Pros and Cons of Each Type of Outdoor Motion Sensor Light

Outdoor motion sensor lights are a wonderful invention. They have made home safety and security much easier and user friendly for the home owner. There are three different types of outdoor motion sensor lights available electrical, battery operated and solar. Each has their own advantages and disadvantages when it comes to use and installation which will be detailed further in the paragraphs below.

The easiest type to work with and install is the battery operated and for the most part is also the least expensive. There are dozens of different brands with each brand having several different models. Most run off one of the common sizes of small batteries like AA, C and D. And just about all of them have LED bulbs because of the low amount of energy needed to power them. Now just because these are very basic lights doesn’t mean that there aren’t some really nice battery power motion lights because there is! The biggest disadvantage of using them is the amount of light they give off. Most are only good for lighting small areas like next to your front door so you can see to put the key in. As far as installation goes if you can use a screwdriver you can install these lights.

Solar motion sensor lights are the next easiest style to deal with. The biggest issue with these types of lights is that you must locate your light somewhere that you can place the solar panel in direct sun for an extended period of time. Fortunately the manufactures kept this in mind when designing the lights because most come with long cords, usually ten feet or more, to connect the solar panel to the light. Typically solar motion lights give off much more light than a battery powered light so they have much bigger range of uses. The bigger models can even be alternatives for hard wired security lights. Installation for these lights is about the same as the battery operated normally there are a few screws that mount to a bracket so no special skills are needed.

Last but not least is the standard hard wired motion sensor light. These lights come in a wide range of sizes and models as well and depending on what model you buy there are many features available including but not limited to an adjustable shutoff, manual on/off and built in daylight sensors. There are many advantages to using this style of light like having a much brighter light than battery or solar powered lights and never needing to change a battery or move a solar panel. But there are disadvantages too, like having to have a power source and needing to know something about wiring or hiring an electrician to install which cost money.

In the end it is up to you to choose what type of outdoor motion sensor light to use. Just keep these three things in mind and you should be fine; where do you need lighting, how much lighting will be enough, and do you plan to install the light or hire someone to do it.