cover returns zero, and block light from torches or glowstone cannot substitute for the sun.
Block properties
| Item ID |
minecraft:daylight_detector
|
|---|---|
| /give command |
/give @p minecraft:daylight_detector
|
| Stackable | Yes (64) |
| Best tool | Axe |
| Renewable | Yes |
| Hardness | 0.2 |
| Blast resistance | 0.2 |
| Java Edition | 1.5 |
Java Edition Guide
How to use a Daylight Detector in Minecraft
-
1
Craft the detector
Place three glass blocks on top, three nether quartz in the middle, and three wood slabs on the bottom of the crafting grid to make one Daylight Detector.
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2
Place it under open sky
Set the detector where sky light reaches it. Overhead shade lowers the output and full cover zeroes it; torch or glowstone block light does not count.
-
3
Read the redstone output
Run redstone dust or a comparator from its side. Signal strength rises toward 15 at noon and falls to 0 at night.
-
4
Invert for night mode
Right-click the detector to flip it. Under open sky it now emits strength 11 at midnight and zero at noon, ideal for automatic streetlights.
Weather shifts the daytime reading well below the clear-sky maximum, so set the switching threshold with a comparator in subtract mode instead of tying the circuit to a single expected strength.
How to craft this block
Related blocks
Frequently asked questions
Can you craft a Daylight Detector?
Yes. Combine three glass, three nether quartz, and three wood slabs in the crafting grid to make one.
What signal does it give at noon and at night?
Under clear sky it outputs redstone strength 15 at noon and 0 at night, scaling with the sky-light level in between.
How do you make a Daylight Detector work at night?
Right-click it to invert it into a night sensor. Under open sky it then emits strength 11 at midnight and zero at noon.
Does it work under a roof?
No. The signal follows sky light, not block light: overhead shade lowers it, full cover returns 0, and torches or glowstone cannot substitute for the sun.
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