There are plenty of benefits for homeowners who decide to install outdoor garden lighting. Home beautification during evening and night time hours along with another layer of safety and security helps families and visitors navigate throughout the yard after the sunsets while giving potential intruders a reason to stay away. When you decide that outside landscape lighting is right for you then you will have to make a decision about the type of outside lighting you would like to display around your yard. Solar or electric or maybe you may want a combination of both. You can review the pros and cons of both types and decide which is best for you.
Light emitted by electrical outdoor lighting systems is brighter and remains more constant with these lights compared to solar powered landscape lights. However, be aware of the Total Costs should you choose electrical lighting. Also installation time required for this landscape lighting style and accessibility to an outside power source need to be major planning considerations. Obviously, both in-line electrical lights and solar powered landscape lights will incur costs for the light fixtures themselves, both styles are comparable in cost. However, electrical yard lights (12v) requires the purchase of a transformer resulting in an additional cost of at least $200. No additional equipment or outside power access is needed for solar powered landscape lighting.
Installation of electrical outdoor landscape lighting requires much more planning and execution compared to solar powered outdoor lights. When you are working with an outside power source you must also consider other electrical components that may be in or around your yard as well. You may need to route or reroute other power cables as you plan the electrical lighting installation. This is a non-issue with outdoor solar lighting providing that adequate sunlight is available throughout the day to power your landscape lighting. As far as planning goes with solar garden lighting, you can simply pick a spot and stake a solar light fixture into the ground.
With electrical lighting begin by deciding how you want to illuminate your front entrance and the paths leading to the front of your home. Then you can work outward planning for the lighting of steps or walkways around the house. Hopefully, you will have adequate power supply around your home to maintain steady and reliable power for not just your lights but other outside features such as a pond or pool pump or other electrical equipment. You do not want to resort to using cumbersome and potentially dangerous extension cords around your yard to provide adequate power access. As the homeowner you will have to decide if you can tackle these steps or if you need to hire an electrician or landscape contractor. Once again such extensive planning or outsourcing with outside solar powered lighting is not necessary.
After a site is selected electrical garden lighting systems require a bit of trenching and cable connections to prevent the visibility and exposure of the power cables connecting the landscape lights to the power supply. Once aligned the power cords are buried and hopefully you are completely happy with their finished look as location changes will require you to repeat these steps. Solar powered garden lights are simply staked into the ground and easily relocate at any time.
As you can see outdoor garden lighting requires planning and consideration. When reviewing electrical landscape lighting the quality of light will be brighter and remain consistent. Depending on the preferences of the homeowner, his landscape lighting goals, and of course the budget, he may prefer to use this method. However, if time, money, and power conservation are more critical considerations then the use of outside solar powered landscape lighting is a great option.
