What are some mistakes that DIYers make with outdoor lighting?
Hiring professional lighting designers guarantees a beautifully lit landscape. You can opt for strategic uplighting on trees and vital architectural features to make your landscape more attractive. Unfortunately, that’s impossible with DIY lighting.
Before you do it yourself, understand the common landscape lighting mistakes made by most DIYers. Here’s why the outdoor lighting pros are always the best option: Click To Tweet
- Unrealistic Project Budget
- Wrong Fixture Location
- Lighting Glare
- Inferior Lighting Products
- Too Many Fixtures
- Not Enough Fixtures
1) Unrealistic Project Budget
While the lighting effect is the most crucial part of landscape lighting, it doesn’t mean that you should buy low-quality fixtures. Prepare a realistic budget for the fixtures and materials for installing them. Don’t invest much in cheap fixtures because they wear out quickly when exposed to sunlight, rain, and snow.
2) Wrong Fixture Location
Another costly mistake is installing fixtures in the wrong places, such as path lighting in turf areas. In that case, the fixtures can quickly get damaged. Don’t install the fixtures on lawns where hedgers and mowers pass because they can destroy the fixtures. Instead, install the fixtures on flower beds or core points to illuminate.
3) Lighting Glare
Most DIYers don’t always consider the effects of glaring lights. The primary objective of landscape lighting is to create a light effect that illuminates landscape elements and not the light source itself. If the light coming directly from the lamp is too bright for the eyes, it distracts your eyes from the overall effect you are trying to create.
4) Inferior Lighting Products
Most DIYers go for cheaper, low-quality products when buying landscape lighting lamps and fixtures. Unfortunately, these products have short lifespans. The best thing to do is hire a professional lighting designer to help you buy high-quality lighting fixtures.
5) Too Many Fixtures
You don’t need to install many fixtures on a landscape to make it look more beautiful. Unfortunately, that’s one of the biggest mistakes most DIYers make. Too many lights on the pathways make them look like airport runways and can blind you rather than help you see where to step. Strategically fixing a few lights encourages soft lighting.
6) Not Enough Fixtures
While most homeowners usually use too many lighting fixtures, some may install a few. Unfortunately, a few lighting fixtures may not bring out the desired effect. If you notice some dark areas after installing some landscape lights, consider adding some lighting to illuminate the remaining dark spots.
Avoid These Mistakes by Working with the Experts
These DIY landscape lighting mistakes are avoidable. The best way to prevent such errors from occurring is by hiring a professional lighting designer who understands all the landscape lighting ideas. The good news is that AM Garden can help you through each step of the process.
Contact us today for reliable and affordable landscape lighting solutions.