Outdoor lighting does three jobs at once — it makes a space usable after dark, it makes arrival and movement safer, and it is the most visible thing about a property at night.
It also lives outdoors in South Florida, which is a harder environment for electrical equipment than most people assume.
What outdoor lighting is for
- Paths, steps and level changes, where the job is seeing the ground rather than the fixture
- Entrances and gates, which are about both convenience and security
- Outdoor living areas, where the light should be low and warm enough to sit under
- Planting and architecture, which is where the visual effect comes from
Treating these as one requirement is what produces a garden lit like a parking area.
The coastal environment is the design constraint
Salt air, humidity, driving rain and strong sun degrade outdoor fittings continuously. Fixtures and, just as importantly, their connections and enclosures have to be rated for it.
Fittings that were adequate a few miles inland can corrode quickly near the coast, and the failure is usually at the connection rather than the lamp. Anything installed in ground that floods needs to be selected on that basis, not on appearance.
Storm season adds one more consideration: fittings and their cabling should be installed so they can be inspected and, where necessary, secured or removed.
Getting the effect right
Outdoor lighting looks best when the fittings are not the thing you notice.
- Light the surface, not the eye — fittings aimed at head height glare and destroy night vision
- Vary the direction: uplighting for trees and structure, downlighting for paths and seating
- Keep levels low; the eye adapts to darkness, and a little light goes a long way after dusk
- Leave some areas unlit, because contrast is what makes the lit areas read
Warm color temperatures suit planting and outdoor living far better than cool ones, and consistency across the scheme matters more outdoors than in, where a single cool fitting among warm ones is glaringly obvious.
Line voltage or low voltage
Low voltage
Common for planting and path lighting. A transformer feeds fittings at reduced voltage, which makes the cabling less hazardous and the layout easier to adjust later.
Line voltage
Used for larger fixtures, permanent architectural lighting and anything needing significant output. It requires the same wiring standards as any other permanent outdoor circuit.
Either way, outdoor circuits generally require ground-fault protection, and the equipment needs to suit a wet location rather than merely tolerate one.
What fails first, and when
Outdoor lighting fails predictably, and knowing the order helps with both specification and upkeep.
- Connections and junctions, especially where water gets in and salt speeds corrosion
- Fixture seals and gaskets, which harden and let moisture through
- Fittings at ground level, which take irrigation, mowing and flooding
- Lamps and drivers, usually last rather than first
A yearly look before storm season — checking seals, connections and mountings, clearing planting that has grown over fittings and re-aiming what has moved — costs very little and prevents most of the failures people assume are just the fittings wearing out.
Controls, and light where it is not wanted
Timers, photocells and automation all work outdoors, and all of them beat leaving it to whoever remembers.
Aiming matters as much as switching. Light spilling into a neighbor's windows, or up into the sky instead of onto the surface it was meant for, is wasted and unneighborly in equal measure. Aiming fittings after dark, on site, is the only way to get this right.
Getting outdoor lighting installed properly
Outdoor lighting is permanent electrical work in a demanding environment, and the difference between a scheme that lasts and one that corrodes is mostly in specification and installation.
KRW Electric is a licensed electrical contractor (EC13012832) serving South Florida. See our residential electrical services, or get in touch.
Reviewed by Kyle White, KRW Electric Company LLC — licensed electrical contractor EC13012832.
