Last week I posted how I my project failed because I had a 3-way installation with no neutral in either box. Instead of looking for a electrician solution (which I hope to do one day) I found this, which works well.
I replaced the bulb in the stairs light with a Domitech LED. I had it paired to my Vera Edge. I also added the Ecolink to my Vera. I created a Scene where the trigger is the Ecolink motion sensor, which activates the bulb when motion is present. The sensor has reasonable range; I aimed it so it could catch motion from the top or bottom of the stairs.
Last week, I was replacing toggle switches with Decora style, so I bought Decora covers. I bought inexpensive dumb switches (for the time being) which I will leave on. I taped off the 2 switches that control the stairs light. There are tamper-resistant guards that mount over a toggle switch, but nothing like that for Decora. So the tape over the switches to stop the mother-in-law or kids from turning off my motion light is the only Achilles’ heel in an otherwise nice setup. After I go down the steps and into my entertainment area, the Z-wave LED lights the way, and the motion sensor turns off the LED 4 minutes later.