I have basic given up with sensors, I sent my wife to pick up outside lights, she returned with 4, one with integral LED panel shining down, this is the best light and cost £4, two cheap plastic which needed bulbs at £2 each, and a lamp on a pole £24 non had daylight or PIR's.
So I used Smart Bulbs with dusk and dawn features, and two smart sockets.
You can get smart PIR's to control bulbs, switches, and relays, but the aim is to light the way for visitors and ones self, but allow any unwelcome intruders to trip over the rubbish in the garden, no way do I want to help them.
I have ended up with a collection of lights, adaptors, switches and relays from different manufactures and ideal would have been all from one. I still have one or two lights with PIR's around the house there are eight lamps, latter lamps have made some no longer required, two back of house are not really powerful enough to light the rear of house parking area, steps both sides of the house have some dark spots, lights down front drive to main door are now good, lucky google home brings them most together, so hey google turn on outside lights turns on 6 of the 8. Dusk and Dawn commands on the light switch means they are not powered in the day
so with a 12 watt bulb the power used is low, there is at the moment still a PIR on that lamp, but cats, squirrels, and foxes can set them off, not had badgers as yet, also using my ham handy. But the main problem is turning off the lights, when you have hands full with shopping being plunged into darkness is not fun.
Last house outside lights not really required, just looked good, these were PIR controlled, main thing was a small hole 1/16 inch in the bottom to let any water out, near impossible to seal, and LED's don't produce enough heat to dry them out, so a small hole in bottom so water can get out again and lights work for years.
In the main it is luck, had two lamps fitted at same time, one failed in 6 months, other still going some 5 years latter. Some PIR's have up to three controls for time delay, light levels and movement detection levels, others need insulation tape on the sensor to adjust. For £6.20 you can get a lamp with PIR from likes of
screwfix, and if you have a junction box near easy enough to change, but you can also pay well over £100, OK the 200 watt 22,200 lumen one in
screwfix needs planning permission, and not really a lamp for a house, on
screwfix range cheapest coach lamp with PIR is £25, and has time and sensitivity adjustments, but as to water getting into PIR not a clue. With my PIR lamp it only gets wet with driving rain and it the main stays dry, how same lamp would work in the open is any ones guess.
