3 Reasons To Use Smart Outdoor Lighting For Your Yard
Living in the city has many perks. Toronto is beautiful, clean, safe and vibrant. But there's one thing we also have: a large and brazen population of racoons, squirrels, and skunks! It's a common problem in urban areas where wildlife become accustomed to living amongst people.
Now that summer is almost here, I'm craving more time outdoors which means finding a way to keep those unwanted animals out of the yard. I'm not too bothered by the racoons or squirrels, but for the last two years, we've had a skunk problem. I've heard the skunks lurking around in the yard at night and twice they've sprayed something outside and our entire house ends up smelling of skunk odour!
This year, thanks to Philips Hue, I've got a new tool in my arsenal to keep critters away and my yard safe and I'm excited to tell you about it. Here's 3 reasons you should consider smart outdoor lighting for your yard.
1. Keeping Unwanted Critters Out With Light
I'm a fan of Philips Hue lights and have used them inside our home so when they reached out to let me know about their new Philips Hue products for the outdoors, I was intrigued. Philips Hue is the smart wireless lighting system that lets you easily control your light and create the right setting for any moment in and outside.
Our backyard is a fair size with a lawn area, a stone patio, and an ample deck. All that space though means lots of nooks and crannies for critters to settle in and make themselves at home.
Bringing light in the yard helps deter skunks from nesting. As they're nocturnal animals, skunks especially are not fond of light. In the past, I've turned on our backyard lights to scare animals away, but ideally, lights would be more effective if they were controlled automatically.
Philips Hue outdoor lights do this and so much more. For my backyard setup, I combined:
Whether its indoors or outdoors, I like the products I use to be both functional and beautiful. I appreciate that the Philips Hue lights feature both smart technology and attractive designs.
Outdoor Sensor and Smart Lights
The Lily outdoor spotlights are ideal for up lighting the trees around the backyard and adding light to the dark back corner. We put the Econic light beside our back door where it can provide ample light for the deck which runs the length of the back of the house.
Let's talk about the Philips Hue Outdoor Sensor. I think it's an ingenious product that really optimizes your smart outdoor lighting. The Philips Hue sensor detects motion and automatically turns on your Philips Hue lights, inside or outside. My thought was to use the motion sensor to trigger the outdoor lights and create an effective system to scare away skunks!
The sensor is battery operated and is completely wireless. It can be mounted on an outside corner or inside corner easily. We've attached it to this outside corner of our house, which will allow it to detect motion on the deck, at our back door, or in the shady part of the yard.
2. Enhanced Safety
I've configured the Philips Hue sensor to trigger both the Econic outdoor wall light and the Lily outdoor spotlights. This is easily done via the Philips Hue app. Before you can set your lighting sequences, you'll need a Philips Hue Bridge to add your Hue devices to your network.
The motion sensor combined with the smart outdoor lights can also deter intruders in our backyard. We haven't had any, but we do have a back gate at one end of the deck that is accessible from the sidewalk. The gate isn't well lit and its at the back of our house, so it's great to have this added safety feature.
The sensor has an impressive 160-degree field of view and detection range of 32 feet, providing ample response time before any intruder has reached your door. I've set the sensor to work only at night time and trigger the lights to shine bright white and stay on for 10 minutes.
3. Lighting For Any Occasion
Bright white isn't your only choice. Like other Philips Hue products, the Lily lights can display 16 million different colours. This versatility makes Philips Hue lighting ideal for a multi-functional outdoor space. Whether you want to have your lights dimmed and set on a timer to add a soothing ambience at night, change the colour scheme and bring flair to your decor when you're entertaining outdoors, or have your Philips Hue lights cast a warm glow to welcome you home, Philips Hue lights can create any look you want and can be controlled by app, timer, sensor, or integrated with voice-controlled smart home assistants such as Google Assistant and Alexa.
Here are the lights in the Tropical Twilight setting. The Hue app has pre-set colour combinations which make setting the mood quick and easy.
The lights have added much needed visibility to this back corner. With the lights in place, I'm looking forward to getting the rest of the patio furniture set up and ready for summertime entertaining.
Disclosure: This conversation has been sponsored by Philips Hue. Words and opinions are my own. Thanks for supporting the brands who make this blog possible and whose quality products I bring into my own home.
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