Where to Place Garden Lights

The size of your garden will dtermine how many lights you can place around it. This seems like a straighforward point, but if you try to cram too many in a small space you will almost certainly overdo it. Sometimes less is more so to speak. Another determinant is the amount of features you already have, be it statues, walkways, decking, rockery, lawns windchimes and trees. All these things can be lit up at night, and knowing the layout of the garden will help to blend these features together when the sun goes down.

A good example is using one feature to bring out another. Using a spot light pointing upwards can highlight a row of flowers or plants, whilst also lighting a tree behind. You can position the lights at many angles to achieve this result, and it is best done during the day first as you can clearly see the important parts of your garden.

Adding outdoor lighting along paths and walkways can help to extenuate the edges of the path, but also illuminate any flowers that are planted next to them. Some plants do not like constant light at night, so be sure to check you don’t unknowingly damage any plants. If this is the case then point the light in another direction away from the leaves. Getting it just right can add some stylish garden decor to your back yard.

Placing lights next to water is also a great way to make them come to life. If you have a garden pond you can buy underwater lights that will shine from below and cast a faint aura on the rst of the garden. Moving water such a small waterfall or water running through a rock arrangement can be utilized to your advantage. Aiming the beam at thw water will create reflections that can light up the things nearby. Investing in color lighting can make the water appear in any color you can think of, and the changing color lights are an even better option. This will cascade the colors all around the garden and it is great to just sit down and watch the show.

Putting lighting inbetween rocks and stones will make it look like they are part of the scenery, and there are hundreds of mock rock lights that contain the fixtures inside to conceal them. Some solar lights have this designing, and they are a very simple solution for lighting rockery. They also look natural during the day which is an added bonus.

Decking lighting can help to complete the look, and create an almost fairytale ambience. Lights can be placed on the decking posts and rails for maximum exposure at an elevated position. For a very classical look you can build them into the wood of the decking, and this helps to protect them as well. The look is very unique and seemless, and is a favourite with many homeowners. The light can bring out the quality and shape of the wood, as well as different textures. They take a little more owrk to fit tem and install but the finished result is one of te best around, and will really set your garden apart from the rest.

You can hang lights from branches in trees, or on top of posts and fences. Thee are a popular place for parties, to add a bit more sparkle. Using a bit of natural height can help to expose more of your garden, and it also helps with security. This way you can bring the illusion of extra height by aiming the beam at other branches. To add some more depth you can arrange the garden lights all around the extremes of the yard. This will show the full size, which may not be visible in the dark.

Be careful not to create too much glare when placing outdoor lights, think carefully what you are going to expose. You may have a dirty old shed somewhere in the corner which you don’t want to epxose at night, so think about the beam direction and where it is going to. If you have some lights at the bottom of the yard them make sure they are not pointing directly back at the patio or decking where you are going to be spending most of your time. This will create an unwanted glare in your eyes, which will stop you from being able to see the rest of the garden in comfort.

Think about sunken lights not pointing directy upwards. This is hard to do, but try to put them at the edges so the beam is not going to be in your eyes. This can happen with decking or patio lights which are centrally placed. It can be very off putting with a light shining in your eyes all the time.

The only way to get the right placement is to experiment. You may not like what you have done the first time round, which is almost always the case. The good thing is that most garden lights are very easy to move about and install, they are lightweight and very durable, so puting them in all kins of unique places is not generally a problem. The only time you may struggle is if you have fitted the power cables to decking or wood. This is usual to hide these cables during the day, and to avoid tripping over them. In this case it is better to leave the final installation until after you have seen them in action at night. When your happy, then this is the time for the complete install.

Outdoor Deck Lighting

If you have decking in your garden you can add some lights into it to make it shine. The natural pattern of the wood will be highlighted very well and the textures and grain will come out. Of course you will be sitting on the decking and you will need some light to see what you are doing, so the light serves a few functions. Sitting outside and relaxing with family and friends on your patio decking is one of life’s little comforts, especially as the sun goes down. That is why we all spend so much time and effort, for the little treats.

As for the decking, well you can have recessed lights that fit into the decking and shine through. This gives a very professional look and is very popular. Alternatively you can buy standard deck lights that sit at various positions on the decking, such as at the corners or elevated a little bit to fit on the rails if you have them. Post lights can be fitted on top of the decking posts, which also helps to light the edges of the feature for added safety.

Garden lighting design has come a long way and the choice is unlimited as to what you can do. Being creative puts your own personality on your garden, and there are many styles to help you achieve this. There are focal designs that can sit in the center of the decking and spread the light outwards to all the corners, or there are spot lights can you can change the position of to create shadows and unexpected features.

If you choose the sunken or recesssed lights then it is wise to ut them around the edges of the decking. It can be a problem if the light is shining straight at you from below, so most people use them at the sides and edges. Depending on the color of the wood in your decking, you can but a light to match this. These can simply be placed on the top of the post, and they look like they were built just for this. They blend in well with most designs. Decorative materials such as copper and brass go well with wood, so this could be an option as well.

