Yard Lights- What ya got?

Chris(WA) · Dec 13, 2014

Looks like I may need a new dusk to dawn yard
light for the shop wall outside. I see that you
cannot buy a new mercury vapor light. I just hate
flouresent bulb lights. Never have had one last
like they promice.
What have you got that you like?

SDE · Dec 13, 2014

I replaced a bulb in the neighbors light. Later he told me that the light belonged to the Power CO. and that they would have changed it. ?????

IH2444 · Dec 13, 2014

Lowes has mercury vapor bulbs.

some mercury vapor fixtures are still around. use google. Then there is high pressure sodium fixtures as well.

farmboy48 · Dec 13, 2014

I bought a new mercury vapor at Menard's a couple years ago for outside of shop, had the co-op put HP sodium on yard pole. HPS is more yellow than mercury, but brighter. I think you can still get MV bulbs and controls at the bigger stores.

howdy1960 · Dec 13, 2014

I have a little lite outside the garage door that's only meant to "break the night" for when I get home at 11:30 PM. It's a 10 watt LED but puts out about 40 watts of lite. Operate it around 3 hours a nite.

el6147 · Dec 13, 2014

something to consider , I live in a rural setting and have no outside light , if someone has a curiosity of what I have in the evening, they are going to need there own light.

wijim · Dec 13, 2014

surprising how many yard lights the power company owns that are on private property. Where I work the power company owns and maintains four of them.

john in la · Dec 13, 2014

I have 2 double bulb flood lamps on the front and side of my shed. One is motion sensitive and the others is not but both come on with motion sensor since I have them hook in series.
I also have a mercury vapor street light on a pole. The wire to it is switched so it does not run all night every night. I can turn it on when we leave during day and it will not come on. When we return in dark it is on and I can turn it off once we are inside.

Russ from MN · Dec 13, 2014

I agree, why leave a light on for a burglar! I have some motion lights, not sure what effect they would have on a burglar. My thought is it will scare them away.

john in la · Dec 13, 2014

Guy at work has a power company owned unmetered directional high pressure sodium light. Lights up the entire front yard of his 1 acre lot.

He put up a bunch of Christmas lights in his yard and noticed the street light was so bright it effected the show off of the Christmas lights.
He called the power company and asked if they could come turn the light off; and then return after the first of the year and turn it back on.

Naturally they just laughed at him.
He does have the show off gota be better than the neighbors real bad.

Spudm · Dec 13, 2014

I would think about LED for yard lighting. Brighter light and less energy consumption.

Greg K · Dec 13, 2014

I've been putting up LED fixtures on poles and buildings instead of mercury's. I really like the Atlas 42 watt lights that put out the equivalent of a 150 watt mercury, but they are spendy. I'm thinking around $175. You can get less expensive ones from Home Depot but they don't put out as many lumens and take even less power. Time will tell if these are as great as they seem but with the current choices that is best in my mind.
To do the math, if you are paying 10¢kw and the light takes 42 watts and the light is on for an Average of 12 hours/day then your annual cost is $18.42. If your mercury light pulled 3 times that then your cost is also 3 times that.

Bryce Frazier · Dec 13, 2014

While not on the same scale, we have 4 LED flood lights in out kitchen, and they put out an amazing amount of light!

Even though they are spendy, these ones came with a 15 year warranty or something like that??

But anyway, I did the math on them, and if you were to replace the normal light bulbs as needed over X period of time, OR just buy a LED one. The costs would equal out in about 5 years, and then you still have a LOT of life left in the LED one!!

The math showed that it was much better, cheaper in the long run to buy LED ones, it is just have the cash upfront to start... Bryce

Goose · Dec 13, 2014

I have a high pressure sodium light on a sensor. Comes on when it's about half dark and turns off in the morning.

I replaced a mercury vapor light with it, and my electric bill went down about $20 per month.

The high pressure sodium is a more yellow light than mercury vapor, but the cost savings is worth it.

PJH · Dec 13, 2014

I'm with el & Russ. Motion lights, and also a big yard light on a switch if needed. No all-nighters here. We like sitting on the porch in the dark in the summertime.

fixerupper · Dec 13, 2014

I've had about every choice there is for yard lights for the three lights I have on two farm places. The old mercury vapor I have here at the home place just keeps plugging along after years and years of service and it still gives out a pretty fair amount of light. It's up there 20 feet or so on the pole. The latest light I put up is a 42 watt LED. The jury is still out on that one. It's been up there a year and it does put out a lot of light right under the light and out fifty feet. Beyond that it tapers off so at 100 feet I can still see to walk without tripping over something but forget about enough light to read anything. The LED is on a shorter pole, maybe 16'. At the other farm I have a halide that puts out good white light and compares pretty close with the LED for amount of light and distance. In the future I will probably go with the LED again because it uses less juice.

shaun wallace · Dec 13, 2014

Pollution from neighbors plus moon and stars.

Dave H (MI) · Dec 13, 2014

I have to tell you. I am not a big fan of people who feel the need to keep city level lighting outside their buildings all night long. Just another form of pollution in my opinion. Doesn't really work for security. NOBODY is going to question a guy who pulls up in broad daylight or under a light and starts loading up his truck. A noisy dog, motion detectors, cameras...all better. Sometimes I wonder if folks who put up those lights aren't just scared of the dark.

What I have is floodlights. Some on motion sensor and some on switch. At Lowe's they sell the light components separately so I bought good fixtures and then over in electrical I bought some six inch threaded nipples to drop the bulb down low enough so I can position it near horizontal. Then rewired the fixture. Now when they come on they flood a good two acres of land around the building. Only on when needed. Don't annoy my neighbors. Cheap.

huntingreen2day2 · Dec 13, 2014

I have a 400 watt metal halide light mounted on a pole about 20 ft up. Not afraid of the dark at all. Replaced the bulb maybe 2 times in 20 years. last time was just a few months ago, Thought it might be getting a little weak. I wired houses for years and I hate flood lights on a house. Never seen a Mercury Vapor light that would hold up. My photo cell is mounted at working height from the ground so any cell maintenance is easy.

Jon Hagen · Dec 13, 2014

Dont forget that the LED light runs on 1/6 the power of the same lumen output incandescent light, so payback is very quick, less than a year.

J.Wondergem · Dec 13, 2014

II had mercury vapor since 1966, until ten years ago. The electrician at work told me to go to metal halide. They're a little more expensive, but run cheaper than the mercury. I think LED would run a lot cheaper.

Chris Jones · Dec 13, 2014

I'm also a fan of high pressure sodium. I like the light.

Chris Jones · Dec 13, 2014

I should note I quite using all-night lights years ago in favor of a few halogen motion detection lights. When I look out and it's dark--all's good.

Then there was the night at 2am I awoke to more light coming in the windows than normal. I looked out and saw the light on. Deer? Dog? Then out from behind a tree a man stepped. Foggy minded and mad at 2am I pounded on the window. He took off running. I called the sheriff but short of a dog tracking him this guy wasn't going to be easy to find by the time they arrived.

David G · Dec 13, 2014

I have a mixture of high pressure sodium and LED.

fixerupper · Dec 13, 2014

Evidently no one here including me, has livestock. When I had livestock the all night light helped me out more times than I can count. I'd glance out at the barn any time I was up at night to see If any critters were where they weren't supposed to be. Stray dogs are more visible too.

2510Paul · Dec 14, 2014

I have 26 Watt Fluorescent, but you said you did not like Fluorescent. I suggest then LED but mount high enough to not blind you.

Paul

Yard Lights- What ya got?

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