Lighting The Way: 4 Mistakes To Avoid When Installing Outdoor Lighting

A home's landscaping is what makes or breaks its curb appeal, and outdoor lighting has a large influence on the landscaping's overall appearance. According to a U.S. Houzz Landscaping Trends Study in 2017, 16% of homeowners feel that outdoor lighting is the most important feature in the front yard to boost curb appeal. Consulting an outdoor lighting service can be an exciting step in your landscaping journey, but be sure to avoid these lighting mistakes.

1. Blinding Glare: What you don't want your landscape lighting to do is blind anyone coming into your home or anyone on your neighbor's property. In both mounted features and lawn fixtures, if the light source -- typically a bulb -- can be seen, a viewer will likely experience glare. Post-top fixtures or lantern style porch lights with clear glass commonly produce glare and can make it difficult to look at your home or front door. Select fixtures with frosted or tinted glass diffusers, or fixtures that are designed specifically to shield the light source from onlookers.


2. Close Placement to Plants: Many outdoor lighting services will install fixtures like spotlights or well lights to highlight your landscaping's foliage. This can often produce interesting shadows and silhouettes that add dimension to your front yard at night. To avoid unseemly glare on the plants and trees or the risk of them growing over your lights, make sure the fixture is positioned appropriately. If you want your fixtures in a certain spot close to the plant, you will have to prune the plants regularly to maintain the functionality of the light.


3. Over-Illumination: Too many path lights or mounted lights with high wattage can over-illuminate your yard and make it look like a helicopter's spotlight is on your home. You do not need path lights lining every inch of your front walkway, just enough to mark a reasonable distance forward or an upcoming turn. For mounted lights, find the lowest wattage that gives enough light to see by. Typically, the minimum level of illumination is the most aesthetically-pleasing.


4. Incompatible Size: When the lighting fixtures appear too small or too big for the outdoor space, your entire landscaping will seem off balance. As you work with your outdoor lighting service, test different mounted and yard fixtures to find the ones that fit your home's size and compliment the existing architecture.

After the sun sets, your party shouldn't have to end and your guests shouldn't have to work their way through the darkness to get to their cars. Install functional and stylish outdoor lighting that will keep your party going well into the night.