
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, March 20, 1994                   TAG: 9404140156
SECTION: TODAY'S HOME                    PAGE: 13   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

MOTION DETECTOR LIGHTING TURN LIGHTS OFF ON INTRUDERS

Vandalism and home break-ins are occurring at record rates. While police departments across the United States toil to reduce the incidence of home burglary, the National Criminal Justice Reference Service estimates that 72 percent of all households have a lifetime likelihood of being burglarized.

How, then, can consumers help protect themselves and their property? According to crime prevention experts, bright lighting is one of the biggest deterrents to prowlers, and many recommend use of motion detection lights to "catch" an intruder before he enters your home. A motion detector security light will automatically turn itself on when motion is sensed in the protected area, alerting a would-be prowler that he's been spotted.

According to Intelectron, a marketer of motion detection products for consumer use, today's units utilize a high-tech passive infrared system to concentrate on a selected area. The motion detector studies the darkened area and responds only when a heat source, such as a person or automobile, moves in to the protected zone. When the motion detector senses movement, it instantly turns the outdoor lights on.

Systems are available from Intelectron that will also activate indoor lights or alarms, alerting homeowners of zone violation and prompting intruders to flee. After motion stops, lights will stay on for a predetermined time, then shut off automatically.

Motion detector lights are easy to install and simple to operate. Most come pre-wired and fully assembled, with easy-to-follow instruction manuals. Several Intelectron products utilize a unique three-step crossbar installation technique, which eliminates the headaches of trying to match fixture mounting holes to a given junction box.

Intelectron furnished consumers with a toll-free "Customer Help Line," which enables users to speak directly with engineering personnel for technical advice or installation assistance.

From dusk to dawn, automatic lighting instantly comes on to welcome you home, greet visitors and conveniently light a path to you door. Lights stay on as long as motion is detected, but shut themselves off when they are no longer needed, providing valuable energy savings.

As more consumers have opted to remodel rather than move, there's been an explosive demand for decorative outdoor lights with built-in motion detectors.

According to Intelectron spokesperson Verlinda Heffel, today's fashion-minded consumers want to dress up their homes with stylish, high-end fixtures, but they also want the protective benefits of motion detection. "Intelectron is meeting this demand by offering consumers the widest array of lighting styles, colors and features available in motion detection," says Heffel.

by CNB