You know it when you see. Outdoor lighting is a great way to add beauty to your home, bring safety to your entry ways, increase the overall security of your property as well as beautify your grounds.
The main starting point when considering exterior lighting is establish the primary design goal: are you hoping to identify key features, add drama to surfaces that don’t normally stand out, or to simply create a clear path and entryway? You can both highlight a building’s architectural features and draw attention to plantings and trees.
From task lighting for safety to ambient string lights for the perfect outdoor party, start by identifying the outdoor spaces you want to use and then find solutions for each area. Next, you should understand the basic types of fixtures when making your lighting plan. Finally, you should consider security and maintenance. These steps are reviewed in the following article.
It takes a mix of lighting types to achieve an effective lighting ambience for your home.
Types of Outdoor Lighting
Task Lighting: It’s important to start with task lighting for illuminating pathways and entrances. Task lighting is paramount when performing specific tasks. This type of outdoor lighting can be achieved by using pathway lights, deck lighting and outdoor step lights. If your fixture is exposed to the elements, you will want to make sure to get a wet-rated fixture. And always make sure that the light fixture is specifically identified as outdoor lighting.
Ambient Lighting: This lighting provides an area with overall outdoor lighting. A common mistake is using too bright a bulb outside. A bulb that uses a lower wattage or has a lower lumens output is generally adequate in the dark. Usually, these are outdoor wall lights or post lights. Ambient lighting is also known as general lighting, which radiates a comfortable level of brightness without glare and allows you to see and walk safely.
Accent Lighting: Accent lighting adds drama to an outdoor space by creating visual interest. Take time to plan and focus your lighting for specific features: walkways, the doorway, landscaping. You can highlight trees, planting areas and architectural details. This type of lighting is usually provided by spotlights. Here, up lighting can be used to create drama with a taller structure or tree.
Outdoor Lighting Fixtures
Path Lights: This is the most common type of landscape lighting. Path lights are small posts that have a light built in and are capped with a diffuser. They can be used to frame out a space or feature in a yard or spread out down a walkway. They can be place around a pond, along a driveway or lining a pathway.
Ceiling Lights & Hanging Lights: Ceiling lights and hanging lights are usually selected for damp locations where they’re never directly exposed to rain. Made to be integrated in a surface or as a featured light, they are normally specified as brighter fixtures. You can find hanging lights in a wide range of styles that offer varying levels of brightness.
Wall Lights: The classic front or back porch light, wall lights can be mounted on virtually any vertical surface. One of the most commonly seen outdoor fixtures, wall lights are a durable and attractive. Outdoor wall lights are usually used for decorative purposes, providing ambient or accent lighting rather than focused, bright lighting. These are the ideal choice for patios or porches.
Post Lights & Pier Mount Lights: As the name suggests, post lights are fixtures that mount on top of posts. When a more architectural light is needed, post mount lights are designed to install onto a post or on top of a structure. They’re commonly used for entries, gates, fences or around a deck. Because they’re usually placed in open-air settings like driveways and pathways, most post lights are “wet rated,” meaning they are designed to withstand direct exposure to rain and moisture. Pier mount lights look much like post lights but are designed to be installed on top of columns or walls.
Landscape Lights: Landscape lighting is a low voltage system separate from the wall and ceiling lights. Path, spot, and floodlights can be used in combination to create layered lighting. Spotlights can be used for featuring several outdoor elements like trees, buildings, sculptural and architectural details. Well lights are recessed into the ground to create a seamless look in both landscape and hardscape setting. The inset profile is minimal and can be used to up light trees, walls, or art.
Deck and Step Lights: Deck and step lights are installed directly into a yard’s hardscape or decking. They are used as an accent to architectural details and added safety to dark stairs. They can also be used for washing light down stone walls or lighting up entertainment spaces.
Safety & Security
There are options that help boost security when you design for outdoor lighting. With everything from Wi-Fi-controlled LED light bulbs to motion-sensor lights with distance and size controls, considering safety and security begins with understand location. The focus is usually the front door, driveway, and garage. Motion sensor lights are a good solution because they are triggered by movement. Security lights offer a bright, flood-like light that helps ward off burglars or intruders.
Dusk to Dawn Lights: These fixtures are fitted with special photo sensors which trigger them to automatically turn on and off with the setting and rising of the sun. They are an easy way to ensure your outdoor lighting is on only when needed.
Motion Sensor Lights: Sensor lights are triggered to turn on by nearby movements, making them ideal as security lights and for high-traffic parts of your property like entries and walkways. The range and angle of motion sensor vary by design.
Most outdoor fixtures are designed for either wet or damp location use. It’s important to consider which you need:
Wet Rated (or Wet Location) fixtures are designed for use anywhere that is directly exposed to wind and rain. Outdoor wall lights, post lights and motion sensor lights are wet location rated.
Damp Rated (or Damp Location) fixtures are designed for use in covered patios, pergolas and any place that is not exposed directly to rain and moisture. Outdoor ceiling lights and hanging lights are damp use rated.
