In purchasing any outdoor landscape lighting for your garden, there are a few things you need to consider. Do you want your garden to be festive? Is it for security purposes? Is there a particular area that you want to illuminate? Or is it merely to improve the appearance of your home?
Before we head over to the ideal types of outdoor landscape lighting, let us take a look at how much they would cost.
How Much Does Landscape Lighting Cost?
The type of lighting you install and whether or not a professional installation is required will determine how much you spend on outdoor landscape lighting. Of course, there are other considerations, such as the size of your garden or outdoor living space and the type of lighting you currently have.
Option 1: Electrical
The most difficult type of outdoor landscape lighting to install is 120-volt lighting. To keep it dry, the wiring for these kinds of garden lights must be buried at a depth of 18 inches or enclosed in a conduit. The electrical components must be installed by a certified electrician.
The only equipment needed for low-voltage landscape lighting is a transformer and an outside outlet. To power the lights, the transformer reduces the 120 volts from the household line to a secure 12 volts.
Solar lighting is the simplest type of outdoor landscape lighting to install in the backyard. There are no cables to conceal with this style of lighting. Naturally, for solar lighting to function at its best, it must be positioned so that the photovoltaic cell receives enough sunlight during the day to enable it to shine all night.
Option 2: Outdoor Landscape Lighting Trends
- Portable Lighting
The most widely used shapes and sizes for LED wireless “lamps” are cubes, globes, and oval river rocks. These illuminating spheres and cylinders can be used as lights, furniture, or both. Many of these lights have built-in smart technology, allowing you to set timing, color, and brightness preferences. Additionally, they are waterproof, so you can put them near a pool or in a water feature.
- High-End Fixture
These are more stylized outdoor landscape lighting fixtures that make a statement and heighten the home’s architecture.
- Color-Changing Lights
These include fixtures and bulbs, are frequently Bluetooth enabled, and are controlled by a remote or an app. It makes decorating your landscape with lights simpler than ever.
- Moonlighting
These are floodlights that face downward and are designed to resemble moonlight. With this kind of outdoor landscape lighting, aesthetics, and mood-setting are more important than security or safety.
- Dark Sky-Friendly Lighting
Lighting that is conducive to night skies is shielded (pointed downward) and emits less blue light. Be sure to search for the Dark Sky Approved label when purchasing new lighting. A list of companies selling dark-sky-approved goods is provided by the DSA.
- Hardscape Lighting
Homeowners have been putting more money into their outdoor living areas over the past few years. More durable hardscaping is being constructed, such as retaining walls, staircases, fireplaces, and outdoor kitchens. Therefore, it makes perfect sense that they will incorporate lighting into these structures.
Types of Landscape Lighting
- Entry Door and Porch Lights
The goal of ambient or all-over lighting is to illuminate the entire area. It is advised to use frosted glass lanterns over clear glass ones because they hide the light source inside and are easier to clean. Always go for outdoor-rated porch light fixtures, and make sure that all landing areas and steps are adequately lit. Consider installing recessed ceiling lights on dimmers as well if you want a lot of control over the lighting.
- Floodlights and Spotlights
You can use spotlights, floodlights, or a mix of the two to give your yard more depth and height. Floodlights produce a broad beam of light that is ideal for illuminating a vast space, such as a driveway, whereas spotlights produce a focused beam of light. A typical spotlight has a 15-degree field of illumination, but a narrow floodlight has a 30-degree field of illumination, and a broad floodlight has a 60-degree saturation.
Outdoor landscape lighting effects, architectural aspects of your home, and landscaping may all be highlighted using spotlights. Silhouetting, which is accomplished by simply shining a spotlight behind a feature to provide an illuminated backdrop, is a typical outdoor landscape lighting effect. This is the best way to show off the dramatic black contour of a specimen plant, topiary, or even a sculpture.
- Path Lights and Step Lights
The simplest outdoor landscape lighting to include in your garden is probably stake lights for a walkway. Low-voltage lighting and solar stakes (also known as spikes) come in a range of designs and price points. The installation will be simplified with low-voltage kits. The transformer (which converts the 120-volt power from your home into a safe low-voltage charge), wiring, instructions, and frequently a timer or an automatic motion or light sensor are all included in the kit.
If you’d prefer to illuminate your walkways from above, consider placing downlighting in your trees. Because it is intended to mimic moonlight, this type of lighting is frequently referred to as “moonlighting.” This effect is created by mounting a sizable light fixture with a full glare guard high in a tree and angling it toward the ground to cast shadow patterns that resemble those of moonlight.
In-ground recessed lights or puck lights are an additional choice for lighting a route. These lights can be positioned to emphasize trees or other landscaping along a sidewalk in addition to being used to illuminate it.
Retrofitting lights into concrete stairwells may not be practical for staircases, but a hardwood staircase can install low-voltage or hardwired lights. Additionally, post caps and railings can be fitted with solar and low-voltage outdoor landscape lighting.
- Lampposts
Trenching a hole from your home to the lamppost is necessary to run wire to the lamppost for an electric lamp post. It is not a DIY project to replace a gas lamp; it must be done by a qualified plumber or gas lighting specialist. To maintain a consistent aesthetic, attempt to match the architectural style of your home when installing a new lamppost.
- Up-Down Wall Lighting
Outdoor wall sconces, which are frequently cylindrical in shape, can be utilized to direct light in a certain direction. A few of the more popular ones have two lights, one pointing above and the other downward. They’re a terrific option for an entrance or flanking a garage because you can use them to illuminate an outside wall and ensure secure passage in the dark because of their dual-purpose construction.
All County Landscape-Hardscape
All County Landscape Hardscape is a company that provides landscaping and lawn maintenance services. We provide Los Angeles and the surrounding regions with a huge selection of landscaping and hardscape services.
We, together with our sibling firm, All County Fence and Gate, are really committed to giving you high-caliber services that are within your price range. We collaborate closely with you because we are aware that providing excellent customer service is all about building strong relationships with our customers.
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