4 Steps To Take Before Installing Landscape Lighting
by Tiffany Gonzales
Don't overlook the importance of lighting when landscaping your yard. The following can help you plan and prepare for the lighting installation.
1. Create a Lighting Map
For a lighting map, begin with first determining the light placement around your home's walls, and then move on to mapping out the pathway lights around the yard and garage area. Once these structural lights are in the plan, it's time to have fun with the placement of the accent lights around the property. This may include adding uplights to highlight a beautiful tree or tall planter, or perhaps adding a few lights to draw attention to a feature like a fountain or a statue. The main rule is to avoid placing lights in a straight line, as this appears sterile and provides little visual interest.
2. Choose a Power Source
There are a few ways to power landscape lights: solar, grid power, and a hybrid of the two being the most popular. Solar lights do require sufficient sunlight exposure to work all night, although there are battery storage options to allow that can help keep the lights powered on gloomy days. Lights on the electric grid will need to have underground wiring installed and there must be sufficient outlets in the yard to serve them. A hybrid system reduces electric use when it's sunny, but you have the guarantee that the lights will remain on even when solar power can't be generated.
3. Install Electrical Access
If you opt for an electrical or hybrid system, then you will likely need to have a few power access points installed around the yard. This way you won't have a bunch of electrical lines crisscrossed across your property to power the lights. The power boxes installed on your home's walls are often sufficient for lighting near the foundation, but out in the yard, you may need to have one or more above-ground outlet boxes installed so that the wiring can be kept to a more compact area.
4. Pick Your Bulbs
The final decision before installation begins is the type of bulbs to put in the lights. In most cases, modern LED bulbs are better than fluorescent or incandescent options. LEDs can be filtered to have warm natural light that is pleasant on the eyes and complements a landscape without being too harsh. Even better, they are the energy-efficient option that also has a long working life—which means you won't be frequently replacing your landscape lighting.
Contact a landscape lighting installation service for more help.
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About Me
I have always been someone who absolutely adores being outside, which is probably one of the reasons I decided to buy a home with a large lot. However, as soon as I moved in, I realized that yard work was a lot more challenging than I had anticipated, which is why I called in a team of professional landscapers. They were amazing to work with and got right to it, and within a few days, the yard was looking amazing. I wanted to create a blog all about creating beautiful outdoors spaces so that other people can help to beautify the world.