Home security: Do you leave your porch lite on all night?

[Xylob the Destroyer]

Like it says in the subject line, as a matter of home security, do you leave your porch light(s) on all night?

With the illumination, it makes it easier to spot would-be "bad guys".
But when I was growing up, a lit porch light meant the people weren't home and was practically an invitation for break in.

Some of our neighbors have had break-ins lately, and I'm on the fence regarding the lighting issue...

[thecoalman]

No I live in "leave it to Beaver land" and crime here is minimal. Domestic or traffic stops is about as criminal as it gets. I won't say there isn't any crime but house entries are not something that happens often. When I was growing up even locking the doors wasn't something everyone did.

[Conquest10]

I also live in a pretty safe area of the city (read white neighborhood). My old neighborhoods were the complete opposite. I've had my house broken into in broad daylight while at school. No one saw or heard anything of course. Good thing is that I did find some stuff in the alley as the #$%^* seemed to drop stuff as he made his getaway. Porch light is not going to do a damn thing if this person wants to break into your house and there is no neighborhood watch.

[enstg8er]

put it on a motion sensor. it stays off when it's not needed. any activity and it lights up on a timer. gives the illusion of being home and active. conserves energy. and is useful for general activity like coming home at night.

we have a steep driveway and it's the only way up to the house. at the garage is a spotlight on a sensor. when we come home at night things light up so the kids can see. when we leave it lights the driveway then goes out. anyone approaching at night would get lit-up like day.

the down side is it gets tripped by cats and trees blowing around in high winds.

i agree with conquest, the best thing is to get the neighborhood involved in a security program. that and move to a more crime free (if there is such a thing) area..

[shelbyGT]

My neighborhood is decent. I mean, I'll sometimes leave my ipod on my front seat of my car, parked in the street... never gets stolen. I really don't even worry about how all of my cd's are in plain site.

However, if someone is not at home, the light is on. If we are both home, we don't turn the light on. I guess that's how it works...

[gadgetguy]

I used to repair alarm systems for a living and if there's one thing I learned, it's that if someone wants to break in to your home, they will. Regardless of lights, locks, alarms, watchdogs, or guards.
Fortunately, most home breakins are crimes of opportunity and the would be thieves are looking for the path of least resistance. Lock your doors and windows and light your home on timers and/or sensors and you'll deter most potential thieves.

[SquirrelDip]

Crime is pretty low here also - generally we only lock the door at night...

[Craig Tucker]

I have a light on a PIR. I also have a full alarm system with magnetic reed switches on all the doors.

[ZAPPER]

The animal skulls on the fence post, the hangmans nooses scattered around the place and the white robe on the clothes line, keep most would be theives away. (the others never should have tried to swim in my pond with those old blocks tied around their necks) Juuuust kidding!

I did have some skulls out though, but my kids stole all of the teeth out of them hoping to get money from the tooth fairy (true story)

In the old days, or atleast when and how I grew up, the porch light on meant that you were expecting company or come on by we are still up. It would have been bad manners to knock on someones door after dark if the porch light was not on. (unless it was a real emergency)

I turn the porch light on when we go out and don't figure on getting back until late (Maybe a big flashing neon sign that says "nobody home" would draw more attention) I only leave it on so that I can find the key and keyhole after dark. (I guess it is time to consider a threeway switch or motion activated set up for the porches)

I got a street light over the parking area of my drive for like $10 bucks a month from the power company (came with the place and yes it does seem expensive now that I think about it) I got a photo/motion 500 watt flood aimed at the out buildings in back (a dog or bigger will set it off but a cat won't ) I got a lamp post on a photo cell out front by the walk. I keep meaning to add a couple of more photo/motion floods around the joint, but who has time?

[Xylob the Destroyer]

I'd really like to put up some motion activated floods on the sides and out front, but I definitely want it done right -- and I ain't no electrician.
I don't suppose it would take a licensed sparky to do it, but they charge around $100 an hour....

