Security lights

[fan-of-fans]

Since I was a kid I was always fascinated by electrical and lighting stuff. This includes the security lights that people have in their yards. In many areas, especially rural ones the power company will install a light on the power pole and then you pay a monthly fee for it. Older ones tended to be the bucket type or what are called NEMA heads, with a mercury vapor or in later times, high pressure sodium ballast and bulb. Lately most of the newer ones are tending to be LED types.

There are also the types you can buy at home centers, Walmart etc that are also the bucket type, but these are not true NEMA heads since their buckets attach differently and are typically smaller than commercial units. I remember as a kid we had a mercury vapor one of these in the back yard near the horse water trough. It fascinated me too.

Anyway, I always was interested in these bucket lights as well as other street lighting. I've started to collect some of these fixtures now that they're starting to get less common with the popularity of LED. Hopefully some day I can install a pole and mount one or two outside. I wouldn't actually use them all the time since I wouldn't want to cause light pollution for the neighbors.

Just wondering if anyone else was interested in them.

 

[cfz2882]

I like them-

-have quite a few of different styles,1950s-2000s,incandescent,quartz,mercury,high pressure sodium,low pressure sodium,metal halide,CFL, and a couple LEDs(don't really care for the LED units)A few are deployed and in use:1978 Stonco 100w MV wallpak,and a 2000 18w low pressure sodium wallpak mounted on the house,and 2x 1982 Verd-A-Ray 18w low pressure sodiums on the telescope unit.The LPS lamps have about a 7 min.warmup to give off a deep yellow light that is very effective for glare free large area lighting with low bug attraction except for large black beetles that seem to like the yellow light.

 

[fan-of-fans]

Interesting. We have some solar LED lights around the back patio area that have a yellowish tint. I've noticed sometimes those black beetles will sit on the sides of them at night.

 

[cfz2882]

I have a couple old 1990s solar lights (no longer in working order)That were yellow LED-like those better than the "white"LED versions.There are a few LED yellow "buglights"That use a proper yellow emitting LED array,but most are yellow filtered "white"LED and bugs are attracted to the UV spilling out of those just the same as UV spilling CFL buglights-clouds of bugs swarm around those...

 

[askolover]

Have a new sodium light in my back yard with the yellow/orange glow.  Bugs don't really bother it.  I stuck flaming LED bulbs in the deck fixtures and they look like fire from a distance.  Bugs don't bother them either. 

 

[tomturbomatic]

I remember long ago when the Georgia Power Company advertised the "Dusk to Dawn" lighting program for various locations watched over by the photocells to turn lighting on and off mentioned in earlier postings.

 

[mattl]

My entire sub has Dusk to Dawn lamp post lighting, gladly 99% of the folks keep them lit.  Without streetlights with the number of folks walking at night it could be dangerous w/o them.  I actually have 4 in my yard, glad they are LED bulbs now.....

 

[petek]

Back when we lived in rural township outside of Calgary it was a requirement to have a pole light but one was never put on our place and no one ever came around and checked so I didn't bother.

Our city has over the past couple of years changed all the street lighting to LED's and it's quite different at night, seems much darker, because these new fixtures direct the light down to the roadway without the spillover onto your front lawns and the front of your house.

In our backyard I bought a LED solar floodlight of 10,000 lumens iirc and it really lights up the backyard. A few months back our cars were gone thru in the middle of the night, the one night I forgot to lock them, so I also installed to light up over the driveway when anyone approaches.. happy with them. They use rechargeable AA's which are easily replaced.