We used to be able to see the stars.

[tim]

Why is it that all the wealthy newcomers to the village must have 500W halogen yard lights - on until late at night - & directed over the village, rather than just the yard?

We now have them on 3 sides, & whereas one could walk into the garden in the dusk & dark. a torch is now essential to overcome the glare. We can't even see across to nearby houses from upstairs - let alone the stars!! We already have very modest street lights which would allow you to walk almost anywhere without further aid.

To teach the grandchildren, we have to go 1/2 mile up to the Church on the hill.

[tim]

[lorna]

They must be wealthy Tim. My smallish flood light which only shines on my back garden is switched off as soon as I have come back in with the dog. (Too expensive to leave on). Did you know that  when you drive through your village if there are any lights which you consider a hazard you can complain to the police who will in turn ask the people to adjust them.. When we had our garage we had a flood light fitted to shine on forecourt. The police rang us and we had the light adjusted.
Must be annoying for you.

[terrace max]

Apparently burglars love security lights - it stops them tripping over stuff and waking people up.

Anyway, I suspect it won't be too many years before we're all saying: ' do you remember when we used to be able to afford to power garden lights/patio heaters/ pressure washers' etc.....I wouldn't regard it as more than a silly phase at the end of the fossil fuel age...

[aquilegia]

grrr - hate those things. There are several which shine all around our house. The one that shines onto our bedroom window is particularly annoying at 3am. One at the side (where our garden is) shines so bright that I get blinded if I try to look at the garden after dark.

And it's not just the star gazers that suffer - these things are a huge danger to wildlife - either making them think it's the wrong time of day/year, disturbing their hibernation or even blinding them temporarily and leaving them open to predetory attacks.

I was thinking of getting some small solar-powered lights for the garden, but it would disturb the toads too much.

[tim]

Yes - forgot to mention the fact that our bedroom - & other rooms - is like daytime - only brighter.

And it bugs me to think that these things are designed to be set horizontal, where they would not be so offensive. We did have a new street light which was not so set & they reset it for us.

[RSJK]

Is there any laws regarding the placement of these lights ? if not there should be

[lorna]

I have another light on the blank side wall of my bungalow. Son (electrician) fitted that for me after some "nice" people came and stole some of my best baskets. That is one that only comes on if you walk under it, i.e near the wall in which case it probably means someone is trying to "nick" my plants again.

[daisymay]

our neighbour has a light on the side of their house which lights up ours at night. They say it is for security but surely they will light the way for burgulars?!
Seems an odd logic to me.

[Heldi]

Tim we had two on our house when we moved in. One at the front to cover a driveway that is only the length of a car. It has been removed. The other at the back came on with a motion sensor. How many cats walk along our fence during the night ! Hated the thing but it was a nightmare to get to it to turn it off...would have to crawl through the itchy scratchy stuff in the loft. OH cursed it everytime. Don't know what happened but it is now broken. A flying boot do you think?

Neighbours at the back have fitted a one,it lights up my bedroom and is so bright it has woken me up. Grrr, you don't wake a sleeping Helly!!! Have  thought about giving them something to look at!  OH has fantasies of a pot shot aimed at it.  We have street lamps which seem to glow nicely so why the floodlamps?

[joji]

We have a spot lamp which is pluged in on the wall which we can turn on or off when we need it. Our neighbour on the other hand has one that works on a sensor light and it goes off every time we go into the garden. We are blinded by this light as we go down our back steps. >:( >:(

[busy_lizzie]

Yes it is one of our pet hates too.  When you walk down our street, one by one the security lights come on, sometimes nearly blinding you, and that is without the light from the street lamps as well. I can understand people's desire to have security but sometimes people really go over the top.  Feel sorry for any wild life around. busy_lizzie

[kenkew]

I still have a catapult!

[CotswoldLass]

GGGrrrrrrr Tim, on your behalf and as a fellow of the area I feel very cross on your behalf!

We're extremely lucky here - no surrounding lights.

Have plenty of evidence around of these abominations though!

CLx

[moonbells]

I'd better join in here too. We do have a halogen but it's on a 30s timer and is only switched on if you're in a 4ydx2yd patch between our door and the gate.  Can't be switched by anyone not on our path.  And wired to an override switch so we can physically turn it off.

The town itself is pretty bright, but not as bad as some.  I reckon a lot of our council tax is spent on streetlights and in the further out stretches, I don't know why we have them.  It's not as if folk are going to be walking from bus stops in the middle of nowhere, and if they painted white lines on the edges of roads as well as the centres, and made sure the cats' eyes all work then you don't need them to be able to stay on the roads either.

Back when I was a teenager I used to frequent the local astronomical society and it has a lovely observatory and dome.

Guess what the local council planners did...  7' from the poor dome!

Anyway, off to bed... darn sight warmer inside than out!

moonbells

[Mrs Ava]

There are a few people around us who have spot lights in their gardens, but for the most part, people seem to turn them on, just to call in their cats or dogs, and then turn them off again.  We are very lucky and can admire the stars from our garden, or the street as in one direction is farmland, and in the other are houses, but all big ones with lots of land, and hardly a street light in sight! 

When we visit my mum in Surrey, we come hurtling back along the M25 then the A12 and you can see the towns in the distance, especially Chelmsford because of the orange glow on the horizon!

[tim]

Oh, dear - what's become of my blonde inspiration??

But back to lights - have lights for access or 'security' by all means, but angle them down so that they only light the bit that you need - not the whole village.

[kenkew]

Rig up one of them there windy-mill thingy's in their gardens....that way their lights will stay on all the time, when they get their 'lecky bill they might think again.