Here’s Why Your Neighborhood’s Outdoor Lighting Is So Bright

It’s a myth many of us know all too well: You lie in bed after a long day, but instead of drifting off into darkness, your room is illuminated by your neighbor’s bright outdoor lights streaming through your windows.

Outdoor lighting is important. It improves the safety, beauty and functionality of our buildings and public spaces.

But why is too much bright outdoor light more of a problem than before? We can thank technological advances, the use of electric lights, low costs and bad design.

New outdoor lighting technology

The widespread adoption of energy-saving LED technology over the past two decades has contributed widely to outdoor lighting. But it’s less about the technology itself, and more about how it’s used.

“The important thing to understand is that it’s not the LED’s fault. LED technology is very efficient, and the term we use is efficient, which means it puts out more light per watt, which is what you’re paying the utility company for,” said Michael Deo, president and lead designer at NatureScape Lighting. “So it gives you a lot more lighting value per watt, or per dollar, than an old-school incandescent bulb would.”

As a result, people tend to use these lights more because they are more expensive. Similarly, low-cost lighting suppliers — such as retailers such as Amazon, Home Depot or Lowe’s — can offer more impressive LED lighting products at a lower price, he said. But these things don’t have features that would block them from shining into your neighbor’s yard or windows, like a reflective shield to cut off stray light beams.

Deo also said that because many communities contain old homes, we tend to put new technology in old things. These structures may be sitting in the wrong place, and you are putting a brighter light on them than they were originally intended.

High voltage systems

Another culprit is high-voltage light bulbs, especially 120-volt systems designed to plug directly into a home’s mains power supply.

These systems limit the type of light you can use and where you can deal with it, says David Beausoleil, president and founder of CAST Lighting.

“Some of the brightest houses are the ones with 120 volts, where you have very little power and thus you choose lumen lamps. So you are forced to install bright light sources,” he said. “You also can’t move things, since they’re fixed, so you can’t adjust their direction.”

These types of fixtures include things like floodlights, pole lights and patio lights. Beausoleil also said that some post and patio lights were designed at a time when candles were used for lighting, before electricity, so there was nothing built into them to soften the light from high voltage lighting.

“One of the great ideas of design is that you always want to see the effect of light, and never be the source of light,” he said.

Compared to this, low-voltage lighting – which uses a transformer to reduce power, rather than standard household electricity – has much lower lumen levels, which means you can use more lights without your yard being too bright.

Low-voltage systems also offer more flexibility in how to set up lights, he said, giving you the opportunity to organize your things and protect them from disturbing your neighbors.

Bad designs

Although not possible for every homeowner, hiring an outdoor lighting designer is the best way to ensure that your home is properly lit without disturbing those around you.

In general, Deo said homeowners tend to use one or two bright lights because it’s the only outside light they have. But when a professional lighting designer comes in, he said, they add more light sources so that the home is still well-lit without each light source being so bright.

Beausoleil said his process is divided into three parts: laying out the design, installing the lighting system and making the necessary adjustments. He said they are able to ensure that you get the right amount of light around your home without flooding your neighbors.

A professional lighting designer also has access to materials with reflective shields, lenses and other features that the owner’s lighting model may not always have.

“It’s all about designing and integrating the design,” Beausoleil said. “Installation is the easy part. But getting that design right, getting it done and that final adjustment is what makes a good transition a great one.”

Effects of bright lights

Bright lights contribute to light pollution, which comes in four main forms: intrusion, skyglow, glare and clutter.

Transcending light – when artificial light spills beyond the intended limits – and glare, when bright light directly interferes with your vision, are the forms that most affect people when their neighbor has an excessively bright external light.

Steve Mariconda, co-chair of the DarkSky New Jersey Chapter and chair of the Saddle Brook Green Team, said our bodies can’t tell the difference between artificial and natural light. So exposure to bright light at night disrupts our sleep patterns and circadian rhythms. It also has similar effects on animals and plants, he said.

Although it is rare to have statewide laws that specifically address petty crime in residential communities, some municipalities have implemented laws to address it in their own jurisdictions.

“Many homeowners don’t know about these regulations, or simply don’t follow them,” said Deo. “But the problem they have is that most of these city councils that have made these regulations do not have the knowledge to understand what they have accepted. In fact, I had to go to the city hall twice to explain to the planning officer what their lighting law means.”

Mariconda said light pollution affects the night sky in the form of skyglow, where artificial light increases the brightness of the night sky and reduces our ability to see the stars. It causes the night sky to brighten by about 9.6% to 10% per year, according to a study released in 2023.

For meaningful change, Mariconda said it’s all about educating the public. He said people can participate in their local green groups and environmental organizations; attend presentations by local experts; and advocating for less pollution laws in their communities.

“I find that once people see the problem, they are more likely to do something about it,” she said.

Maddie McGay is a real estate reporter for NorthJersey.com and The Record, covering all things to celebrate living in North Jersey. Find her on Instagram @maddiemcgay, on X @maddiemcgayy, and sign up for her North Jersey Living newsletter. Do you have a tip, trend or haunted house she should know about? Email him at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Here’s why your neighbor’s outdoor light is too bright

Reported by Maddie McGay, USA TODAY NETWORK / NorthJersey.com

USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect