Many people will choose to spend their vacations at home this year instead of traveling. You can make your home a mini vacation by updating your lighting. It’s possible to make your patio, deck, or pool area a beautiful retreat with just a few simple changes. Instead of spending a lot on a set of patio chairs or expensive designer furniture that will soon lose their appeal, you can invest in new lighting that will enhance the existing outdoor furniture.
“Creating a beautiful landscape doesn’t have to be expensive,”Rick Wiedemer from Hinkley Lighting. “A few well-placed, low-voltage path or accent lights can make a huge impact on a well-manicured landscape.”No lawn is too small. “Even modest homes or those with limited yards or gardens can benefit,”He says.
There are only a few tools that you need: a transformer, which reduces standard 120-volt household voltage to the safe 12-volt range), and outdoor low-voltage cable. You can also find low-voltage lighting fixtures at your local ALA lighting showroom.
“The best thing about using low-voltage lighting outdoors is you don’t have to do everything at once. I recommend purchasing a transformer that is larger than you immediately need,”Lew Waltz, Philips Hadco. So, when you’re ready for additional lighting, the bigger transformer will be ready and waiting. “You only pay for the energy consumed by the fixtures,” says Waltz. “In other words, a 600-watt transformer that only has 200 watts of fixtures on it, uses 200 watts of energy, not 600.”
Remember that light is important outdoors. Talking to a professional lighting designer at your local ALA-member lighting shop can help you avoid the common mistake of having too many fixtures in one place. Visit www.illuminatingallareasofyourhome.com for more information. www.AmericanLightingAssoc.com.
