nocware
Quick answer
- Wooden plates detect any entity, including dropped items and arrows.
- Stone plates only detect players and mobs.
- Weighted plates give a stronger signal the more entities are on them.
Pressure plates are the simplest redstone switches. Pick the right one and your door won't open for a dropped stick.
Materials PlannerPlan Minecraft build materials and calculate stacks, shulker boxes and chests→
Every plate
| Plate | Recipe | Detects |
|---|---|---|
 Oak pressure plate | 2 planks | Players, mobs, items, arrows |
| Stone pressure plate | 2 stone | Players and mobs only |
 Light weighted pressure plate | 2 gold ingots | Any entity, 1 signal per entity |
 Heavy weighted pressure plate | 2 iron ingots | Any entity, 1 signal per 10 entities |
Any wood type works for wooden plates. Polished blackstone plates act like stone ones.
Doors
Put a plate on each side of an Iron door for an automatic door. Use stone plates on the outside so dropped items don't hold it open.
Mobs open them tooZombies stepping on a plate will open your door. Put the outside plate where mobs can't reach, or use a button.
Counting items
Weighted plates count items on top. Use them for item counters, or to detect when a farm has dropped a stack.
Cheat sheet
- Wood: anything
- Stone: players and mobs
- Gold: 1 per entity, up to 15
- Iron: 1 per 10 entities
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