Outdoor lighting is a effortless way to prolong the length of time you can relish Your open-air spaces. This can be achieved in several various ways.Footpaths, stairs, shrubs, landscape devices, architectural components, waterfalls, and decks call all be magnified through landscape lighting. low voltage lighting is simple and because it only requires 12 volts of electricity to operate, is safe for the home improvement connoisseur to install.
There are three main elements to landscape lighting: the light fixtures, a transformer, and some low voltage electrical cable. Each is important and you can buy most at a hardware store. First, you must the areas that you wish to illuminate and the result you would like to achieve. Each light fixture is different. With that done, lets begin.
Laying out all the components is the first step. Make sure that your path lights are properly aligned along your walkway. When you go to wire them be sure that you go around any obstacles like trees, roots, or shrubs. Use 14 gauge wire for jobs totaling less than 200 watts, and twelve gauge wire for systems that exceed two hundred watts. The lights are typically around six to ten feet apart and your 1st light should be at least ten feet from your transformer.
Digging your trench is the second step. You should use a flat bladed shovel head to make the ditch. It should be at least three inches deep so you have room for the cables.
The third step is to bury the wire. Set the proper gauge of low-voltage wire into the freshly dug trench. Remember to leave the wire slack. Smooth the soil back over the wire, but leave a part of it protruding at each fixture so that the electrical connections can be made.
Making holes for the fixtures is the fourth step. Make sure that you set your lights into the right spot so that they are equally spread out. Don’t use a hammer to drive the light fixtures in, instead use stakes to drive them in.
Wiring the lights in is the 5th step. Each individual light is different so check with your manual first. But with most lights you just take the connector at the base of each light and slip it around the electrical cable until you hear a snap. Remember to make sure that your wires are water proof and sealed off before finishing installation.
And that’s all there is to it. You can finally enjoy all your hard work and flip the lights on. Just remember that you still have to change the bulbs if the burn out or you can risk damage to the whole setup.
Melody writes articles about all different types of lighting outdoors on her site where she gives out useful tips and tricks that people can use for their landscape lighting.
