Today's motion security lights really ****

[adamant118]

I guess you get what you pay for. I picked up a set from Lowe's and it's the third one so far that I had to replace. The motion sensors go, they turn on in daylight.

Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk

 

[nsula_country]

Agreed. The assembled units ****. I don't even think the +$100 units at box stores and supply houses are worth a damn.

Been looking to roll my own with 3 hole cover, lamp holders, screw in LED floods and a good quality motion sensor. Still searching for the motion sensor. From what I have researched, can build for $40-$50 each.

CT

 

[Falcon67]

I love how they tend to cycle on/off all night should you lose power after dark. And they continue to do the on/off thing until sun is well up.

 

[cybrdyke]

There is no manufacturer called Utilitech. It's just a con game by Lowes. Home Depot does the same, as do all the big box stores.
Residential Outdoor lighting is probably the worst category when it comes to cheap, flimsy, fall-apart-in-your-hands products. And motion sensors make it even worse. I wouldn't buy anything in this type of product from any of the big box stores or from anyone online, including Amazon. It's all junk.
The solution is to pony-up some money, unfortunately. I use commercial products for outdoor lighting on residential buildings. They cost more. But they're brighter, much better built, and they work. You'll find these products at your local electrical supplier. RAB, Cooper, Philips, Hubbell....those are the brand names.
Even with those products, as well as they work...the outdoor motion sensors still ****. There just isn't a good one. Doesn't exist. The best thing to do is scrap the notion of an outdoor motion sensor. You can use a photocell instead, if that helps. With the low power that an LED fixture uses, you can leave it on all night long and not worry about running up your power bill. Or you can use a timer.
Good luck,
CD

 

[prostreetamx]

The hot sun here destroys motion sensors pretty quick. They rarely work for over a year even if I put them in some shade.

 

[jpinca]

I installed the the Ring Motion floodlight a few weeks ago and so far so good. I have three Ring Products to date and have been generally pleased with them. I hope they have long term reliability.

 

[aka Larry]

Even with those products, as well as they work...the outdoor motion sensors still ****. There just isn't a good one. Doesn't exist. The best thing to do is scrap the notion of an outdoor motion sensor. You can use a photocell instead, if that helps. With the low power that an LED fixture uses, you can leave it on all night long and not worry about running up your power bill.

Agreed! I've BTDT with motion sensors and I too never had one worth a damn. I finally gave up and went with LEDs and a photocell. My current setup has been flawless for the last 4 years.

 

[nh_yota]

Box store lights **** - you need go with RAB from your local supply house.

 

[Fsatsil]

Box store lights **** - you need go with RAB from your local supply house.

+1
RAB is excellent

 

[grantw]

I installed the the Ring Motion floodlight a few weeks ago and so far so good. I have three Ring Products to date and have been generally pleased with them. I hope they have long term reliability.

[giant image]

One of my neighbors put one of these up. The floods are ON ALL NIGHT and facing the street. I am dis-liking that neighbor very quickly every time I go by.

 

[reader2580]

I guess I have been lucky with two big box store LED lights with motion sensors. One is almost three years old and the other is 18 months old and they still work fine. They turn on at night and don't come on during the day. I looked at RAB, but I could not justify the cost.

I had bigger issues with a halogen motion light at my previous house. It worked for a year or two and failed. I left it like that for almost 10 years and then replaced it before I sold the house.

 

[openwheelracing88]

I got one from Costco (wired version) and it works "relatively" well. I am hoping someone else other than Ring integrates a security camera into this solution. It is the perfect location for a camera. I don't like Ring because it charges a monthly fee. Yes yes I am being cheap here, but I hate it when they nickle and dime you. I got 3 Arlo Pro and 2 Arlo Q for the very reason that they provide free cloud storage and local storage is an option.

 

[reader2580]

What happens to that "free" cloud service when the manufacturer goes out of business? Does the camera become a door stop because the service is no longer available? I know we hate to pay service fees, but it helps ensure the service stays running.

I bought some solar inverters from a manufacturer that went out of business. They offered a free service that allowed users to view their solar production online. The free service ceased to function when the manufacturer went bankrupt. Somebody started a $50 a year pay service to do the same thing. The inverters at least still function without the Internet service.

 

[Brian_WK]

Heath zenith are my favorite soon far. I'm going on 3 years with all types of weather. Mine has the sensor outdoors and the rest of the electronics are inside.

Brian

 

[BillK]

Heath zenith are my favorite soon far.

I was going to post the same thing. I have two and one is at least ten years old. Never had a problem with either of them.

 

[Stuart in MN]

I"ve had good luck with RAB lighting. They have a bunch of other options besides the standard floodlight that are much more aesthetically pleasing.

 

[Marctrees]

Made in China strikes again !!!! Marc

 

[CoogarXR]

At my old house, I bought the "expensive" ones (like $80+), and they died in less than a year. I probably bought 5 replacements while I lived there.

At my new place, I just bought the very cheapest one they sold, figuring "why bother with the expensive junk if I have to buy them so often". Go figure, I bought two of the $14 ones 7 years ago and they still work perfectly. I think they are Zenith.

When I was still mad about it, I though about using the auxiliary "alarm" contacts on my DVR to trigger a relay that would turn on a standard floodlight. This way it would use the motion sensing of my cameras instead of a PIR sensor. Still a thought if anybody is so motivated, lol.

 

[openwheelracing88]

What happens to that "free" cloud service when the manufacturer goes out of business? Does the camera become a door stop because the service is no longer available? I know we hate to pay service fees, but it helps ensure the service stays running.

I bought some solar inverters from a manufacturer that went out of business. They offered a free service that allowed users to view their solar production online. The free service ceased to function when the manufacturer went bankrupt. Somebody started a $50 a year pay service to do the same thing. The inverters at least still function without the Internet service.

local storage is an option via USB ports on the base which has a built in siren.
Fact is, manufacturers need to start include local storage for security cameras. Micro SD cards and USB sticks are perfect for this application.

 

[grantw]

local storage is an option via USB ports on the base which has a built in siren.
Fact is, manufacturers need to start include local storage for security cameras. Micro SD cards and USB sticks are perfect for this application.

Not exactly. microSD cards have a relatively limited amount of write cycles, especially when considering 20Mbps video streams for HD feeds. Sure, it would be great as a local storage option when the network NVR is not online, but for 24x7x365, it's not the best option.

Car dashcams start having high sdcard failure rates after ~1 year of nonstop recording. I mean, it does vary based on internal wear-leveling and whatnot, but for a high-use overwriting recording cycle, SD/USB flash isn't the best option for long term reliability.