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Lowe’s expert, Mike Kraft, shows viewers how to install low voltage and solar outdoor landscape lighting. Learn how to illuminate your garden, patio or path with attractive landscape lighting and light kits. For more videos like this one, visit www.Lowes.com
Tags: garden lights, install, installing, landscape lighting kits, outdoor lamp, outdoor lanterns, outdoor lighting, outdoor path lighting, outdoor patio lighting, outdoor solar lights, solar landscape lighting
Posted in Outdoors · March 10th, 2010 · Comments (2)
The key to success with most projects is to clearly identify from the start what it is you aim to achieve – and installing solar garden lighting is no different. Do you want to increase security around your property, provide courtesy lighting for visitors, entertain family and friends, or quite simply make your garden more appealing at night?
The likelihood is of course that your initial list of requirements will include at least some of these plus a few others for good measure. But by going through this basic planning phase and identifying various zones and possible types of light fitting you will be much better placed to understand how to balance the variety of demands placed on your outdoor solar lighting.
For example, while solar deck lights work well in decks and just about anything else wooden you can think of to attach them to, as a deterrent against intruders they’re really not up to the job. But likewise, using powerful solar floodlights to illuminate your outdoor entertaining area is not going to help create a great ambience, and while low power colored light are pretty and not so “in your face” they’re hopeless if you want your guests to at least see what they’re doing.
Outdoor solar lights that are intended to be primarily functional in nature (rather than simply appearing attractive) are easiest to install since the criteria they have to meet are typically well defined. When illuminating a pathway, for example, the simple test is whether the lighting does indeed enable you to safely navigate the path at night. Likewise, solar security lights should fully flood those areas you wish to secure against possible intruders.
Decorative solar garden lighting doesn’t have to conform to specific requirements in the same way as functional lighting but there are still some guidelines worth noting. First and most obvious is that solar lights need to recharge each day which means either the lights themselves (or their solar panel if using an external charging system) need to be sited in a sunny daytime location.
Second, solar garden lights, even those fitted with high brightness LED bulbs, are almost always not as bright as mains powered garden lights. The reason is simply that they have only the single battery charge to last many hours, whereas mains powered lights have effectively an unlimited of power. However, this feature can be put to very good use in a number of ways, one of which is to densely pack solar lights together for interesting effects that are difficult to achieve with mains lighting.
Third, one of the major advantages of solar garden lighting is that not only is it incredibly easy to install in the first place, but almost more importantly it is very easy to experiment with the installation until you get it just right. You’re not quite literally tied to a fixed length cable and can keep on adjusting the layout as required (if needs to be to suit plant growth or die back as seasons change).
Lastly, always remember whose garden it is – yours. There is absolutely nothing to stop you indulging in whatever whimsy takes your fancy. It is all but impossible to make a garden look worse with outdoor solar lighting and the truth is that almost any type of garden lighting always looks way better than not having any at all.
If you found this interesting then be sure to check out this additional article that explores solar garden lights in greater detail.
Tags: garden, garden lighting, Gardening, Home, landscape lighting, landscaping, lighting, outdoor lighting, security lighting, solar, solar deck lights, solar garden lighting, solar lanscape lighting, solar lighting, solar security lights
Posted in Gardening · November 13th, 2009 · Comments (0)