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Reliable Security Lighting Installation in Buffalo and Erie County
over 16,826 reviews
SERVING LOCAL HOMES SINCE 1921
At Reimer, we install exterior security lighting for homeowners across Buffalo and Erie County and provide the electrical work behind cameras, doorbells and smart security devices, with licensed electricians working in Rochester, Hamburg, Cheektowaga, Albany, Syracuse and communities throughout Upstate New York.
Good exterior security lighting is not about brightness. It is about removing the dark spots someone would actually use, while still letting you see your own back steps. Most homes get this backwards, with one glaring floodlight aimed outward that ruins your night vision, throws deeper shadows beside the bright patch, and irritates the neighbours, who on a Buffalo lot are not far away.
Here is what you get when you call us about exterior lighting:
- Fixtures aimed and sited for real visibility rather than glare.
- Wet location rated equipment with GFCI protection throughout.
- Upfront pricing approved before we start.
- A 100% satisfaction guarantee on every installation.
Where Should Security Lighting Be Installed?
Start with the approaches rather than the walls. The positions that earn their keep are:
- Entry doors, particularly side and rear doors not visible from the street
- Driveways and the path from where you park to the door, which is the benefit you use every day in winter
- Detached garages and the dark ground between the house and the garage
- Basement access doors and ground floor windows screened by planting
- Walkways and steps, where the security value and the trip hazard value point the same direction
Aimed fixtures throwing light down onto those approaches beat one bright floodlight every time, and they use a fraction of the energy doing it.
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Maintenance Plans
Since 1921, our team of Western NY’s top notch service specialists have been serving the area and caring for thousands of customers. At Reimer, we do everything in our power to ensure that your home comfort system works efficiently and effectively every time you turn it on.
- Multi-Point System Inspection
- Calibrate System for Efficiency
- Ensure Proper Airflow
- Maintain System Warranties
- Reduces Unexpected Breakdowns
- Evaluate Filtration & Indoor Air Quality
- Routine Maintenance Leads to Reduced Utility Bills and Extends the Life of your System(s)
What Security Lighting Does for Your Home
Security lighting works on two fronts at once, and both matter more here than people expect.
The deterrent side is straightforward. Most opportunist activity depends on not being seen, so a property where every approach is lit and a floodlight comes on when someone crosses the driveway is a far less appealing target than the house next door with a dark side gate. Lighting also makes your cameras worth having, since a camera pointed at an unlit yard records very little of use.
The everyday safety side is what homeowners actually notice. Between November and March you are walking from the car to the door in the dark most evenings, often over ice. Lit steps, a lit path and a lit driveway prevent falls, and they make it possible to see what you are stepping onto before you put your weight on it. Most of our customers ask for security lighting and end up valuing the winter footing as much as the security.
Choosing the Right Security Lighting Controls
How your lights switch on decides how well they do both jobs.
Motion activated fixtures give the strongest deterrent effect and the lowest running cost, because they only fire when something moves. The trade-off here is winter, since falling snow, blowing leaves and a sensor aimed at a road will trigger it all night. Sensitivity, range and aim are what prevent that, and we set them on site rather than leaving them where they came out of the box.
Dusk to dawn fixtures run on a photocell, giving continuous light with no triggering to go wrong. They suit the paths and steps you use every evening. Many of the best installations combine the two: steady low level light on the approaches, motion activated floodlighting on the darker corners. Smart controls add scheduling, remote switching and integration with cameras, which is worth specifying when you want the lighting and the security devices working together rather than independently.
Security Lighting Built to Survive a Erie County Winter
Lighting only protects you if it is still working in February, and that comes down to how it was specified and where it was put.
Fixtures and boxes need to be rated for wet locations, exterior receptacles need GFCI protection and in-use covers that keep water out while a plug is in them, and every penetration needs sealing correctly, because freeze and thaw finds any joint that was not. LEDs handle the cold well, which is a real advantage over older lamp technology in an unheated location.
Placement does the rest. A photocell buried under drift reads darkness and leaves the lights burning all day. A fixture or sensor mounted where the roof sheds snow and ice will not last the winter no matter how well it was wired. We site them for the snow you actually get, so the lighting is still doing its job on the night you need it.
Types of Security Lighting We Install in Buffalo and Erie County
Different parts of a property need different fixtures, and the wrong type in the wrong place either wastes energy or creates glare that makes a yard harder to see into rather than easier.
Motion activated floodlights. A wide beam fixture, usually mounted high on a wall or under a soffit, that switches on when its sensor detects movement across the area it covers. These are the workhorse of residential security lighting: strong deterrent effect, low running cost because they only fire when triggered, and immediate visibility of anyone approaching. Best over driveways, side yards and the ground between a house and a detached garage.
