S/o. Why turn on outside lights?

GingerSB · April 2012

Obviously if you are expecting someone, it makes sense. But what is the ratiOnal for having your outside lights on all night or until you go to bed? I am just curious because it would never occur to me.

Mrs.Hizzo · April 2012

Security. Lights make it look like someone is home, and they make it harder for someone to break in without being seen from the street.

vlagrl29 · April 2012

Mrs.Hizzo:
Security. Lights make it look like someone is home, and they make it harder for someone to break in without being seen from the street.

This! we added a gadget to it so the lights will come on by themselves when its dark and turn off when the sun comes up.

toadstool · April 2012

Mrs.Hizzo:
Security. Lights make it look like someone is home, and they make it harder for someone to break in without being seen from the street.

This. My dad was on our city's PD for 35 years and he feels like it really does add some security. It seems like a little thing, but why would you break into a house that is well lit when you can break in to the one down the street that is covered in darkness?

ETA: That last sentence sounds weird when I read it... but it's kinda true.

hayleydeee · April 2012

toadstool:
Mrs.Hizzo:
Security. Lights make it look like someone is home, and they make it harder for someone to break in without being seen from the street.
This. My dad was on our city's PD for 35 years and he feels like it really does add some security. It seems like a little thing, but why would you break into a house that is well lit when you can break in to the one down the street that is covered in darkness?
ETA: That last sentence sounds weird when I read it... but it's kinda true.

That's why we always left ours on at night in our last house. The neighborhood watch group sent out a request to everyone to leave porch lights on all night. Apparently well lit neighborhoods do have lower crime rates.

The_Jen626 · April 2012

Security, I prefer to have the front and back of my house well lit.

laurakaz13 · April 2012

The_Jen626:
Security, I prefer to have the front and back of my house well lit.

This. I am all about safety and every little thing helps.

Mc_Newlywed · April 2012

yup, for security. And for safety. Sometimes our neighbors stop by in the evening if they see our cars. I'd hate to think of them walking up the drive in the dark.

For what it's worth, and I meant to put this in the other post, they sell lights that have auto on/off and dimmers on them to save energy. So our front porch lights come on at dusk and go off at sunrise but they are kinda dim. If there is any motion around them then they come on full-light. They are fairly easy to install and do save you a little $$.

littlemermaid · April 2012

We turn ours on for security.

pepomntpat · April 2012

We have been doing it since the boy across the street murdered the family down the road and our local PD suggested everyone keep them on for safety. Even since I've moved, I've always had the outside lights on at night.

JCM · April 2012

laurakaz13:
The_Jen626:
Security, I prefer to have the front and back of my house well lit.

This. I am all about safety and every little thing helps.

This too! DH travels for work & it just makes me feel a little safer.

notkateanymore · April 2012

JCM:
laurakaz13:
The_Jen626:
Security, I prefer to have the front and back of my house well lit.

This. I am all about safety and every little thing helps.
This too! DH travels for work & it just makes me feel a little safer.

I agree. If somebody wants to try to break in, I don't want to give them dark, so they have time to work. If they're going to try, they're going to have to do it in bright spotlights where people would notice!

ENI36 · April 2012

We have lights on sensors for security. I don't understand people who leave them on all night though. Why not just use sensors? A lot of our neighbors have their lights on all night. It seems like a waste and it makes it really bright in my house even with our blinds closed! I can't imagine how bright it is inside their own houses. Maybe they use a lot of room darkening shades.

jetskreemr · April 2012

Thank you for asking this! I wondered the exact same thing too when I saw that post.

chulita425 · April 2012

We leave our outside light on too. When I'm home alone which is often I leave the hallway and kitchen light on. Hallway just cause I'm a chicken lol and kitchen because it faces the back and we already have our front lights.

mgarza1231 · April 2012

As pp's have said, for security reasons. Def makes me feel safer.

MaxandRuby · April 2012

GingerSB:
Obviously if you are expecting someone, it makes sense. But what is the ratiOnal for having your outside lights on all night or until you go to bed? I am just curious because it would never occur to me.

A sense of security. DH's car was broken into...in our driveway...at the back of the house (the garage is at the back of the house and the driveway goes along the side and around the back). We have a larger backyard and a side yard both with a crap load of trees. We have 4, yes 4 motion lights. 2 were already installed (one on each corner of the house) when we moved in. The other 2 are porch type lights. We leave one with a brighter light as a motion detector and the other one has a bug light in it and is set as a dusk to dawn light.

If his car had never been broken into, I'm not sure we would have back lights on unless we were entertaining or needed to be out there for some reason.

luvmyducks · April 2012

Mrs.Hizzo:
Security. Lights make it look like someone is home, and they make it harder for someone to break in without being seen from the street.

This for sure. And I'm baffled that my neighbors on either side of us still leave their lights off after getting their cars broken into last week. Yep, both neighbors on either side of us. Our lights are on all night and nothing was taken from our property.

Alliebooberz · April 2012

My husband keeps our lights on so that there's no way to sneak up to our house and so that the dogs can see if there's someone there. It's a security thing.

Want a personalized experience?

S/o. Why turn on outside lights?

Re: S/o. Why turn on outside lights?

Choose Another Board

Search Boards