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Not only do garden lights provide needed guidance in the dark, but they also give visual impact by highlighting landscape features, plants and architectural aspects of your home. Correctly placed outdoor lighting can give your garden and home a different dimension at nightfall and can make your outdoor area look extra special.
Here is some advice on how to choose outdoor lights and which lights you should use for different effects. We also give tips on how to install garden lights yourself.
Step One: Selecting Your Lights
Mitre 10 provides a wide range of lights to create great effects in your landscape. See our Exterior Lighting for some ideas.
Decide on what you lighting effect you want to achieve (read the "Lighting Effects" section below) and select the appropriate light fittings and lamps.
Step Two: Positioning of Lights for Different Effects
Correct positioning is a key ingredient in the design of your lighting system. Consider the following:
1. What mood or effect are you trying to create?
...light a path
...highlight a plant or structure?
...highlight the shape of an object?
2. What is the position of the viewer?
...place lights to minimise glare.
...dramatic effects are achieved when the light source is hidden from view.
There are several techniques used when setting up outdoor lighting that give the different effects you may be after:
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Uplighting
Guide your visitors to your garden’s focal points. Important features take on an extra depth and contour when lit from behind. Shelter lights from direct view to avoid uncomfortable glare.
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Downlighting
The diffused light from fittings in trees creates a soft flickering carpet of moving light on the ground as foliage moves in the breeze. Down lights placed on walls provide a pleasing washed-out effect.
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Pathlighting
A continuous line of light along paths and driveways increases visibility and security. Path lights are typically low, creating elegant lines and contours in the landscape.
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Spotlighting
A strong beam of direct light on an plant or object bathes the feature in a wash of light. Possibly the most popular technique, used often for dramatic effect.
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Perspective Lighting
Multiple light sources highlight a series of plants or objects along a line of sight. Excellent for increasing the overall perceived brightness of an area.
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Silhouetting
A tree, shrub or statue takes on an extra charm when its backdrop is lit. The object appears in stark black relief against a bright background, similar to a sunset.
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Shadowing
Illuminate a statue or tree from the front and it will cast a "larger than life" shadow onto nearby backgrounds. Vary the size of shadows by careful positioning of lights.
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Washing
Carefully spaced, concealed lights create a subtle effect that changes a gardens’ mood. This technique also provides efficient, unobtrusive security lighting. |
Step Three: Positioning the transformer
When placing your transformer, consider the ease of installation and minimising cable lengths. Try to keep the main line as short as possible to ensure optimum brightness of lights. The longer the cable run, the greater the voltage drop which will result in dimmer lights.
Step Four: Cable Layout
Laying cable is easy. Simply run the supply cable from the transformer to the lights, on the ground or in a shallow trench. No conduit is necessary.
Step Five: Cable Size
Ensure lights are spaced evenly - use this table as a guide to the size of cable required:
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Maximum distance per circcuit not to exceed 10% vooltage drop. |
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12VOLT |
50W |
100W |
150W |
200W |
250W |
300W |
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4mm Cable |
66M |
33M |
22M |
16M |
13M |
11M |
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6mm Cable |
102M |
50M |
34M |
24M |
20M |
16M |
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10mm Cable |
164M |
82M |
54M |
40M |
32M |
26M |
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24 Volt x Factor 2 |
Step Six: Transformer Size
Simply add together the wattages of all the lights in your system. The transformer size should be greater than the total wattage of the circuit.
Step Seven: Installation of the lights fittings
Low voltage lighting has been designed for ease of installation. Cable joins can be made by stripping and twisting cables together, or by using specially designed connectors recommended for DIY users. Make sure that all connections are made waterproof.
Step Eight: Final positioning and testing
Once the lights are connected and functioning, you can begin final positioning and testing. Testing at nights allows you to accurately assess the results and reposition lights within the limits of the cable to explore all possible effects. Modifications are easy. Remember, even small changes can have dramatic effects.
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