Part I: The Big Three
You’ve driven by that house a thousand times before and never even noticed it. But tonight: “Pow!” the house jumped out at you from the dark. They just installed professional landscape lighting and it makes a world of difference. You actually pull over to the side of the road to get a better look.
As you marvel at the intricate detail of the brick-work in the front façade and the color of the ornamental trees highlighted by the new lighting, you consider what landscape lighting can do for your home and landscape.
The Big Three
But how can you ensure that you get a landscape lighting system that meets your needs? Here are the main three questions to consider before consulting a landscape lighting designer:
- Why do you want landscape lighting?
- Where do you spend your time?
- What is your budget?
Why do you want landscape lighting?
People install landscape lighting for a variety of reasons; however, the main reasons are for safety, security, and aesthetics.
Safety—you are looking for landscape lighting to help you and your guest to navigate through your landscape. You want paths illuminated along with any grade or direction changes.
Security—you want to make sure your family and property are secure from intruders. An interesting note: many people believe that large flood lights are the best type of security lighting when, in fact, that’s not true. Bright lights create darker shadows where people can hide due to the higher light contrast. Low-level lighting is best for security because it allows your eyes to pick up subtle movements more easily.
Aesthetics—you want the beauty of your home and landscape to show. This is done by illuminating the unique features in your landscape.
They are not mutually exclusive. More than likely, if you are attempting to fulfill one goal you will meet or enhance the other two.
For example, if your main reason for lighting your home is to highlight its unique architecture, you will also increase the security and safety of your landscape. The added illumination will both deter burglars and make the area safer because of the increased visibility.
Whatever your reasons are for wanting a lighting system, make sure your lighting professional understands what you want so that he or she can design a system that specifically meets your needs.
Where do you spend your time?
This is one of the most important questions to ask yourself. Since you are investing your hard-earned money in a lighting system, you should get the most enjoyment out of the system. A thoughtfully designed landscape lighting system should take into consideration where you spend your time and how you spend your time both in your home and in your landscape. It should also consider how you will spend time in those areas in the future. For instance, do want to spend time entertaining on your deck? If so, consider lighting your deck as well as the boundaries of your property.
Most people spend a lot of time in the kitchen. Do you have any interesting trees or sculpture, or water feature that will make washing dishes a more pleasurable experience if it were illuminated? Do you like to relax while listening to music in your den? Wouldn’t it be great to see your Japanese Maple in the backyard aglow framed in the picture window at the same time? Your lighting design should add to your enjoyment of your property from both inside and outside your home.
What is your budget?
Your budget is another important item to consider. A professionally installed lighting system will usually cost between $275 to $350 per fixture depending on the installation difficulty and selected fixtures. That cost includes all installation charges and should include at least a one year warranty. Therefore, if you have 10-fixture lighting design, you can expect to pay between $2,750 to $3,500 dollars.
Some homeowners have an issue with disclosing their budget to a lighting contractor because they believe they will not receive a fair estimate. But without this information to guide them, a lighting designer may end up wasting both his or her time—and your time as well—with a plan that does not fit your budget.
Next week, we’ll talk about other important questions to consider. Stay tuned! Get in touch with us if you’re interested in landscape lighting for your home.
This is part one of a three-part series on landscape lighting.