There are so many ways you can tackle home security, some being more costly than others. Whether you opt for state of the art alarm systems, home security cameras and motion sensing doorbells. But one of the cheapest and most useful options is to install sensor controlled lighting around your home.
Not only does this create a deterrent, but it also serves as useful and practical lighting 99.9% of the times there isn’t someone trying to break into your car.
WHAT IS SENSOR LIGHTING FOR?
In times gone by, sensor lighting was installed by your driveway and your back door. Being that the light fittings were so expensive ‘back in the day’ it wasn’t something that was used overly often. But nowadays LED sensor lights are so cost effective that it’s a no brainer to light up your Melbourne home with sensor controlled lighting.
Installs we’ve done in and around the Eastern Suburbs and Melbourne consist of sensor lighting near the front door, or down dark side alleys of the house, or even inside the garage purely for convenience. Below are some examples of jobs we’ve done in the last 3 months in Croydon, Ringwood, Bayswater and surrounding suburbs.
- 360 degree sensor inside garage for convenience and safety in Bayswater VIC
- recessed mini sensor at front door, activated when closer than 2m to door itself in Mooroolbark VIC
- Long distance sensor controlling 4 x 90mm downlights in a driveway eave for useability and safety in Ringwood VIC
- recessed mini sensor to control bespoke strip lighting in a bathroom in Croydon VIC
CAN I OVERRIDE MY SENSOR LIGHT?
Sometimes you don’t want your sensor light turning on and off, say if you happen to be working in your driveway or packing your car. We can install additional control wiring and switching mechanisms to allow you to choose whether the light is a sensor light, or whether the light is manually controlled by you. Some products come with this feature inbuilt, but we generally find them problematic and prone to failure so we always recommend the ‘hardwired’ version of a Master / Sensor lighting setup.
SENSOR LIGHT VERSUS SENSOR CONTROLLED LIGHT
As much as you can buy a sensor light, you can also just buy a light you really like and ask us to install a sensor to control your favourite designer light! Sensor lights are generally fairly basic in appearance as they lean more toward practicality, but you most certainly can opt for a designer light and retrospectively install a sensor to control it.
With a bit of wizardry from our in house Melbourne electricians, we can set a sensor up to control nearly any light on the market without affecting product warranties etc.
BRIGHT IDEA – NEVER SET A SENSOR TO STAY ON FOR SHORT DURATIONS OF TIME. USUALLY 5-7 MINUTES IS IDEAL AS IT ALLOWS YOU TIME TO COMPLETE A TASK BEFORE THE LIGHT TURNS OFF, AND THEN ON, AND THEN OFF, AND THEN ON AGAIN! ASK US ON SITE AND WE’LL WORK WITH YOUR NEEDS IN MIND.
COST
As extensive as the benefits are for sensor light installs, they don’t cost much at all! To replace an existing sensor light in Melbourne, you can expect to pay an industry average of between $80 – $170 per fitting, supplied and installed for each light fitting. Installing a sensor light in a new location in Melbourne usually ranges from $270 upwards depending on proximity of switching locations etc.
If you’d like more information on sensor lighting, or sensors to control your favourite lights then get in touch! We’re always free for a chat via email or on 0428 862 963.