Yard Lighting: More than a Style Choice

Posted on July 3, 2021

Beautiful yard space is more than just an expensive, optional extra to your home. A well-crafted yard can form essentially another room in your house. Especially during recent world events, most of us have taken to spending time with friends and family outside, rather than in our homes.

It’s becoming more popular than ever for homeowners to revamp their yard space. Naturally, you don’t want your socializing to end when the sun goes down. So, this means you’ll need yard lighting. What kind of yard lighting is best for your garden space? Is it better to do it yourself, or should you hire a professional?

Why Choose Yard Lighting Carefully

Chances are, you’ll need more than a string of fairy lights to illuminate your garden space. Properly placed landscape lighting is more complex than adding an extra lamp to a room. LED lights are generally the most powerful. However, if you add too many LED lights, the effect could be too overpowering.

Beware of colored lights. The tinted effect may seem pleasing, to begin with, but try and imagine how your garden will look with red or pink-hued lights everywhere. That may not be the vibe you’re going for.

If you have a large yard, you may want to consult a professional. The lighting needs to be correctly and safely wired up – nobody wants wires running everywhere.

Styles and Lighting Options

When it comes to lighting up your yard and garden space, the possibilities are endless. Resist the temptation to light up everything. Certain areas of your yard need to be highlighted more than others – and it is possible to go overboard.

What to Highlight

You may immediately think of your feature pieces. Perhaps you have a beautiful water feature that you’d like to be lit up or an ancient old tree in the center of your green. Highlighting beauty spots in your yard is certainly a good idea, but don’t neglect functionality.

You should also consider illuminating paths, or even adding motion sensors to large, dark areas of your yard. If there are particular areas of your yard that you’re likely to gather in (for example, a patio) you may want to consider keeping that area especially well-lit.

Lighting Types

The end goal of landscape and yard lighting is to enjoy the light’s effects. The lights themselves are often designed to be subtle and unobtrusive. However, for areas that require more light, spotlights and floodlights offer brighter, steadier beams of light.

Spotlights can be used to create a tremendous variety of effects. Placing spotlights in overhanging foliage or trees gives a “moonlight” effect. You can also use spotlights to create silhouettes and shadows.

Inground or post lighting is subtler and often provides a warm, gentle light. This type of lighting is popular to illuminate driveways or paths.

Other accent lights could be placed on or around decking. Popular water feature lights are submerged in the water itself, giving a vibrant internal glow. Uplights are accent lights that shine directly onto a feature. For example, you could use uplights to highlight plants, wall plaques or signs, or even features and statues.

You should also consider the materials your lights are made from. Wooden houses are beautiful and fashionable, but untreated wood can corrode over time. You need lights that can withstand all weathers, and last a long time. If your lights are going to be on all the time, for example, path or driveway lights, LED bulbs can be cheaper and last longer. They can also provide a better quality of light.

How Much is Too Much?

It can be tempting to get carried away. Of course, you want to highlight the features of your yard space. However, if you highlight everything, then nothing will stand out. The idea is to make your yard space look different at night than it does during the day. Shadows can be beautiful and can enhance new areas.

Lighting up everything ruins this effect. It also costs more – don’t forget that yard lighting will bump up your electric bill. You may also receive complaints from neighbors that your yard is keeping them awake!

Benefits of Yard Lighting

A properly lit yard has plenty of benefits. Aside from adding extra safety (there’s no chance of a guest tripping into the decorative pond in the dark), it also adds a security feature. Motion-activated floodlights are a great deterrent to thieves and trespassers.

Proper lighting means that you can use your yard at any time of the day and night. Last but not least, lighting adds beauty to your well-crafted yard space!

When You Need a Professional

Properly lighting up your yard can be intimidating. Especially if you have a large yard, you might find yourself unsure of where to start.

In that case, you may be better off consulting with professional landscape lighting services. Aside from the aesthetic aspect, you need to consider a more practical element. Wiring up lighting to a large yard is no easy task. Nobody wants wires trailing everywhere, and badly set up wiring could lead to trip hazards, faulty lighting, or even fires.

As well as offering a safe set up, professional lighting services can give helpful advice. They can help you figure out which elements of your yard should be highlighted, and what kind of lighting would be best for you.

Don’t be tempted to settle for cheap lighting. Yard lighting isn’t something you should worry about constantly changing or maintaining. Properly set up yard lighting should be durable and long-lasting, able to cope with the elements.

It’s worth considering yard lighting if you’re planning to sell your home. A beautifully highlighted yard can add extra value to your home. In fact, a nice garden can be a make-or-break moment for some buyers.

Regardless of whether you’re lighting up your yard for your own enjoyment (and those evening barbeques!) or to add value to your home, take your time and plan wisely!