If you want to install a low-maintenance, eco-friendly landscape lighting system, LED garden light fixtures give you the most variety and also the biggest bang for your environmental buck. Compared to incandescent, or even compact florescent light bulbs, LEDs use exponentially less energy and put out more light, reducing your power bills and helping out the environment along the way. Depending on what type of LED light you buy, the installation process can be either simple or require an extra step or two.
There are essentially two types of LED landscape lighting that you can use in your lawn and the difference is in how they are powered. You can choose either solar LED garden light or LED garden lighting that runs off of a low voltage circuit in your yard. Installing solar powered lights is a snap, because all you have to do is place the light and forget about it. The photovoltaic cell that powers the light, the battery that stores the power, and the LED itself are all contained in the same unit.
While solar powered lights are easy to install, many people opt instead for lights powered on a low voltage circuit. Solar LED lights need to be installed in areas there there’s a lot of direct sunlight, limiting where they can be place. You’re also relatively limited in the type of lights that you can buy because they have to be a certain size to be able to accommodate a photovoltaic cell big enough to power them. Opting instead for lights powered on a low-voltage circuit removes both of these limitations, letting you choose from thousands of different fixtures and place your lights where you want.
Solar LED lights working, even in bad conditions
However, if you decide to install low voltage lights, the installation process is a little more difficult than the one for solar lights. Luckily, it’s not out of the capabilities of most DIYers. First, you need to buy and install at 12v transformer that will have the wattage capacity to run all of the different light fixtures you want to run. If you’re installing a garden lighting system in your home for the first time, make sure that you get a LED transformer. These transformers guarantee a constant 12 volts to the line. If you use a traditional transformer, the wattage can vary slightly, which will damage your LED lights.
If you want to add LEDs to an existing landscape lighting system, it is possible, but you need to find the right lights. Make sure that you find LED fixtures that are marked on the box that they are able to be used with a traditional 12 volt transformer. Another option, if you are planning on expanding your existing lighting plan, is to run two transformers. The existing transformer that you have will be used to power the incandescent fixtures, while the brand new LED transformer will be used to run the LED ones.
LEDs make a great addition to any garden lighting plan. They are expensive initially, but over the long run they will save you money and time (because you only have to replace the bulbs once every few years), and even help to protect the environment. Not only that, installation is a snap and usually doesn’t take any longer than normal light fixtures would, unless you need to install a new transformer. Some great deals can be found on LED lights around the internet, so make sure to search online for great deals before you head down to your local lawn care store.
