Landscape Lighting Orlando, FL can take a basic backyard and transform it into an enchanting escape after dark. It can also make walkways safer by highlighting potential tripping hazards.
Lights can be used to highlight trees, bushes, trellis, fountains and other garden features. Uplights, positioned on the underside of a tree to create shadowing, can make a dramatic impact.
If you’re looking for a way to make your home stand out in the evening, consider landscape lighting. This simple yet effective investment will elevate your curb appeal, and increase the value of your property.
A well-designed landscape lighting system will showcase your home’s unique architecture and features of your landscaping. It will provide a welcoming sight for you, your family, friends and guests, and also those passing by. It will highlight your home and landscaping for all to see, day or night.
There are many ways to add lighting for curb appeal, but the key is to choose lights that enhance and complement your home’s architecture and landscape. Choose a style that matches your personal taste and suits your home’s design.
For example, a Central Florida house with classical architectural elements like columns and arches can be highlighted by using downlights and uplights to illuminate those elements. For a modern or contemporary home, try illuminating those distinctive architectural details with light that casts interesting shadows.
Other important factors to consider when choosing lighting are safety and security. Ensure that stairs and pathways are properly illuminated to safely guide family members and guests. This is especially important this time of year when it gets dark so early.
Then, consider the safety and security of your driveway and sidewalks. Lighting is an excellent deterrent for intruders, and a well-lit walkway can also help prevent falls.
Lastly, lighting can highlight water features and other decorative elements in your yard, making them more appealing at night. Whether it’s the gentle movement of a fountain or the colorful lights in your seasonal planters, lighting can bring these features to life.
Installing your own landscape lighting may seem like a fun and rewarding DIY project, but it is always best to work with a professional installer. They will have the expertise to ensure your lighting design meets your goals, and they will have access to a wider range of high-quality fixtures. They will also know how to incorporate controls (timers, photocells or smart home integration systems) and how to run wires so that you don’t have unsightly exposed cables in your yard.
Safety
Whether you’re using the lighting for ambiance or safety, proper installation and routine maintenance are key. You should always follow local electrical codes and consider consulting a professional for complex installations. You’ll also want to invest in safety equipment. A hard hat and steel-toed boots are essential for cutting, stripping, and handling wiring. You should also wear eye protection, as even a small piece of debris can cause a serious brain injury.
Landscape lights help to improve the safety of your outdoor space. Well-lit paths, stairs, and entrances reduce the risk of trips and falls for family members and guests and can highlight any potential obstacles or tripping hazards. Landscape lighting is also a great deterrent to potential criminals. Burglars are less likely to target properties that are well-lit, as they are more likely to be seen and caught.
In addition to improving safety, landscape lighting can create a more enchanting and welcoming nighttime atmosphere. By highlighting the unique features of your garden and home, you can transform your outdoor spaces into a magical escape after dark.
A properly installed and maintained lighting system will also increase the value of your property. The increased visibility of your landscaping will attract more visitors, which in turn will boost your home’s curb appeal and overall value.
As with any type of lighting, it’s important to consider the purpose and design of your landscape lighting when choosing fixtures and color temperatures. You’ll also want to make sure that the lighting is well-balanced and doesn’t create an overpowering effect.
Maintaining your landscape lighting is relatively easy and involves a few simple steps. First, keep the area clear of leaves and other debris to prevent damage and overheating. You should also replace bulbs proactively, as this can help to prevent voltage overloads on your system. Finally, you should regularly check and adjust your lighting to account for changes in your landscaping or seasonal adjustments.
Ambiance
There are many ways to use landscape lighting to create a gorgeous and inviting outdoor space. Some uses include illuminating walkways, accenting boulders and garden structures, and highlighting architectural features on your home. Others may incorporate more artistic elements like enhancing texture, creating shadows and contrast, or drawing the eye to specific areas. A well-designed lighting system can also increase the overall safety of your yard by properly illuminating steps, stairs, and decks.
The most common type of landscape light is a floodlight, which is useful for brightening large areas from above. They are available in a range of lumens to suit your needs. Other types of landscape lights include spotlights, which have a narrower beam and are useful for highlighting particular features. They are often used to highlight statues, or to illuminate steps and handrails. Uplights are another landscape lighting option that can be installed under trees or around patios. They can bring the details of a structure to life, or can be angled to create a dramatic effect that highlights the underside of plant foliage.
Accent lights are typically small fixtures with narrow-beam bulbs that can be used to highlight specific plants, textures and other elements of your landscape. They are also great for grazing the base of walls and fences or for highlighting the edges of paving materials. In-ground well lights are another landscape lighting option that can be used to illuminate plants, rock gardens or other features without obstructing their beauty.
Finally, color changing lights are a popular landscape lighting option that allows you to set the mood for any event or occasion. They come in a variety of bulb sizes and fixture styles, with some even being battery operated or connected to a smart home integration system for automated control.
Installing a landscape lighting system can be a DIY project, but it’s best to hire a professional installer to ensure the installation is done correctly. They will help you plan your layout and map out the lighting design, including fixture locations and cable routes. They will also ensure that the wattage of each fixture is properly matched to avoid overloading the transformer. Once the system is installed, maintenance is relatively simple, with regular checks for leaves and debris blocking fixtures.
Value
A well-lit home with an attractive landscape offers value in a number of ways. For one, it bolsters safety by illuminating walkways to prevent potential trip hazards and enhances security by deterring potential intruders. It also allows homeowners to extend outdoor living space and enjoy their property long after the sun goes down. And, as a result, it adds resale value, enabling homeowners to sell their home for more than they would without the lighting.
A landscape lighting system typically includes several fixtures and a power source. These can range from simple, low-cost pathway lights to more elaborate, professionally-designed fixtures that use a variety of techniques to illuminate walls, trees, fountains, art pieces and other landscape elements. Pricing for the installation of these fixtures can vary from a few hundred dollars to several thousand, depending on the size of the project and the types of fixtures used. Regardless of the size and complexity of your project, it’s always best to seek out professional design and installation services, which can help minimize the upfront costs and maximize long-term benefits.
When choosing a light fixture, consider the bulbs that will be used with it. LED bulbs are currently the industry standard, providing greater durability and energy efficiency than traditional halogen options. Moreover, LEDs consume between one and 11 watts of power, whereas halogen bulbs use 20 to 60 watts — significantly less energy that will reduce your electricity bill over time.
While a lighting system can remain in place for years or even decades, it is still important to regularly inspect and maintain it to ensure optimal performance. In addition to keeping the system clean and free of debris, it is a good idea to replace bulbs when they are burned out or nearing end of life. And, as your landscape grows and changes, so should your light system – relocating fixtures to new areas of the yard, replacing bulbs as needed, and adding additional lights as desired are all part of ensuring the continued beauty of your landscape lighting.
When it comes to making upgrades that will elevate your home’s aesthetics and improve its functionality, landscape lighting stands out as a high-impact investment with significant resale value.