Dusk to dawn fixtures. Controlled by a photocell that reads ambient light, these switch on at nightfall and off at first light with no user input. Because they run continuously they suit the places you want lit every evening rather than only when something moves: front entrances, walkways and the path from where you park to the door. Lower output than a floodlight, intended for steady visibility rather than a burst of brightness.
Entry door lighting. Fixtures beside or above a door, sized for the doorway rather than the yard. Their job is to let you see who is at the door before you open it, and they matter most on side and rear doors that are not visible from the street.
Post and driveway lighting. Fixtures mounted on a post at the head of a driveway, along a path or at a property entrance. They light the route rather than a single point, which stops the approach to the house being the only unlit stretch. These typically need a new circuit and, depending on the run, trenching from the house.
Camera supporting lighting. Fixtures positioned specifically to give a camera something to record. A camera pointed at an unlit driveway captures very little of use, and infrared night vision has a shorter effective range than most homeowners assume. Where you already have cameras, we site the lighting to cover their field of view rather than in isolation.
Whichever types suit your property, everything we install outside is wet location rated with GFCI protection and in-use covers where receptacles are involved, and we set the aim and sensor sensitivity on site so the lighting works in the conditions it will actually face. If you are also looking at landscape, path or step lighting, that sits with our wider lighting installation work and we can quote both together.
Choose The Best Security Lighting Installers Across Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse and Albany
We install security lighting throughout Buffalo, Cheektowaga, Hamburg, West Seneca, Orchard Park, Tonawanda, Grand Island, Williamsville and Niagara Falls. Our electricians also cover Rochester, the Finger Lakes, Syracuse, Albany and the Capital Region.
Exterior work in this climate has a short installation season and a long test season, which is why the equipment specification and the siting matter more than the fixture you picked out. Our electricians install through it every year and know which positions survive a winter here.
We have branches in Cheektowaga, Hamburg, Rochester, Clifton Park and Brewerton, so the electrician who quotes your job works out of a location near you. Our call centre is available 24/7.
Why Homeowners Trust Reimer for Security Lighting
We have been wiring homes across this region since 1921, and Buffalo News readers voted us Best of 716 for electrical in 2025. More than 13,764 Google reviews back the work, and on exterior projects what people notice is that it still works after the first hard winter.
Every electrician who comes to your door is licensed and background checked, and you approve the price before we start. We check transformer and circuit capacity before devices go up rather than after they start dropping out, and every installation is backed by our 100% satisfaction guarantee.
Schedule a Security Lighting Installation with Reimer Today
If there is a corner of your property you avoid walking past at night, or a video doorbell that keeps dropping out, both are usually fixable in a single visit.
Call Reimer at (716) 272-2371 to schedule your security lighting estimate in Buffalo, Erie County or anywhere across our Upstate New York service area, or book online and we will confirm your arrival window.
Over
100YEARS OF
EXPERIENCE
Electrical Services in Buffalo, New York.
For decades, local homeowners have trusted the team at Reimer Home Services with all their home service needs. We’re your HVAC company in Buffalo. We’re your plumbers here in Western New York. Above all else, we’re here for you and your home.rnrnYou can count on our team to be there when you need us. In fact, we’re available Day or Night. Your home’s problems can’t wait, and neither should you. Call us and let us know how our plumbers and techs can help.
We’re your local home services team…
Frequently Asked Questions About Security Lighting
Can you install motion activated outdoor lights?
Yes, including the fixtures, sensors, wiring and controls. Aim and sensitivity are set on site, which is what stops falling snow and passing traffic triggering them all winter.
Can the lights come on automatically at night?
Yes, with a dusk to dawn photocell, a timer or a smart control. Many properties are best served by a combination of continuous low level light and motion activated floodlighting.
Why does my video doorbell keep dropping out?
Frequently the transformer rather than the device. Older chime transformers were never sized for a video doorbell, and the symptom looks like a network fault instead of an electrical one.
Do outdoor lights need special fixtures?
Yes. Wet location rated fixtures and boxes, GFCI protection on exterior receptacles and in-use covers. Indoor rated equipment fitted outside fails quickly here.
Will security lighting increase my electricity bill much?
Not meaningfully with LED fixtures, and motion activated lights use less again because they only run when triggered. The bigger variable is how many hours your dusk to dawn fixtures are on through the winter.
Can you add lighting to a detached garage or the end of a driveway?
Yes, though it usually means running a new circuit and, in some cases, trenching. We assess the route and quote the full scope rather than the fixture alone.
Factory Authorized Trane System Dealer
Reimer is proud to be a Factory Authorized Trane System Dealer and offer a 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. We are so confident that you will be comfortable – not only with your Trane System heating and cooling products but with us as a Factory Authorized Trane System Dealer – that we back it up with a 100% satisfaction guarantee. This guarantee applies If, you are dissatisfied with your Trane System equipment within one year, for any reason.
