The Steinel L 400 S is an outdoor wall light with a spherical clear-glass shade with fine air bubbles, on a black arm of UV-resistant plastic. At the bottom of the arm sits a passive infrared motion sensor that switches the light on when someone enters its field.
Dimensions and wall mounting
The light is 33.6 cm high, 21.5 cm wide and projects 25 cm from the wall – a figure to compare with the space next to the door or under the eaves. It weighs 1.15 kg. Screws, 6 mm wall plugs and sensor shrouds are included. The manufacturer intends it for house entrances, facades, terraces and balconies, and for yards and driveways.
The recommended mounting height is about 2 m, at which the sensor reaches its full range; the maximum is 6 m. Keep it at least 50 cm away from any other light, as heat from it can trigger the sensor. An electrician connects it to the 230 V mains; as a class II luminaire it needs no earth conductor. IP44 means protection against splashing water from any direction.
How the motion sensor works
The sensor covers an angle of 240° with a range of up to 12 m – but only for someone walking across its field. A person walking straight towards the light is detected from about 3 m, so the best position is side-on to the path or driveway. The sensor head turns by ±80°, and the shrouds let you mask parts of the field, such as the street, so passing cars do not switch the light on.
Control dials set the light-on time from 5 s to 15 min and the brightness threshold from 2 to 2000 lx, so it can respond only after dusk or in daylight too.
Lamp and night light
The luminaire has an E27 socket and takes a lamp of up to 60 W, which is not included. The night light function keeps a constant glow at 0 to 50% of output between detections and brings the light up to full output when motion is detected; it also switches on softly. According to the table in the manual, both functions work with an incandescent lamp, a halogen lamp or a dimmable compact fluorescent lamp. With a non-dimmable energy-saving lamp only sensor switching works, and the light-on time then has to be set to at least 5 minutes.
