With so many options for home improvement, it can be difficult to choose your next project – and to know which one would actually benefit you the most. Just as proper lighting is essential for home interiors, outdoor lighting is also becoming a must-have. While security lights have been popular for some time, low voltage landscape lighting is now increasingly popular among DIYers. Let’s review the benefits offered by installing a system of your own.
The Benefits of Landscape Lighting:
Increases Safety – eliminates hazards caused by poor lighting which helps to prevent trips, falls, and other accidents by increasing the functionality of spaces.
Increases Security – numerous research studies have suggested that well-lit properties tend to deter would-be criminals. Outdoor lighting increases security by illuminating entry points and eliminating dark areas.
Enhances Beauty – Light can highlight the beauty, reveal different perspectives and shapes within architecture. Lighting techniques such as highlighting, silhouetting, and shadowing create different effects. By applying different techniques, living spaces can be transformed in different manners. Ultimately, a proper lighting design adds value to your home.
Creates Ambiance – Lighting can give the illusion of spaciousness, and even create ambiance. Through the use of light and color, lighting sets the mood and increases the comfort of outdoor spaces; ultimately increasing the time you will spend in these areas with friends and family.
FAQs
What if I have no experience? – Not to worry; installing a low-voltage landscape lighting system is a safe and simple project. Detailed manuals are provided, How-To-Videos are available, and Live Customer Support is on standby 7 days a week. Landscape lighting kits are also available which offer complete, pre-assembled systems; a one-click purchase.
What about my power bill? – Of course, if you have absolutely no outdoor lighting, you may notice a slight increase in your utility bill after adding a system. Thankfully, with new low-voltage LED technologies, the energy savings compared to traditional halogens are immense. Incandescent bulbs are sometimes called heaters that glow. Only 10-20% of their energy is converted to light, the remaining is just heat. Outdoor LED bulbs are much more efficient – 80-90% of their energy becomes light. They also only project light in one direction so less light is wasted.
What about light pollution? – Even with its growing popularity, there are still a few concerns about outdoor lighting; preserving the night sky is a significant concern. Dark sky advocation is important because the brightening of the night sky caused by artificial illumination (man-made sources) can have disruptive effects on natural wildlife cycles and also inhibit the work of astronomers. Most of these concerns can be addressed by simply using Dark Sky Approved Fixtures or Turtle Safe Landscape Lights and properly installing and adjusting fixtures.
