Security Lights

How a motion sensor works

Most of this range uses a PIR sensor, which reads the warmth of a moving person against the cooler background and switches the light on when it sees one. Some fittings use a microwave sensor instead, which sends out a low-power signal and reads the movement in its echo, so it responds to smaller movements and can see through a thin diffuser. Either way, the light holds on for a set time and switches off once the movement stops. A security light usually lets you set that time, and the light level below which it responds, so it stays off in daylight; the product page gives the settings for each fitting. Because the light only burns while someone is there, it costs very little to run.

Where to fit a security light

A PIR sensor sees movement across its field far better than movement straight towards it, so fit the light where people will cross in front of it: beside a path rather than at the end of one, or on the side wall of a drive rather than facing the gate. A height of around two to two and a half metres suits most sensors; the product page gives the height each fitting is designed for. Keep the sensor pointed away from roads, pavements and trees that move in the wind, which are the usual causes of a light switching on for no one.

Floodlights, bulkheads and wall lights

Wall lights make up most of this range, and they are the natural choice by a front or back door, where the light needs to fall on the step and the lock. Bulkheads are compact and tough, and suit side passages, garages and sheds. A floodlight throws a wide, bright beam across a drive or a garden, which is what most people picture when they think of a security light. Where one fitting would have to cover a corner, fit two smaller lights instead, so that each sensor watches its own approach and neither is asked to see round a wall.

Brightness and colour

Most of these lights have integrated LEDs, so there is no bulb to change and the light comes on at full brightness instantly, which a sensor light needs. Cool white and daylight give the clearest view of a drive or a garden and are the usual choice for security. Warm white is kinder to the front of a house and suits a porch. Some fittings let you choose the colour temperature at installation, which is useful when one model has to suit two positions.

Weather ratings

Almost every light here is rated IP44 or higher. IP44 keeps out splashing rain and suits a wall under the eaves or beside a sheltered door. For a wall that takes the full weather, a gable end or a house near the coast, choose IP54 or IP65, which is sealed against dust and jets of water.

Setting it up well

Fit the light, then set it at dusk rather than in the middle of the day, when the light-level setting cannot be judged. Walk the approach you want covered and adjust the sensor until it responds where you want it to and not before. Start with a short on-time: a minute or two is usually enough for a path or a door, and a longer time only wastes light. If the light switches on too often, reduce the sensitivity or the range before moving the fitting.

Being a good neighbour

A security light that fires every time a car passes is a nuisance to everyone, including the owner. Angle the sensor down towards the ground you want covered, reduce its range if it reaches beyond your boundary, and aim a floodlight so the beam falls on your own drive rather than into the windows opposite.