Different Types of Landscape Lighting

Landscape lighting is one of the best ways to accentuate the space outside your house.

Here are the types of landscape lighting that are generally used:

Solar Lighting

As the name suggests, solar lighting relies on the sun to power them.  This means a significant aspect of using this type of lighting is how much sun the panels receive.  In the event you want your lights to be in a place that is not generally exposed to much sunlight, than you should make sure that your lights can be wired to a separate solar panel.  In terms of the strength and duration of the lighting, it is purely dependent on the weather that day.  Sunny days are known to permit bright solar lights that shine all night.  Cloudy days, as one might suspect, result in dimmer lights that don’t last very long.

Spotlights

Like most are aware, this type of lighting is best to use to highlight any object of your choosing (e.g. fountains, the front of your home, etc.).  One of the spotlight’s features that tends to be overlooked is its ability to create intriguing shadows on your lawn.  Don’t forget about this when you are creating your lighting design!

Bollards

These lights generally stand no taller than 42 inches.  They are most commonly used for lighting walkways and sidewalks.

Twinkle/String Lights

This type of lighting is best envisioned as Christmas lights.  They are generally entwined around tree trunks, branches, or decks in order to add a festive atmosphere.  As long as you buy low-voltage bulbs or solar powered twinkle lights, your energy bill should be manageable!

Underwater Lights

As the name suggests, these lights are built to be completely submersed underwater.  They are generally most effective when used to highlight the water jets and effects in fountains.

While we covered some basic and common lights, it is important to note that there are many lighting designs out there and to do more research so that you can choose the appropriate lighting for your design.  And as always, be sure to consult a professional if you are having issues with the electrical aspects of lighting!

This entry was posted on Friday, July 23rd, 2010 at 5:31 pm. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.