Landscape lighting is a design problem before it is a shopping problem
Landscape lighting puts light on the ground level of a property: walkways, beds, trees, steps, driveways, the path from the car to the door. The goal is light you see the effect of, not fixtures you count. Done badly, you get a line of glowing dots along the path and not
https://jsbin.com/jegagenawo much else.
What goes in a typical plan
Path lighting comes first for most properties, because it is the part that does a job every night. A well placed uplight gives the yard depth after sunset. Then there are beds and low plantings, steps and retaining walls where the light is really about not tripping, and the driveway.
Landscape, patio and security lighting overlap
The request almost never stays in one lane. Patio lighting makes the back of the house usable after dinner. Security lighting lights the places that stay dark, which is a different job from making a tree look good. Accent lighting handles the detail.
Where landscape lighting goes wrong
More light is not better. A yard lit evenly at every point has no depth, and flat is the one thing you were trying to avoid. Badly aimed fixtures throw glare down the walk rather than onto the surface. The third is ignoring how the yard will look in five years, since the bed in front of a fixture fills in.
The commercial side
Businesses light the grounds for other reasons. Outdoor seating only gets used after dark if the light is right. Parking and walkways are a footing and visibility question. A neighborhood entrance sets the tone for everything behind it, which is why entrances get lit carefully.
Landscape lighting and roofline lighting in one plan
The two solve different problems, and most properties want both. Roofline light gives the house a shape after dark, and landscape light gives the ground in front of it depth.A single design avoids a mismatched result, which is what happens when two companies work the same property in different years. If the budget only covers one this year, a good designer will tell you which half to do first, and the answer is not always the house.Unlike a roofline system, yard lighting moves. Mowers, mulch and seasons nudge fixtures out of position. Once a year somebody should re aim what has drifted, which is a short job with a visible result.
Getting it installed properly
The plan should be made standing in the yard, not chosen off a menu. EverCrest Lighting installs landscape lighting along with patio, accent, security and permanent roofline lighting for homes and businesses. Working out of Greenville, South Carolina, they cover Upstate South Carolina and Western North Carolina. Consultations are free, and the design gets built around your yard. Reach them at (864) 252-1732 or
[email protected].