Thank you Somerset County Council 👍

[Stu]

Having moved to our new house back in August, I’ve been enjoying the darker skies in the garden, and the generally well shielded lights in the town. We have a rugby pitch not far away to the South, and even when the floodlights are on, they are well directed downwards so observing is still very possible when they are on. They are turned off promptly once training finishes so that helps too.

My one issue was a streetlight which stands opposite our garages, and shines  over these into the back garden. So, I sent what I hoped was a pleasant email to the council asking if it was possible for it to be shielded. I was very surprised to get a quick reply saying that it would be done within two weeks!

The weird thing is that I was expecting some form of physical shield at the end of the light fitting, blocking the light completely. I didn’t notice anything at all happening, apart from briefly seeing a van parked by the lamppost but I assumed they still needed to come back and complete the work.

I’ve not been out much in the last couple of weeks, but for the last few nights I’ve noticed it is definitely darker in the garden with much less glare, although I can still see the light. I contacted the council today to confirm and again got a rapid reply saying the work had been done, and that a grid shield had been fitted close to the LED matrix. It’s impossible to see from the ground, but certainly seems effective.

Before and after shots attached. Might seem subtle, but if you look closer you can see the exposure was clearly shorter in the first one due to the brighter light, as the wall of the garages is dark, whereas the wall is brighter in the second shot due the the longer exposure. You can also see the light being directed downwards more I think.

So, in my case at least, the council were very responsive and I have a darker garden as a result 👍👍 Thanks chaps!

[RobertI]

That looks a lot improved Stu, good result. Perhaps the Manager of Street Lighting is an astronomer. 

[ScouseSpaceCadet]

Good result. 👍

[Xgaze]

Well done Stu!

Been meaning to contact them about the one outside ours. It's horrendously bright!

Not just ruining star gazing but at night the front bedroom is like it's in daylight!

Sending an email now!

Cheers,

T

[Stu]

Thanks all, yes I’m very pleased about it.

A polite and appreciative approach seems to work! Most impressed by how quickly it was done.

I went to check it again this evening and it is a lot better. Now I need to work on people turning lights off in my own house!!! 🤪

[Carbon Brush]

That is a HUGE improvement.

For anyone who gets fobbed off by the 'can't be done' department, the before & after photos dropped on a desk speak a thousand words.

 

[Pixies]

Had a good result here too, recently.

The old sodium lights in the back lane that overlook the gardens of the terrace were a pain. One shone in the garden, but they all lit up the rear elevations of the houses in the terrace.

However, 2 weeks ago, they were replaced with LED downlighters. The effect is enormous  - not only direct light, but the reflected light off the houses has dropped significantly. The garden is noticeably darker. So much so, that I need a torch to navigate around if I haven't become dark adapted.

The one problem is that the nearest lamp still shines into the garden. Not at full illumination, but enough to be really distracting. The white (moonlight) colour actually seems to be more intrusive in my peripheral vision.  So I'm going to have to contact the council and see if they will put up a shade. However, I can't see how they can do that and not affect next-door's garden too, plunging it into darkness. They are an old couple, so I'd better make sure that won't be too drastic for them. Hopefully they'll be OK about it - we are on VERY good terms. Otherwise, I'm going to have to think about some kind of high-level planting to block the light.

[Stu]

9 hours ago, Pixies said:

Had a good result here too, recently.

The old sodium lights in the back lane that overlook the gardens of the terrace were a pain. One shone in the garden, but they all lit up the rear elevations of the houses in the terrace.

However, 2 weeks ago, they were replaced with LED downlighters. The effect is enormous  - not only direct light, but the reflected light off the houses has dropped significantly. The garden is noticeably darker. So much so, that I need a torch to navigate around if I haven't become dark adapted.

The one problem is that the nearest lamp still shines into the garden. Not at full illumination, but enough to be really distracting. The white (moonlight) colour actually seems to be more intrusive in my peripheral vision.  So I'm going to have to contact the council and see if they will put up a shade. However, I can't see how they can do that and not affect next-door's garden too, plunging it into darkness. They are an old couple, so I'd better make sure that won't be too drastic for them. Hopefully they'll be OK about it - we are on VERY good terms. Otherwise, I'm going to have to think about some kind of high-level planting to block the light.

Hopefully with the correct approach to the council you will get a good result. They are only interested in illuminating the public highways and pavements so it shouldn’t be an issue if the neighbours garden is a bit darker. If they use a similar method to the grid applied to ‘my’ lamppost it will be a noticeable reduction in glare and light into your garden but not complete darkness so should be fine for the neighbours.

[ScouseSpaceCadet]

9 hours ago, Pixies said:

Had a good result here too, recently.

The old sodium lights in the back lane that overlook the gardens of the terrace were a pain. One shone in the garden, but they all lit up the rear elevations of the houses in the terrace.

However, 2 weeks ago, they were replaced with LED downlighters. The effect is enormous  - not only direct light, but the reflected light off the houses has dropped significantly. The garden is noticeably darker. So much so, that I need a torch to navigate around if I haven't become dark adapted.

The one problem is that the nearest lamp still shines into the garden. Not at full illumination, but enough to be really distracting. The white (moonlight) colour actually seems to be more intrusive in my peripheral vision.  So I'm going to have to contact the council and see if they will put up a shade. However, I can't see how they can do that and not affect next-door's garden too, plunging it into darkness. They are an old couple, so I'd better make sure that won't be too drastic for them. Hopefully they'll be OK about it - we are on VERY good terms. Otherwise, I'm going to have to think about some kind of high-level planting to block the light.

The shades work well to reduce glare in your direction, but the street is still lit, so go for it. Having the nasty LED lamp behind my garden shaded made a huge difference.