How to Install Photocell for Outdoor Light? A Comprehensive Guide

Are you intrigued by the mechanism a photocell follows to intelligently turn the lights on and off with varying sunlight intensity? With this wholesome guide on how to install photocell for outdoor light, you will not only be able to benefit from this energy-conserving mechanism but also understand how it actually works.

Before we dive deep into the installation process, let’s first understand what a photocell is, why it is so efficient and useful, and how it works.

What is a Photocell ？

Photocell, also called photoelectric cell, is an intelligent mechanism using external light as a stimulus; once the light intensity increases, the photocell turns the light off and vice versa without needing any manual intervention.

This means you don’t have to worry about turning the lights off and on as outdoor light increases or decreases. Besides, these photocell units conserve energy by turning off the lights automatically once they sense enough outdoor light. No wonder, their popular name in ‘dawn to dusk’ lights because of the accuracy they demonstrate in sensing the light intensity irrespective of seasonal changes in the daylight period.

How a Photocell Sensor Works?

The entire working mechanism of a photocell sensor is based on a resistor?which is at the core of its working. This resistor in a photocell is attached to the light sensitive plates. When the intensity of the outdoor light falling on the plats increases, the resistor blocks the flow of current, and hence the lights are turned off.

When the intensity of light incident of photo sensitive plates decreases, the resistance also decreases and current is allowed to flow, turning the light on at dusk. This is why photocells are sometimes also called Light Dependent Resistors (LDR).

How To Install photocell for Outdoor Light

Installing a photocell for an outdoor light requires some basic skills and a beginner’s level understanding of electric work. However, even though it is not highly complicated, it does require lots of safety measures to be taken to ensure risk-free process.

If you are not sure enough that you can handle this procedure safely on your own, it is always advisable to seek an expert’s help and hire an electrician for installation.

For those who have some hands-on experience with basic electric work, here is a step-by-step guide to the installation process.

Please find below the demo operation steps for your reference. in fact, Please also refer to the instruction manual for the realistic lamp with photocell installation.

· Start by completely turning off the circuit breaker to the light where the photocell is to be installed. This is to ensure your safety. If you can’t figure out which breaker supplies electric current to the light, turn off all breakers. Now switch on the switch of the external light, if it doesn’t turn on, the power has been safely cut.

· Now it’s time to dismantle the outdoor light bit by bit so you can install a photocell inside. It would be handy if you can keep track of the dismantling process through photographs or videos. This way, it will be easy for you to put everything together once you are done.

· Now you’ll see a black wire supplying power to the light fixture from the main power system of your building. Disconnect this black wire coming to the light fixture.

· Your photocell has two black wires. These wires need to be connected to the now exposed ends of the black wire that was supplying power to your light fixture, and you disconnected it in the previous step.

· Connect the photocell’s one black wire to the black wire that is coming from the building’s main power supply. Twist the copper ends tightly together.

· Now connect the second black wire of your photocell to the black wire on light fixture. Again, be sure you have tightly twisted the exposed copper wires together.

· Use electric caps to cover your wires completely and tightly so that copper wires are completely hidden.

· Now, before you re-assemble the light, you need to check if you’ve done it all right and the photocell is working. To do this, turn on the power supply from the main switch breaker and also turn on the switch dedicated to the outdoor light. ?Now block the sunlight incident on the photocell with your hand or with a piece of cardboard etc. if the light turns on, you’ve done it all right.

· Now re-assemble the light.

Following the above steps, you can easily install a photocell and rid yourself of the hassle to manually turn your lights on and off.

The photocells are even intelligent enough to adjust their functioning according to the changing cycles of dawn and dusk. This is because they use outdoor light as a stimulus no matter how its cycle changes, and are hence unaffected by the day light time saving.

Final Verdict

Photocells are a great means of conserving energy. They make sure that the lights go off immediately after the sunlight shines enough on the photosensitive plates. With world energy consumption expected to soar?significantly in the coming year, such efficient equipment is needed more than ever before. Play your part in conserving energy by buying energy-efficient photocells here.

Besides, these are immensely convenient because you no longer need to worry about manually turning the light on and off at dusk and dawn. Their installation follows a few very simple steps. The main thing is to follow safety protocols. However, for those lacking hands on experience with electric devices, it is always advisable to seek expert’s help to avoid any unpleasant accidents.

References

https://www.techtarget.com/whatis/definition/resistor#:~:text=A%20resistor%20is%20an%20electrical,device%20such%20as%20a%20transistor.

https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/us-power-use-slide-2023-record-high-weaker-economic-activity-2023-01-10/#:~:text=EIA%20projected%20power%20demand%20will,the%20coronavirus%20pandemic%20depressed%20demand.