Outdoor lighting is just as important – if not more important – than indoor lighting. Exterior lights are the first thing guests will see – whether it is the lights themselves or the lights illuminating the front of your house.
While there are a lot of things to consider when it comes to choosing outdoor lighting, here are 5 tips to get you started.
1. Know the dimensions of your house and yard
This is crucial. We can help you to light your house and yard by knowing the sizes of everything. With placing lights on the front of the house, often we base it off the size of the front door.
With knowing the size of the yard, we can help to determine how many landscape lights you should have.
2. Be able to determine what stage of building you are in
Has your house been there for years? Or are you just breaking ground during construction? This is helpful so you can determine how to lay out your lighting. Some lights are easier to install than others, whereas some require more work and room.
3. Know the style of your house
Knowing the style of your home (or at least having a picture of it) will help you choose lighting appropriate for your home. You wouldn’t want to put a modern light on a traditional home – or vice versa!
4. Know your power and your power options
The typical voltage of the power in your house will be 120V. Low-voltage landscape lighting operates on 12V of power instead of 120V, meaning it requires a transformer to bring the power from 120 to 12. Most LED lights operate on 12V of power, meaning that they require a transformer.
It is helpful to know what your power is so we can get you a transformer.
5. Have a vision of the end goal
You want to make sure the areas where you need light for security purposes are lit first. Then, we can help you add in additional lighting, whether it is additional path lighting, or, landscape lighting to highlight special plants or other features.
Lighting design is also about style and personal preference so make it your own, there is no real path to perfect outdoor lighting! You have the basic steps and a great place to look for inspiration is Houzz.
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- How to Light a Kitchen: Track vs. Recessed Lighting
Additional Resources
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