Types of Outdoor Flood Lights - Which Type Suits You Best?

Variety of Choice When Buying Outdoor Flood Lights

There are many different types of outdoor flood lights currently on the market, ranging from the smaller, single bulb that can cost as little as $7 to the larger florescent or halogen bulb lights, costing around $60, that are capable of lighting up an entire yard.

If you are looking for a small spotlight to lighten a specific outdoor area or to highlight a distinct object outdoors you may find that all you need is a single bulb. A small adjustable single or double bulb outdoor adjustable made by Craftmade International, Inc. costs $7. This aluminum finished outdoor light is weather resistant.

A slightly larger light, the Quorum Lighting 690-2-5 - Decorative 2 Par Lamp Wall Mount, which takes two 150w light bulbs, is also weather resistant and suitable for wet locations. If you are hoping to light up a fairly large area, you may need to install several of these units in strategic locations around your yard. Each unit would cost $37. A similar light, the Sea Gull Lighting 8607-12 2 Light Swivel Flood Security, sells for around the same price. These types of lights are great to install on the corner of a building, as you can adjust the dual lamps to shine around the corner in either direction.

If you are looking for a larger unit you may be interested in the Hinkley Lighting 57000BZ, which is a larger 120V light fixture which will take up to a 75 watt halogen bulb. The light fixture itself is nine and a half inches wide and it has a tempered, heat resistant flat glass lens. Currently this is retailing for around $56.

Rab Lighting produce a very good flood light, the PLF39 3 Light Flood Light, which sells for $67. This energy saver uses compact fluorescent twin bulbs, and the light itself is built to last under any weather conditions. The swivel head allows it to be turned to highlight any direction.

Next, depending on your needs, it is relatively easy to find any type of outdoor flood light with prices rarely climbing above $70 per unit. The larger the actual light, the less units you will need to place outside.

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5 Key Benefits of Outdoor Flood Lighting

Outdoor flood lighting is not usually done with the intention of flooding the dark evening with the bright glow of light for simply decor or satisfaction. While the lights do manage to tear the pitch dark evenings apart, the primary reason for installing them is safety and security. With this sort of lighting in place, one enhances the chances of remaining protected from social nuisances and miscreants.

Outdoor flood lighting of your house caters a significant number of benefits to you, and each of these benefits is valuable by its own rights. The five key benefits of outdoor flood lighting are detailed below.

* Blocking the vulnerable areas of your house: Once you install the flood lights in all the places that are vulnerable, you are effectively setting focus on these places. That practically blocks the chances of being attacked upon through these places. So if you can identify all such vulnerable outdoor areas and ensure that the flood lighting covers each of those, then you are much better off. Examples of such places can be your garden, backyard and side alleys.

* Driving away criminals by added visibility: The moment you install your outdoor flood lighting, you add visibility into your protected areas. The darkness is gone. The protective cover for criminals is removed. So now the criminals would find it difficult to operate in a place that can be spotted easily. They would not want to get seen, and hence would go away to other places that do not have such lighting deployed.

* Identifying and reporting the offender becomes easier: If you hear a suspicious noise from your backyard where you have already installed your outdoor flood lighting, what would you do? You would simply peep into the place from your window. And once you see someone there who looks threatening, you know what the next step is - simply call up the police and report. You may also be able to remember something specific about the intruder which would help you identify him later.

* Protection of your house even when you are out: If you keep your flood lights switched on, you would remain protected to an extent even when you are not at home. This is because the miscreants will have no idea whether you are at home or not. Just because they see the lights switched on, they would hesitate to break in and keep looking for other places without such lights. So your safety is enhanced even if you are not in.

* Guests and decor: Guests would find it easier to make their way in with good outdoor flood lighting in place. The decor of the place would also go up by a notch if you use nice and sleek looking lights of different attractive colors.

Thus, outdoor flood lighting has a set of benefits that makes it an attractive option.

You might be the only one of your neighbors to have an outdoor flood light but that just means the prowlers will go to one of their homes rather than yours. By encouraging the neighborhood to get outdoor flood lighting you will all be much safer.

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Tips to Outdoor Flood Lights Installation

If you want to get yourself a couple of outdoor flood lights, here are some basic tips to help you with the initial installation and how to make the best use of them:

Know where to install them

The first thing that you should think of is to set the outdoor flood lights in places where you would want to have a clear view of whether there is an intrusion or not. Think of the outdoor lighting as a form of a security alarm. You can also set one in your backyard, side garden, and mail entrance. In short, install them in places that are likely to be broken into. It is best to maximize the focus of the lights, instead of just broadening the light's coverage of the premises, especially in places that are far from your line of sight. This way there is less chance of any intruder or burglar of ever thinking of trying to break into your home.

Always keep them on during night time

Outdoor lighting does not consume much electricity, so it is a good idea to keep these illumination sources on at night. Similarly, be sure to find ones that offer the best deals and best energy saving options so as to save as much electricity as you can. Not only will you feel secure about the whole idea, you will also be able to save a significant amount of money. There are plenty of choices available on the market today so choosing the right one for your outdoor needs will be quite easy.

Ask for the best deals in the market

You can always search over the internet for reviews of the products that you are choosing from. Although outdoor flood lights seem very similar to each other to the point that you can't tell them apart, there are actually products that are more suited as protection alarms than ambiance-creators, and vice versa. If you're browsing online, always make sure to read the entire product description and technical terms so you know which one you are getting. While initially they are not expensive, having to send them back and get new ones will cost you some extra money for shipping and wasted time as well.

Know how many outdoor flood lights you want to install

Of course, the number is a big deal when installing flood lights. The number of flood lights will have a great impact in creating the mood or ambience of a place. If you want to create a romantic setting on a dinner date, try to reduce the number of flood lights that you are installing on your premises. Similarly, if you want to use them for security purposes, you may want to add more flood lights to the area.

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