[rallynavvie]

My house is a half mile from the road through dense woods and the nearest neighbor is halfway up that same driveway. Next nearest neighbor is about 2 miles away, or maybe half mile as the crow flies on the other side of the river. So for me leaving the porch light on is a waste of electricity, and it attracts wild animals and insects. The main crime deterrent there is the long driveway really. It's impossible to case the place without being noticed and if someone comes down the driveway you're stuck there. But if someone did have some inside knowledge of when my renter or myself are gone there'd be nobody within sight to stop them or call the police. Well my neighbor is almost like the "gatekeeper" since you need to pass him to get to my place, and he's so trustworthy that we have keys to each others' houses to take care of the others' place when we're gone.

At my cabin the windows and doors are barred (the bars come off easy once unlocked) so vandalism is really the only problem, but it is so far away from anything that it's much the same as my house.

Now a friend of mine has a house in Minneapolis in a neighborhood where nobody really locks their doors, even when they're gone for several days. There are people walking their pets at all hours of the night and everyone knows everyone else so it's the ultimate in neighborhood security. Yet though there has never been a break-in (or theft I guess since they'd not really have to break anything to get in) in his neighborhood in years my car was broken into there some years back. In fact it's the only crime that's happened in that neighborhood seven year prior and even to date now. Of course it had to be my car

If you are going to use the porch light I would bind it to a timer and leave it on that timer wether you're home or not. That way if someone is doing their homework they can't tell if you're out of town just because your porch light is on when it normally isn't while you're home, or vice-versa. Motion sensors are nice, but get one that delays the on-time for several seconds after the trigger, or better yet it turns on a light inside the house shortly after activating the outside flood.

[zzyzzx]

Porch light on is a silly waste of electricity. This should be a poll.

[smearbrick1]

I've got a large dog that barks very loud. This is pretty much all I need at this point. I don't have nomadic thieves roaming the mean streets of the 1,000 person population of my small town. People who lock their car and house in my town are few and far between. There are very few break ins (if any) in my area probably due to either the extreme nosiness of next door neighbors or the high rate of gun ownership. Either way, not much is happening.

[Supreme2k]

I leave only a single red light on at night.

Very lucrative.

[Xylob the Destroyer]

I want to get a dog, but a miniature Dachshund isn't very intimidating.... and I really don't want to get a dog that needs $100.00 worth of food every week when we only spend $75.00 a week on groceries for two people!
as for the red light, my old lady made me stop doing that -- it was making me too tired to do yardwork and chores!

[smearbrick1]

I want to get a dog, but a miniature Dachshund isn't very intimidating.... and I really don't want to get a dog that needs $100.00 worth of food every week when we only spend $75.00 a week on groceries for two people!
as for the red light, my old lady made me stop doing that -- it was making me too tired to do yardwork and chores!

Our Labrador mix is just large enough to be intimidating. As far as food goes, he's about a $25.00/month dog. A 40lb bag of dog food (about $25.00) covers him for a month or more.

Besides, not only do you get (what appears to be) a home protector, but you also get the companionship of man's best friend.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have a sappy Dog Chow commercial to film.

[zzyzzx]

Our Labrador mix is just large enough to be intimidating. As far as food goes, he's about a $25.00/month dog. A 40lb bag of dog food (about $25.00) covers him for a month or more.

Besides, not only do you get (what appears to be) a home protector, but you also get the companionship of man's best friend.

And feces and urine all over your floor.

[Supreme2k]

And feces and urine all over your floor.

My neighbor's un-fenced front yards solved that problem for me (and my dogs).

[smearbrick1]

Our Labrador mix is just large enough to be intimidating. As far as food goes, he's about a $25.00/month dog. A 40lb bag of dog food (about $25.00) covers him for a month or more.

Besides, not only do you get (what appears to be) a home protector, but you also get the companionship of man's best friend.

And feces and urine all over your floor.

For the first two weeks before he was house broken. If you are attentative, you don't have to worry about this that much. I'm pretty satisfied with my dog. He's not the most obedient dog in the world, but he will not leave the yard (mine and my neighbor's) and he will not cross go on the street.

He knocks when he wants out or wants back in.