SL Timeout
SL Timeout is the time in seconds the price must spend beyond the stop before the bot closes the position at market. It is protection against short wicks: a breach that lasts a second or two and is followed by a quick return will not close the position. Available on futures only.
What it is
A DCA bot on futures has two Stop-Loss modes:
| Mode | What is on the exchange | Who watches |
|---|---|---|
| No timeout (default) | A conditional stop is placed right after the first entry | The exchange |
| With a timeout | There is no conditional stop — do not look for it on the exchange | The bot: it checks the price by the chosen SL trigger type roughly every 5 seconds |
In timeout mode the bot notes the moment price moves beyond the stop. If it comes back before the timeout expires, nothing happens and you only get a notification. If it stays longer, the bot closes the whole position with a market order and finishes the cycle: then a cooldown and a new cycle, as after a regular stop.
Safety net in case of a failure. Since there is no exchange stop in timeout mode, the bot separately places a safety stop on the exchange 0.5 % before the liquidation price and refreshes it every 60 seconds. It is visible on Bybit in Positions → TP/SL and almost never fires — it is there in case the connection is lost or something fails on our side, so that the position does not drift into liquidation unattended. It is not your SL.
Where it is in the bot
- When creating: confirmation screen → ⏱️ SL Timeout: off (buttons ❌ No timeout, 30, 60, 120 or your own number).
- On a running bot: card → ⏱️ Edit SL Timeout → choose → ✅ Apply.
- In the card: the line “⏱️ SL Timeout: 60 sec”.
On spot there is no button: a regular exchange stop is always used there.
How to set it up
- Open ⏱️ SL Timeout: off. The screen “⏱️ Stop-Loss Timeout” explains: “Number of seconds the price must stay beyond SL BEFORE the bot closes the position at market.”
- Press one of the ready buttons or enter a number from 1 to 300;
0turns the mode off. - The bot answers “✅ Timeout saved: 60 sec” or “✅ Timeout disabled — exchange SL will be placed immediately”.
On a running bot the new setting takes effect from the next cycle — the bot says so: “ℹ️ The new setting will take effect on the next cycle of the bot. The current active trade will continue with the previous SL mode.” If the timeout is off in the new cycle, the conditional stop appears on the exchange again.
The price type the bot compares the stop against comes from the ⚙️ SL trigger setting (Mark Price by default, see Stop-Loss).
Example with numbers
Long, average entry price 100.00, SL 5 % from the average → the stop at 95.00, SL Timeout 30 seconds.
- Price dropped sharply to 94.60 and 12 seconds later came back to 95.40. The position is intact and you get: “⚠️ Price returned within 12 sec — Stop-Loss did NOT fire (wick protection).” The notification also shows the SL price 95.00 and the price it came back to, 95.40. Without the timeout the exchange stop would have closed the position on the very first touch of 95.00.
- Price dropped to 94.50 and stayed there. After 30 seconds the bot closes the position at market, for example at 94.45: “🛑 Stop-Loss fired by 30s timeout — position closed at market.” with the SL price 95.00 and the exit price 94.45. The loss is slightly above 5 %, because the close is a market one and happens after the stop has already been touched — that is the price of wick protection.
Limits and allowed values
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Market | Futures only; on spot — a regular exchange stop |
| Timeout | 1-300 seconds; 0 = off |
| Quick buttons | No timeout / 30 / 60 / 120 |
| Safety stop | 0.5 % before the liquidation price, refreshed every 60 seconds |
| Change on a live bot | From the next cycle |
Keep in mind: in timeout mode the close is always a market one and always later than the touch of the stop, so the actual loss can be noticeably larger than the SL %, especially on an illiquid pair or during a crash.
Common errors and what the bot says
- “⚠️ Enter an integer between 1 and 300 (or 0 to disable)” — the value is out of range.
- “⚠️ SL Timeout is not available for SPOT bots” — on spot the standard stop is used, and it is placed on the exchange right after the first entry.
- “⚠️ Price returned within 12 sec — Stop-Loss did NOT fire (wick protection).” — this is not an error but a report that the protection worked; the position is open and the cycle continues.