Asked by: Tian Nijevyasov
automotive motorcycles

How do I choose a front porch light?

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Size. The size of your porch light should balance with the size of your entry door instead of the overall size of your home. When choosing a porch light for a standard-size door of 6 feet 8 inches, the September 2009 issue of "Old House Interiors" magazine recommends a porch light between 5 and 9 inches wide.


Also to know is, what kind of lightbulb do I need for a front porch?

Generally, you should use a 60-watt bulb at the very minimum with a single fixture for sufficient lighting. If you're flanking a pair next to the front door, you can go with a 40-watt bulb in each of the fixtures.

Also, how bright should a porch light be? As for how many lumens you need for outdoor lighting, it ranges from 12-1300 depending on where they are. Path and step lights are best around 100 lumens, flood and motion sensor lights 700 lumens, underwater lights 200-400 lumens, wall lights 50-185 lumens, and general landscape lights 50-300 lumens.

Similarly one may ask, what is porch light?

Porch lights help keep you and your loved ones safe. You don't fumble for your keys when the light is on—instead, you're inside the door within moments. The light also deters burglars who tend to avoid a home that looks occupied. Burglars pay attention to how and when you turn on porch and deck lighting.

What is the best wattage for a porch light?

The best wattage for outdoor lights is 80 watts or lower. 40 watts and lower is ideal for lighting pathways and garden beds. 40-80 watts are great for brightening areas like driveways and smaller yards. 80 watts and lower are Dark Sky lighting approved, meaning you're helping the environment too.

Related Question Answers

Trinitario Galarraga

Professional

Which is better daylight or soft white?

Warm white and soft white will produce a yellow hue, close to incandescents, while bulbs labeled as bright white will produce a whiter light, closer to daylight and similar to what you see in retail stores. If you want to get technical, light color (color temperature) is measured in kelvins.

Sunni Zampini

Professional

How do I keep bugs off my porch light?

Steps
  1. Turn off any lights you're not using. The heat and light given off by porch lights are like a homing beacon for bugs, which means the simplest way to thin their ranks is to leave them in the dark.
  2. Try out yellow bulbs.
  3. Switch to LED lights.
  4. Keep a few candles lit.
  5. Invest in a bug zapper.

Svitlana Zhilis

Professional

What light bulb is best for outside?

Our Top Picks
  • Best Overall: Cree 65W Light Bulb at Home Depot.
  • Best Dusk to Dawn: Philips LED Dusk to Dawn Bulb at Amazon.
  • Best 360 Degree: SkyGenius 25W LED Corn Light Bulb at Amazon.
  • Best Smart Bulb: TP-Link Smart LED Bulb w/Wi-Fi at Amazon.
  • Best Bug Repelling: TCP LED Yellow Bug Light at Amazon.

Aisam Paredero

Explainer

Do you need a special light bulb for outside?

Standard incandescent bulbs and flood lights can be used outside as long as they are not exposed to rain or other elements. Otherwise, you need to check your bulb's packaging for an outdoor rating.

Larion Lindoso

Explainer

What is a good wattage for outdoor lights?

60-75 watts total of incandescent light per fixture or 20 watts of CFL (compact fluorescent) is ideal for most decorative exterior wall fixtures and post lanterns. Many of our fixtures are rated for more than 60W. The electrical rating is the maximum safe wattage allowed, not the wattage that is the most appropriate.

Rosalie Hermet

Pundit

Are LED bulbs good for outdoor use?

Outdoor light bulbs are much more resilient than bulbs used indoors. LED Lights: Light Emitting Diode or LED bulbs may be used indoors or outside. Compact Fluorescent light bulbs: Some CFLs may be used outdoors, but you should be sure to check the maximum temperature the bulb can withstand.

Ageda Gilo

Pundit

Can I replace a 60 watt bulb with a 100 watt LED?

If your socket says not to exceed 60-Watts, it is referring the dangers of high heat output associated with incandescent bulbs. However, LED's do not emit dangerous levels of heat. Thus, if your fixture says “not to exceed 60-Watts” but you want to use a 100-Watt equivalent LED bulb, this would be safe to do so.

Aridany Oruña

Pundit

What does red porch light mean?

Means they have a red lamp inserted in their porch light fixture. Red light allows vision without destroying your night vision.

Claude Verkamp

Pundit

What does a green porch light mean?

What does a green light on someone's porch mean? A green porch light is a symbol of appreciation and support for veterans. Green Light a Vet is a campaign sponsored by Walmart and other military support organizations to raise awareness for veterans, service members and their families.

Iasone Winkelsdorf

Pundit

What does a yellow porch light mean?

If there is, the code is not well known, which means that most people using them are just liking that color. Yellow lights are used to avoid attracting insects. Historically in a very few places, a red porch light indicated a brothel.

Judita Ghica

Teacher

Should you keep your porch light on at night?

Research shows that leaving your lights on at night might not be effective at deterring crime if there is no one around to see it. And if the burglars do break in with the porch lights on, there is no way to stop it or catch the thieves, if there is no witness around, whether neighbors, pedestrians or police.

Rosemary Int'Zandt

Teacher

Should you leave porch light on overnight?

For example, outdoor lights should go on at night and turn off in the day, while lights indoors should go on and off in different rooms as if there is someone moving around, she says. If someone is away on vacation, these timers play an even more important role.

Argelio Friedenheim

Teacher

Should I leave my back porch light on?

Motion Sensor Lights Provide More Security
Security experts agree that always leaving the porch light on at night, or just leaving it on when you leave, will alert criminals that you are gone. Leaving a light burning all night long wastes energy.

Amaury Mcgowan

Teacher

How much does it cost to leave porch light on?

It costs us about 10 cents per Kw depending on the time of day and the plan you are on (night-time is much lower on some plans). Assuming 10 cents, it costs us about $4.38 per month for the added security of leaving the lights on ALL of the time, not a bad investment in personal security.

Junaid Arntzen

Reviewer

Why should you not use a red light at night?

Short answer is because human eyes don't respond well to the color red, so it's a very poor color choice for illumination purposes. Longer answer is the whole idea of having lights at night is to be able to see things at night. Human eyes are more sensitive to green and yellow, less sensitive to blue and red.

Maryjo Aluminios

Reviewer

How do you light the front of a house?

Illuminating the Front of the Home
They should be mounted about 18 inches to 24 inches from the face of the house. The cone of light will widen the further up the wall it travels. They should be mounted on either sides of windows or doors so that the light does not glare into the windows.

Daisy Zitserman

Reviewer

How many lumens is considered bright?

Lumens measure how much light you are getting from a bulb. The more lumens, the brighter your light will be. When you're looking for new lightbulbs, you'll find that a typical 60W bulb gives off 800 lumens. A 75W bulb gives you 1100 lumens.

Emilie Heilingbrunner

Reviewer

How bright is 400 lumens?

Lumens and Useful Lumens
Old Watts Approx Lumens
50 W 330 - 400 spotlight 350-450 Useful Lumens (spotlight)
60 W 800 - 850 lamp
75W 1000-1100 lamp
100W 1500-1600 lamp

Marino XXIX

Supporter

How bright is 1800 lumens?

For instance: 40 Watt incandescent lamp produces only 380-460 lumens and uses 40 Watts of energy per hour. 100 Watt incandescent lamp produces 1700 – 1800 lumens and uses 100 Watts of energy per hour. Direct sunlight is around 100k lumens and uses no amount of energy per hour.