We just recently moved into a new house. Woohoo. It's super cute, the kitchen is huge, it has a garage (the hubby is totally stoked about that!) and a backyard. A backyard with zero landscaping... not zeroscaping, but it's basically desert outside our sliding glass door. There are a couple of raised planters on one side of the house, but other than that... nothing. So, we've been trying to decide how to landscape the backyard.
I was contacted about hosting a guest post and when I read the topic of outdoor lighting, I knew I wanted to read it... so maybe you might too? Well, here it is:
_________________________
Outdoor Lighting
By Augie Bering, Bering's Hardware
Professional (and amateur) interior designers know how critical lighting design is for their clients. A well thought out lighting plan often makes the difference between a room that has a collection of nice furniture in it and one that appears as a well-designed whole, bringing together disparate elements into a space that seems to be cut from a single inspiration. Outdoor spaces deserve this same treatment, especially if you hope to use the outdoor room often.
Placement and Usage
The first question you must answer when deciding how to light your yard, patio or outdoor room is how the space will be used at night (or dusk). Some areas require area lighting that illuminates the faces of people sitting around a patio table or a set of benches. Other areas call for spot lighting to provide islands of light in an isolated nook or near an installed barbeque grill. Most commonly, outdoor spaces with any kind of steps or elevation need pathway lighting for safety and to outline flower gardens at night. First, you need to spend some time in the space with your current lighting (or lack thereof). Ask what areas need special attention and which areas maybe barely need additional lighting at all. Are there areas with spillover lighting from neighbors or streetlamps?
When you are using the space, will lights be on in the kitchen, shining out onto the patio? As with indoor decoration, it is almost always worth your time to use newspaper cutouts to simulate the placement of furniture as an aid to help you visualize results. Another surprisingly helpful exercise is to map out the area on paper and highlight the areas of light and darkness. This often identifies dark corners that can change the mood of your patio.
Lighting types
Outdoor lighting is a huge marketing category and there are many options for the potential customer at your local hardware store as well as specialized lighting dealers. Security lamps are generally high-output bulbs designed to bathe a large area in bright light without regard to the quality of light. If you are counting on a security light to provide all or part of your lighting, consider carefully how the light will seem over time. Much like industrial fluorescent lamps, security lights can grate on your sensibilities over time. Good lighting stores will have working models on site so that you can see how orange or blue a particular bulb will appear when working.
On the other end of the spectrum are small solar lamps that charge throughout the day and provide dim light for the first few hours of darkness. These are ideal for lighting steps or pathways. Although the light they provide is not the brightest, it suffices to warn pedestrians of trip hazards and is generally very pretty from the street at night. Solar lights don't necessarily have any external wiring and can therefore be moved around easily. For a more reliable string of low lights, consider a low voltage system. These plug into house current, but provide a transformer to step the voltage down to a safe level. Although these lights are more permanent than solar lights, the low voltage ensures that amateurs can install the lights easily.
At the top end of the walkway-type lighting systems are installed lighting. A system like this generally requires a contractor to set up well, as well as knowledge of your local electrical and building codes. On the other hand, using lights that can be dimmed or brightly illuminated is sometimes worth this extra expense. For spot lighting, one can rely on the same kind of lighting you might in an indoor room. Pendant lights are economical, environmentally friendly and very modern. Outdoor lamps that look nice enough to display in the living room are more common today than ever before. Never forget that old standby, the sconce. Since overhead lighting is rarely an option, many builders and decorators rely on installed lighting sconces to provide ambient lighting outdoors. If your outdoor room shares a wall with your house, it can be foolish not to take advantage of that electrical source and structure to mount lighting. For a traditional setting, a gas lamp is hard to beat. The cost of installing gas lighting can vary greatly depending on your house's gas line layout, so seek out several bids if you decide to follow that route.
Just Like Indoor Lighting, Except When It's Not
An outdoor room is called that because it is intended to be used the same as an addition to your house would be. When you decide to light that area, you must think about what is required and what you want to highlight when you turn the lights on, just as you would with new construction. On the other hand, outdoor lighting must be robust to stand up to the elements. Changes in temperature and humidity are hard on electronics generally and especially tough on lighting systems that have the additional heat of light bulbs to contend with. Enclosed fixtures build up heat inside them every day they are used and every time it rains moisture attempts to penetrate into the wiring and electrical contacts inside. Always use products rated for outdoor use and consider the environmental factors when you are planning in order to avoid long term disappointment. Also be aware that, as with any construction project, there may be legal and safety issues that should be addressed at the outset.
About the Author
August Bering V, "Augie" to his friends, is President of
Bering's Hardware in Houston, TX. Bering's is well known for a broad range of carefully selected home goods such as
outdoor living products to pet products, and red carpet service that has delighted customers for generations since 1940. From your bridal registry, decorating your first home, to your first baby registry, Bering's has special gifts for special occasions and the right tools for the right job. Augie enjoys spending time with his family and friends, grilling and cooking, playing hard outside, travelling, design, art, live music, and spending as much time as he can with his family.
_____________________________________
What great information! This is definitely something I will keep in mind while we are designing and building our backyard. Thanks so much for sharing!
