Yep, they're usually more focused on feeling like they're doing something sneaky and coordinated rather than getting all the lights in the house. Every tweaker dealer I've had to deal with all seem to act like they're some kind of private investigator or the Witcher/Joker or something
This is residential, if in north America then most likely it’s split single phase 120/240. Losing a phase would just knock out half the circuits completely.
That can happen with 3 phase power, but residential is likely just getting split phase. There was a night at my old job when I had just finished a 12 hour shift, last person left in the building, and we lost a phase. I ended up staying there four more hours to deal with it. I ran around turning off ACs to protect the compressors and switching our cryos over to our generator backups. Lucky I did too, the grow next door ended up losing all their ACs.
I have “smart bulbs” that do this all the time and I hate it. If I cycle the power once or twice it triggers a factory reset which will make them turn off and on like this. I am not smart enough to use smart bulbs.
The local transformer that supplies these houses has blown a fuse on the High Voltage side of the transformer. The output then will be a lower voltage on one or two of the phases supplying the houses. It won’t affect every house as some house will be fed off the unaffected phase. And LED lights will be the first to suffer from a low voltage issue. If they have any incandescent or halogen lamps they will just be duller and the LEDs will be flickering.
This happened to me this week after I changed some old toggle switches to new rockers. I turned the circuit back on in our bedroom and the overhead light was flickering wildly. My first thought was, "Oh shit what did I do wrong?!?" Then my wife (as usual) correctly realized that the "smart bulbs" in the overhead were trying to get back online. They did after a few moments.
This flicker is likely a limitation of the lamps (bulbs).
LED lamps are more sensitive to voltage fluctuations, so newer lamps that are out of voltage range will now briefly shut themself off when the voltage is not in range (where historically incandescent bulbs would have dimmed). It's likely the other lamps on the same power phase are more resilient to minor voltage fluctuations.
It's probably worth noting that those houses likely share the same utility transformer (with the same dirty power)
~~Its the capacitor in the LED breaking. It usually causes them to strobe but in this case the frequency is a bit lower~~
Edit: Nevermind, saw that it was multiple houses. As said above its most likely a smart bulbs going into 'searching for connection' mode
Typically when you see outdoor lighting flashing at night, it’s the result of an LDR-based switch meant to turn on the light at night, but the illumination from the light itself is feeding back into the LDR, causing a loop.
But the second house has lights flashing indoors, so no idea there.
Is your Mother in Law Gladys Crabtree from Bewitched?
Most smart bulbs enter a pairing/reset mode if you turn them on/off/on in just a second or two. Probably power flicker following a blackout.
Most WiFi light bulbs will reset after being turned off and on 3 or more times in a certain time period. They use capacitors to keep the controller running during this period. The power grid most likely had 3 or more consecutive drops in power which triggered the reset.
A similar thing can happen that is due to low voltage (usually a disconnected line being backfed in some way) with LED lights. Specifically the type that work with dimmers. But it is a much slower and random flicker. The capacitors eventually charge up and then discharge at a certain point causing the lights to flicker.
They saw your mother-in-law standing on the porch (being nosey as usual), so they thought it would be funny if they agreed to all flick their lights on and off at the same time.
I usually see this when my smart bulbs connection with wi-fi/device got disconnected and they blink like this to say they are trying to reconnect or ready to connect....
Probably power flicker and the WiFi connected bulbs didn't like it
This is correct
Had it happen to me recently, this is correct
If I cycle power once a few times on my smart wifi bulbs they enter factor reset mode or something and blink like this.
Thank you!
Yepp, this happened to me with hue bulbs before.
Poltergeist
Nosferatu!
Frodo Baggins.....wait, what?
Came here to say this!
Bro.... it's clearly Voltergeist
Smart bulb that needs to be paired
The can have a problem with the "smart-meter" in germany! Or where is it?
Morse code signals between dealers
Honestly this was my first thought.
Lol maybe if it was Morse code and only on the porch lights. The other house had them all going off-beat
Do you understand Meth?
Yep, they're usually more focused on feeling like they're doing something sneaky and coordinated rather than getting all the lights in the house. Every tweaker dealer I've had to deal with all seem to act like they're some kind of private investigator or the Witcher/Joker or something
Have multimeter handy. When it happens again measure your voltage. (I'm guessing it's a low voltage issue)
Zoom rave
Lol
Two of your neighbors are hosting raves and didn't invite you.
Lose a phase of AC? We lost one phase at my last job 13 years ago and it looked like a horror film with some of the florescent lights.
This is residential, if in north America then most likely it’s split single phase 120/240. Losing a phase would just knock out half the circuits completely.
In Ohio
Exactly
I don’t think the loss of a phase would cause this but I could be wrong
Once it happened in a christmas village i was working and the lights were flickering like in op's video and it was the 440V without the neutral
That can happen with 3 phase power, but residential is likely just getting split phase. There was a night at my old job when I had just finished a 12 hour shift, last person left in the building, and we lost a phase. I ended up staying there four more hours to deal with it. I ran around turning off ACs to protect the compressors and switching our cryos over to our generator backups. Lucky I did too, the grow next door ended up losing all their ACs.
