What landscape lighting is for
Where roofline lighting works on the building, landscape lighting takes care of the yard: the walk, the beds, the trees, the steps. Done well, you notice the yard and not the fixtures. Done badly, it looks like an airport runway down the driveway.
What goes in a typical plan
Path lighting is usually the starting point, because it is the part that does a job every night. A light aimed up into a tree gives the yard depth after sunset. Then there
https://evercrestlighting.com/permanent-lighting/ are beds and low plantings, stairs and walls where the light is about footing, and the parking area.
Landscape, patio and security lighting are related jobs
Homeowners rarely want one category. Out back, the patio only gets used after dark if it has light. Security lighting covers the dark corners, the side yard, the area behind the garage. Accent lighting picks out the details worth picking out.
Common mistakes
More light does not mean better. Even light across the whole yard removes the shadow that gives a yard shape. The second mistake is aiming fixtures where people walk, so every guest gets a light in the eye on the way to the door. The third is ignoring how the yard will look in five years, when the shrub in front of the uplight has doubled.
Commercial landscape lighting
Businesses use the same tools for different reasons. Outdoor seating lives or dies on the lighting. A parking area is a safety question first. A neighborhood entrance sets the tone for everything behind it, which is why entrances get lit carefully.
Landscape lighting and roofline lighting together
The two solve different problems, and most properties want both. Roofline light gives the house a shape after dark, and landscape light gives the ground in front of it depth.Doing them in one plan is easier than doing them a year apart. If the budget has to be split, a good designer will tell you which half to do first, and it is not always the roofline.Landscape lighting is not entirely hands off. Fixtures get bumped by mowers, plantings grow up in front of them, and the aim wanders. Once a year somebody should re aim what has drifted, which is a short job with a visible result.
Where to go from here
A landscape lighting installation is worth planning on site, preferably with somebody who has seen it after dark. EverCrest Lighting does landscape lighting installation as well as patio, accent, security and permanent LED roofline lighting for residential and commercial properties. Working out of Greenville, South Carolina, they cover Upstate South Carolina and Western North Carolina. The consultation is free and the design is drawn for your property. Call (864) 252-1732 or email
[email protected].