Houses with NO lights on in winter

[BruceAndNosh]

I guess it's more noticeable now the clocks have changed, but both our neighbours' houses are in total darkness at 7pm. It's obvious that no one is at home, the house is empty.
Is this not a security risk?
I think they both have burglar alarms but don't think either of them ever use it.

Yes, I know thousands of people can't afford to leave random lights on, but this isn't the case here.

I hate a dark house and have a couple of lights set to come on automatically at dusk.

What do you do?

Do those who leave lights on when they’re out also leave lights on when they’re in bed?

@GoGadgetGo

I sit in the dark and watch tv, Hate wasting electricity.

We normally sit in the dark when watching tv but then the flickering can be seen from the tv.

@ThePoisonousMushroom

Do those who leave lights on when they’re out also leave lights on when they’re in bed?

Yes we leave a lamp on upstairs on the landing in case either of use have to get up.

Lots of my neighbours leave lights on all night, mainly the bathroom and/or landing

@ThePoisonousMushroom

Do those who leave lights on when they’re out also leave lights on when they’re in bed?

No, we turn all the lights off when we are in bed as the house isn't empty then.

No, we turn all the lights off when we are in bed as the house isn't empty then

But I thought the point was whether burglars perceive a house to be empty? So if it’s all in darkness, they’ll think it’s empty and therefore it’s a target for people breaking in? If you want to avoid them breaking in at all, why not have lights on all the time?

@ThePoisonousMushroom

No, we turn all the lights off when we are in bed as the house isn't empty then

But I thought the point was whether burglars perceive a house to be empty? So if it’s all in darkness, they’ll think it’s empty and therefore it’s a target for people breaking in? If you want to avoid them breaking in at all, why not have lights on all the time?

When the house is empty if I am going out after dark I'll set the lights to come on. Or if we are going on holiday. At night everyone's house is in darkness because people are in bed and I assume the burglars will know that's the case. You wouldn't expect people to have their lights on all night, that would be a bit strange.

Yes I always leave a light on somewhere if I know it will be dark before I get back. It's less of an issue now I wfh.

I also have a little light that looks from outside like the flickering lights of a TV being on. It comes on at dusk and seems more of a realistic deterrent than the hallway light being on. Most burglars are opportunistic and unless you live somewhere specifically wealthy looking that's worth targeting, I doubt burglars will be watching your house for weeks to learn the patterns of your coming and goings.

Just seems bizarre. If you’re out you leave the lights on to deter burglars. If you’re in, you have them off… because you’re happy to fight off the burglars? I dunno. Just a bit weird.

@ThePoisonousMushroom

Just seems bizarre. If you’re out you leave the lights on to deter burglars. If you’re in, you have them off… because you’re happy to fight off the burglars? I dunno. Just a bit weird.

It's not bizarre/weird. If we're out there's no cars on the drive, if we're in there is. That's a bit of a clue that there will be people at home even if the lights are out because we're sleeping. If they're watching the place they will see us all return from work at different points and not everyone will go back out.

That said, if we did have a break in the burglar alarm would do it's stuff.

We use Alexa to control ours, we use smart bulbs that have an "away from home" setting, it turns lights on and off at random intervals, so the kitchen light might come on for 5 minutes before going off, then the living room or bedroom lamp comes on. We can also program the TVs to come on or music/home sounds to play if we feel like it. I also use LED candles on windowsills and which give an impression that someone is home, you can't tell it's fake from behind the voile.

Can never sleep after reading these threads! We have three motion sensor outside lights and a shit ton of gravel that hopefully puts them off at night time.

It’s actually more during the day I worry about though. More the thought of finding someone in the house than them actually taking anything.

We have night lights plugged in at various points around the house. Mostly because I have a toddler who gets up most nights around 1am but I also have one in the living room. They have a sensor that turns them on when it's dark and off when it's lights again and they use next to no power

We sit at the back of the house so unless we’re eating in the dining room which is at the front, our house might look pretty dark from the street.

Heard of eco friendly LED lights? You should get some, it’s what sensible folk do.

Tens of millions of little LED lights are not eco friendly. First step is reduce. There's no need to have lights on if you're not in the room.

If you are not at home you should turn the lights off, why would you leave them on wasting energy?

@starlight13

If you are not at home you should turn the lights off, why would you leave them on wasting energy?

To stop the house from getting burgled ?

We only use lights in rooms we are using and spend most of our time at the back of our house. Even if we are in the front room the curtains are thick and it’s painted so dark you can’t see the light from outside. If we are not in then our house would be in complete darkness but that has never worried me. If we are going away we do leave a few on.

One LED lamp left on isn't going to break the ban and I do put a lamp on a timer when we are away, but just leave the outside light on if we are out in the evening.
There are two garages below our flat and I don't think it would be obvious to a burglar which is ours.
However I do think that locked double glazed windows and two security locks on our door are a pretty good deterrent anyway.

Has nobody watched Home Alone?!

The burglars knew what time the lights came on...

@Rainbowsew

Has nobody watched Home Alone?!

The burglars knew what time the lights came on...

Yes , thirty odd years ago but things have moved on, timers are more sophisticated and you can turn lamps on with your phone.