Installation is pretty straightforward as the video shows, but if you don’t want to use a power supply then there are solar deck lights that will do just as well, and will save you money. They are also kinder to the environment which is a big plus point these days. Timer switches can be used to save electric as well, and you can choose when they come on and go off. If your decking is slightly raised then you can fit the lights below for easier installation and have them pointing upwards through any gaps in the base. This also helps to hide any wires you may have.

The garden lighting fixtures you choose should complement the garden features, and using different shaped lights can help with this. Post lights come in all kinds of shapes and sizes, from flat toppped to pointed, and you can choose a different style to match the design of your decking arrangement, be it in wood or other materials. Because wood is easy to work with, you can buy custom made designs that will house the lights. Specialist craftsman are the best people to see about this, and it can add real character to your garden, with truly unique designs. Match them with other garden ornaments and stone features and you will have a memorable place to be at night.

Garden Lighting Ideas

Ok, so we are continuing where we left off from the previous post on the many kinds of garden lights there are. Halogen lights have been the most popular for many years and have enjoyed their reign at the top. Most halogen lights run off a 12v supply and this is mated to a reflector that sends a nice sharp beam to where you point it. The 12v configuration is very safe and you can change the lighting because 12v is safer. The trick part is the mirror reflectors inside, that do a great job of not only sending the beam out, but sending the generated heat out of the back of the unit. This is important because you don’t want to heat the plants or flowers up, or if you are using these lights to illuminate the decking area, you don’t really want direct heat pointing at your guests.

You can choose the wattage and the beam angle with the halogen bulb, and they are very small. With some new reflectors you can now have a small light that gives more light than the tungsten kinds, and uses half the energy. This is why halogen lights are so common in our gardens.

Next up we have the hanging garden lights, which as the name suggests can be hung on beams, branches, pergolas, posts or a gazebo . Almost all hanging lights are 12v, and you can experiment with different wattages for light intensity. Usually a 20w bulb is enough to light up a table from above, and if you place the hanging light higher then you may need a 30w bulb. You will also find different reflectors to create wider beams, or decorative filters that can send the light out in all directions. Choose the light unit carefully if you hang them in trees or on hanging tracks, the features may hide some of the light.

LED garden lights are used to create a very focused beam of light that is small, and because of this they are most used in decking areas to mark the decking outline. The small beam will not spread the light and intrude onto the decking. They have a very long life and low energy consumption, so they are ideal for switching on for hours at a time ,day after day. They only come in primary colors and white, and the blue works well near water features, whilst the white is used for decking or patios. This is only a guideline, and it is up to you what you choose.

Linear garden lighting is mainly used to create an outline of a feature such as a tree or rock formation. The light is housed in a string configuration, much like a strip. This is mostly used at parties or at christmas time for decoration. A good use is to fix them all around a rockery to highlight the edges, or to attach them to a fence and run them around the top. The bulb life is generally quite low, so they are not for long term use unless you upgrade to some xenon lamps which will last for years but are far more expensive. You could also use them for garden path lighting, and place them along the ground on the edge of the path and make a nice strip of light.

Low voltage garden lights have been around for years and are a necessity today. The benefits are plain to see because they are safer. The mains electric is reduced by a transformer to either 12 or 24v, which is safe and will not be fatal. Because the voltage is low you can have flexible cables running through the garden so you can move things around. The higher power cables that run mains electricity are usually fixed as these are more dangerous.

Low energy lights stem from the popular halogen lamps which are still used widely today. They are twice as efficient as normal lamps. To save energy always go for the 12v designs, these do a good job of highlighting any plants and flowers with a nice focused beam. For bigger saving go for LED lights which have a lamp life of over 50000 hours and can also run on a 12v supply.

Recessed lights are used on flat surfaces where you don’t want an upright light that you can trip over. Patios, decking and pathways are the choice for these lights. They also help with mowing the lawn as they will not get in the way. Typically they produce a fixed beam that can light a certain area or feature, but there are adjustable one’s which can throw light onto a wall or tree nearby. The only downsides are that they are more difficult to install, and they can create a lot of heat, so if you have them sunken in the floor be careful not to stand on them with bare feet, or your pet’s feet.

Step lighting is used to light steps and they serve a more practical use. This is for safety first as you need to be able to see each step along the way. They can be recessed into the actual step, or they can be by the side of the steps. Most of them have a shield or canopy to stop the light source from shining directly upwards. The reason is so that people using the steps are not blinded by the direct light. This is much safer and can prevent accidents.

There are a few other kinds of lights such as spreadlights and under water lights which i have covered in previous posts. Remember, there is a great choice of products around and they all serve their own little functions. If you are not sure then ask someone, either at the garden center or online and they should be able to tell you what to go for. Experiment as much as you want until you find the perfect set up for your garden.