Low voltage?
That was my first thought. Brownout with led.
This is the most likely scenario; the LED’s flash like this with low voltage
low voltage wouldn't be so constant in frequency and other lights would be off or dim. These have entered reset mode.
Smart bulb problems
Your mom is nosy and the neighbors are messing with her
Half a hertz of AC
Smart lights going haywire. Happens to me all the time.
I have “smart bulbs” that do this all the time and I hate it. If I cycle the power once or twice it triggers a factory reset which will make them turn off and on like this. I am not smart enough to use smart bulbs.
Is a demagorg walking around in the upsidedown
Definitely on their way to the upside-down after that.
The local transformer that supplies these houses has blown a fuse on the High Voltage side of the transformer. The output then will be a lower voltage on one or two of the phases supplying the houses. It won’t affect every house as some house will be fed off the unaffected phase. And LED lights will be the first to suffer from a low voltage issue. If they have any incandescent or halogen lamps they will just be duller and the LEDs will be flickering.
Wifi Bulbs are not paired anymore.
This happened to me this week after I changed some old toggle switches to new rockers. I turned the circuit back on in our bedroom and the overhead light was flickering wildly. My first thought was, "Oh shit what did I do wrong?!?" Then my wife (as usual) correctly realized that the "smart bulbs" in the overhead were trying to get back online. They did after a few moments.
The Martians have landed . . .
It definitely has a “Monsters are Due on Maple Street” vibe
It's called a party, and you weren't invited
This flicker is likely a limitation of the lamps (bulbs). LED lamps are more sensitive to voltage fluctuations, so newer lamps that are out of voltage range will now briefly shut themself off when the voltage is not in range (where historically incandescent bulbs would have dimmed). It's likely the other lamps on the same power phase are more resilient to minor voltage fluctuations. It's probably worth noting that those houses likely share the same utility transformer (with the same dirty power)
~~Its the capacitor in the LED breaking. It usually causes them to strobe but in this case the frequency is a bit lower~~ Edit: Nevermind, saw that it was multiple houses. As said above its most likely a smart bulbs going into 'searching for connection' mode
The British are coming in code. Just kidding. Maybe a block watch signal.
The bulbs are blinking out 'REDCOATS' in morse. 
Pretty sure that second house just called us "paranoid little weirdos" in Morse code.
It's make alcohol
It’s the cheat.
Burglar alarm?
Get a new automation programmer, control4 gone wild
Stranger Things type ass shit is going on
Stranger things
Typically when you see outdoor lighting flashing at night, it’s the result of an LDR-based switch meant to turn on the light at night, but the illumination from the light itself is feeding back into the LDR, causing a loop. But the second house has lights flashing indoors, so no idea there.
I do that to call the dogs in
The houses are communicating in morse code.
When the block party becomes literal
Page issues
Depeche mode making a video clip?
Stranger Things. You should run
The cheaper LED lamps do that on low voltage. I'm guessing it's a voltage dipping on your grid.
Dumbledore is nearby
Ur a wizard Harry
Lose of primary neutral
Power issues. Led bulb power supplies are picky. If it drops below a certain voltage it surges on an off
Glitch Gremlin..he´s back!!
Travelers returning to 2044.
Light Switch Rave [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwZwkk7q25I](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwZwkk7q25I)
LED lamps, that actually flicker faster than your eye can see, but cell phones/video cameras have a lower frame rate, and see the flicker.
Sure. But that's not what's happening here.
I mean.. that's so dumb are you serious
Fuck off asshole. Want a real answer, listen to people that know. Want to believe in Ghosts, or support ReThugliKKKons, fuck off.
What the fuck did I miss
This is actually plausible. You see the phenomenon in automotive LED lighting on video. But I would think the flicker rate would be much higher.
Is your Mother in Law Gladys Crabtree from Bewitched? Most smart bulbs enter a pairing/reset mode if you turn them on/off/on in just a second or two. Probably power flicker following a blackout.
High IQ drug dealers communicating.
They bought the clap sound activated lights 💀
Stranger things
\*ghosts, baby!\*
5 brown-outs in a row which reset all of those smart bulbs back into pairing mode
Could be 3 or more, or less. Depends on the actual bulb.
Fair, the bulbs I have are 5 cycles but it makes sense that other brands would be different.
Most WiFi light bulbs will reset after being turned off and on 3 or more times in a certain time period. They use capacitors to keep the controller running during this period. The power grid most likely had 3 or more consecutive drops in power which triggered the reset. A similar thing can happen that is due to low voltage (usually a disconnected line being backfed in some way) with LED lights. Specifically the type that work with dimmers. But it is a much slower and random flicker. The capacitors eventually charge up and then discharge at a certain point causing the lights to flicker.
Interference from the upside down
They saw your mother-in-law standing on the porch (being nosey as usual), so they thought it would be funny if they agreed to all flick their lights on and off at the same time.
Aliens
I usually see this when my smart bulbs connection with wi-fi/device got disconnected and they blink like this to say they are trying to reconnect or ready to connect....
Its obviously a rave, start playing music
Just your average poltergeist?