Security flood light causing pollution?

PhilE

d0nkeyk0ng wrote: »

So we had our security lights fitted. 20W LED ones front and back. The front one was fitted at a similar height to the next door neighbour. The rear one was fitted at the same place the previous (but nonfunctioning one was). Both look okay but I figured the back garden one was too dim. The old one was 150W halogen (approx 2400 lumens) compared to the current one (1800 lumens).

One of the neighbours diagonal and behind us came round to complain that it too bright and disturbing her son and that she had to buy black out curtains.

When the light was fitted, we angled it to ensure the garden was lit adequately (ie not pointed up at the sky). None of the other neighbours have complained. The company make no shields or hoods for it. I will try angling it further downward but am concerned it will compromise the reason we fitted it - if someone jumps over the fence, I'd like to be able to spot them. There have been a few break ins and car thefts locally. Quite a few neighbours have had security lights fitted front and back this year. Indeed, the neighbour also mentioned they'd been broken into a few years ago.

What can I do to ameliorate the issue?

I fitted an LED security light in my garden once.. I switched it on once, it lit up the whole neighborhood. I never switched it on again and replaced it with a very low wattage light that points downward. About as bright as a candle, and the sensor only gets triggered if your standing right next to the back door.

Hate the new LED lights, way too bright for a neighborhood and don't really provide much of a deterrent IMO.
Think about it, when's the last time you rushed to the bedroom windows when a neighbors security light went on? Most probably you thought it's been triggered by a cat/fox, its an annoyance that's keeping you awake and you cant wait for it to go off again.

I have low wattage wall lights front and back, that's all I need. A good, visible security alarm is my home security.

WobblyDog

Whenever I want to fit an external security light, I fit something like this:
http://www.wickes.co.uk/Wickes-Shirling-Dimmable-Halogen-Wall-Light-with-PIR---35W-GU10/p/121012
If just the lower lamp is fitted, all the light is directed at the ground, and you have a wide range of GU10 LED lumen ratings to choose from.


Also, this type of lamp often includes a sensitivity adjustment screw, so the lamp can be tuned to ignore squirrels but detect large burglars.

d0nkeyk0ng

SplanK wrote: »

It still came on but at a reduced rate..... then sold the house 18 months later!

We plan to live here at least another five years, so can't scarper!

PhilE wrote: »

replaced it with a very low wattage light that points downward. About as bright as a candle, and the sensor only gets triggered if your standing right next to the back door.

The problem is that solution doesn't help if there's someone about in the garden, nor does it make it easy to spot. When there were a few break ins nearby, the wife could hear noises. I looked around through the windows front and back but couldn't see anything. If a light came up that lit the garden enough to see if there's someone there, that would help. I'm not using them as a deterrent. I'm using them to see what's going on.

WobblyDog wrote: »

Whenever I want to fit an external security light, I fit something like this:
http://www.wickes.co.uk/Wickes-Shirling-Dimmable-Halogen-Wall-Light-with-PIR---35W-GU10/p/121012
If just the lower lamp is fitted, all the light is directed at the ground, and you have a wide range of GU10 LED lumen ratings to choose from.

Does it light up the garden enough to be able to see if someone's lurking about?

Lorian

Low-light IR camera (Wifi or PoE) with recording?

Andrew_Ryan_89

Does your light have a sensitivity setting? Also, doesn't your neighbor have blinds?

I have a neighbor opposite that when his light triggers, it does light up the room if the blinds are up. However, the times that the light will turn on are the times that the bedroom blinds will be down and if they are up, whoever is in the room is up so the lights should not be any more of a distraction than the neighbors overgrown grass or the odd occasion of playing music.

Boiler smoke triggers my security camera but not the light. I suspect you have the sensitivity set way too high.

impvan

Never buy a light with the PIR sensor built in. You will usually be walking towards the light, and that's the least sensitive direction for a PIR - they are designed to detect things moving /across/ their field of view.

It's better to use a microwave detector rather than a PIR. Once a niche product, these are becoming very cheap and don't spuriously trigger when the boiler plume wafts past! Nor can you sneak past one by wearing a puffa jacket....

glasgowdan

Who cares if someone is sneaking around your garden... it's qhen they approach the house you should light them up.

Few people seem even vaguely aware of what light pollution is.

d0nkeyk0ng

Andrew_Ryan_89 wrote: »

Does your light have a sensitivity setting? Also, doesn't your neighbor have blinds?

Neighbour is odd - they seem to leave their lights on in the house all night (at least upstairs). Not spotted any blinds/curtains but our back garden is diagonal to their back garden so the houses are a fair distance apart.

Only adjustable settings are ambient light sensitivity (ie how dark it is before floodlight starts kicking in) and duration of light.

impvan wrote: »

It's better to use a microwave detector rather than a PIR. Once a niche product, these are becoming very cheap and don't spuriously trigger when the boiler plume wafts past! Nor can you sneak past one by wearing a puffa jacket....

Strangely I didn't encounter them when researching. Any reputable brands?

glasgowdan wrote: »

Who cares if someone is sneaking around your garden... it's qhen they approach the house you should light them up.

We have a garden shed with a fair few tools in there. If someone was trying to break into the shed and stealing our tools, I'd like to be able to look out of the window and spot them (and maybe scare them off).

glasgowdan wrote: »

Few people seem even vaguely aware of what light pollution is.

Agree - I should have used light nuisance since light pollution is a completely different thing.

PhilE

d0nkeyk0ng wrote: »

We plan to live here at least another five years, so can't scarper!


The problem is that solution doesn't help if there's someone about in the garden, nor does it make it easy to spot. When there were a few break ins nearby, the wife could hear noises. I looked around through the windows front and back but couldn't see anything. If a light came up that lit the garden enough to see if there's someone there, that would help. I'm not using them as a deterrent. I'm using them to see what's going on.


Does it light up the garden enough to be able to see if someone's lurking about?

The problem with a light shining directly in the garden is that it can create shadows for a burglar to hide behind.

The downward facing light may give enough light to see whats happening in the garden, but I see your point. Its not going to be a super bright security light in that sense and yes, a bright light could illuminate a burglar more than a downward pointing one.

If I want to see whats happening in the back garden, I tend to use a torch and have a stick/bat on standby.