What’s included
- Motion-sensor floodlights over garages and driveways
- Dusk-to-dawn lanterns with a built-in photocell
- Patio, side-gate and back-door fixtures swapped on existing boxes
- Camera floodlights on an existing wired exterior box
- Sensor angle, range and timer set to ignore the street
- Fixture canopies sealed to stucco or siding
What we don’t do
- Adding circuits, upgrading the panel or swapping breakers; those are outside our scope.
- Running wire to a new location in a wall or ceiling.
- Mounting anything heavier than its box is rated to carry.
In Alhambra homes
About 77 percent of Alhambra homes were built before 1980, according to a city housing report, and their exterior lighting is often a lone porch light and a bulb over the garage. The U.S. Department of Energy’s guide to efficient lighting strategies says two controls are especially useful outdoors: photosensors, which keep lights off in daylight, and motion sensors, which turn lights on when someone is there and off a short while later.
Get a quote in one text
Send photos of each outdoor light, a wider shot of the area it should cover, and any fixtures you have picked. Our number for photos is (310) 628-9399, and the price comes back before any work is booked.
Combining controls
For security and utility lights, the same DOE guide says the best controller may pair a motion sensor with a photosensor. For decorative lights, it suggests a photosensor to turn them on at dusk and a timer to turn them off later.
Driveways and side gates
Many Alhambra lots run a driveway along one side to a garage in back. A sensor flood at the garage and a lantern at the side gate cover that walk.
Aiming
We point sensors at the path and down, away from the sidewalk and street, so passing cars and pedestrians don’t keep tripping the light.
Neighbors
Shielded fixtures and heads aimed downward keep light on your property and out of a neighbor’s window.
Stucco mounting
We fasten to the existing box and seal the canopy to the stucco, leaving a drain gap at the bottom where the maker calls for one.
Camera lights
A floodlight camera needs a wired box and Wi-Fi at that spot. Check your phone’s signal there before the visit.
Photocell placement
A photocell needs open sky and should not see another light, or it may switch off at night.
Solar options
Where there is no box, solar lights need no wiring. They need direct sun on the panel, so shady spots under trees work poorly.
Condos and townhomes
In condos we replace fixtures on your own unit’s patio or entry, where the association allows. Common-area lighting stays with the HOA.
Wall switches
Leave the switch on so the sensor controls the light. Some models use a quick off-on flick to override; we show you how yours works.
Color of light
Warm white suits entries and patios; a brighter, cooler light works by the garage where you load the car or work at night.
Long driveways
If the garage sits far back, a second sensor fixture at the garage end lights the turn-in and the walk to the back door.
Where our part ends
New exterior boxes, wire run underground to a garage or yard, and new circuits are outside our scope.
In older Alhambra houses this job often turns up next to holiday light hanging, mailbox installation, light fixture replacement, doorbell and video doorbell installation, fence and gate repair and outlet, switch and GFCI replacement, so mention those when you text and we can price them together.
Sources: City of Alhambra, housing needs report (age of housing stock); U.S. Department of Energy, Efficient Lighting Strategies.
Outdoor and motion lighting questions from Alhambra homeowners
Why does my motion light keep going on and off?
Branches moving in the wind, passing cars or a faulty sensor. Narrowing the aim and sensitivity usually fixes it.
Can a handyman install motion sensor lights?
Yes, on existing exterior boxes and wiring.
Why does my motion light not work at all?
A burnt bulb, a wall switch left off or a failed sensor. We test each in turn.
Repair guides for this job
- Living with two-prong outlets in an older homeWhy many older Alhambra homes still have two-prong outlets, what an ungrounded outlet means for you, and how a GFCI replacement can add protection.
- Replacing ceiling and wall fixtures in a 1920s houseReplacing a light fixture in an older Alhambra home: shallow or missing boxes, plaster ceilings, heavy lanterns, and checking the old wiring first.
- Putting a ceiling fan where an old light used to hangHow we install ceiling fans in 1920s and 1930s Alhambra rooms where the ceiling box was built for a light, plus wall switch options and balance tips.
- Bathroom fans for bathrooms that only had a windowMany 1920s and 1930s Alhambra bathrooms were built with only a window for ventilation. Here is how a quiet exhaust fan helps, and how we replace noisy ones.
Looking for a handyman in Alhambra for more than one job? Send the whole list and we’ll price it together.
We serve Alhambra first, plus Monterey Park, San Gabriel and other nearby cities. Have a question? See the handyman FAQ.
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