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You Can Never Have Too Much Redundancy

IMG_6538, originally uploaded by Prince of Petworth.

Now, this is going to be one well lit porch. I actually made the same mistake in my bathroom I got lights put in above the mirror and on the ceiling. It is ridiculously bright if you turn both on. But I think these porch lights actually look really good.

Speaking of porch lights it really bothers me when people don’t turn on the porch lights. I have a neighbor that has one that turns on automatically whenever anyone walks by and that is the bomb. But, if you don’t have one of those, doesn’t it bother you when people don’t turn on their porch lights? It is a simple move that makes the street feel a whole lot safer when everyone has them on…

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By: Prince Of Petworth | 27 January 2008 9:53 PM | 10 Comments

Heather

I think the bathroom thing is pretty common, isn’t it? So you can turn the sink lights on when you’re doing all that up-close stuff like putting on make-up, plucking the brows, or putting on your contacts.

January 28, 2008 at 12:01 am
TheNeighbor

I agree PoP. I wish everyone would have their porch lights on a night. With the serious lack of street lights, the side streets would feel safer. All it would take is one of those light bulb sockets that turn on automatically when the sun goes down. I think they are less than $15 at home depot.

January 28, 2008 at 9:45 am
AngryParakeet

Yes – having porch lights on is good. I’m about the only one on my long dark block that turns one one, and it stands out as a safer, more welcoming abode.

January 28, 2008 at 10:00 am
Herb

I bought one of those sensors that turns on lmy porch light when the sun goes down about 15 years ago. I’ve had to repalce the light bulb once since!

January 28, 2008 at 10:32 am
Crestwood

I feel the same about porch lights. Took some convincing to bring my husband on board. (His theory is that well-lit areas just give burglars convenient light to work by. I believe it deters them.) I was real tired of trying to find the keyhole in the dark, and a little scared of that too. I guess he subscribes to the “if Mamma ain’t happy …” philosophy, so we recently replaced the light fixtures and got the type that uses compact fluorescent bulbs inside the frosted globes. Makes me feel less guilty about leaving the lights on all night. We have the lights on a timer. Our lights in the back are wired to motion-sensors.

January 28, 2008 at 11:00 am
emikael

I could not agree more about porch lights. Many cities encourage porch light usage as a part of their public safety campaigns. If all of our local community organizations got on board and encouraged people to use them, I think it would make a real difference.

January 28, 2008 at 11:54 am
Pip

I disagree with leaving porch lights on. I don’t think it makes a significant difference to how safe the street feels, and it creates a whole lot of unnecessary light pollution.

I really dislike porch lights that turn on when you walk past on the sidewalk. Set the sensor so it only triggers when someone’s on your porch, not the street or a neighbor’s house. Back alleys may be a different matter, though.

January 28, 2008 at 1:10 pm
Jamie

Porch lights make a huge difference. The street lights on my old street in Mt. Pleasant were all out for nearly a year once. But everyone kept their porch lights on. It was almost not a problem. Without them, it would have been pitch black.

Just put a 7 watt CFL in there and leave it on. That’s less electricity than your television probably uses on standby. I don’t like the motion sensor ones myself, they are very annoying and don’t contribute to the overall “lightness” of the street anyway.

January 28, 2008 at 3:51 pm
bogfrog

I bought some solar outdoor lights recently, but now I need a carbide drill bit that’s the right size

January 28, 2008 at 3:56 pm
Bill C.

I’m all into keeping the porch light on as a civic duty. But for some reason my bulbs burn out quickly, like within a couple months. Maybe because I leave it on all night? Still seems pretty short. I tried the CF bulbs but the light was really ugly and cold, even though it was supposed to be ‘daylight balanced’ or something, which it certainly was not.

And my ladder is a pain to dig out of the basement storage so sometimes (like right now) I’m dark for a while before I get around to changing it.

January 29, 2008 at 10:12 pm