Exterior & Garden Lighting

Exterior and garden lighting to improve your curb appeal

If you want your home to look warm and inviting in the evening, then you need to choose your exterior and garden lighting carefully! You want to have lights that lets you see at night, illuminates the exterior for safety reasons, but at the same time it can’t be too bright as you don’t want them to keep you up at night, or your neighbors!

Exterior and garden lighting might often seem like an afterthought but if you take your time choosing the right ones, your home and curb appeal will increase!

There are several points to consider making the exterior and garden lighting an asset to your home:

Select durable lights

Even thou exterior light fixtures are designed to endure the weather, their durability differs. Some models aims to be water resistant and others to withstand all weather types. Where you live and where you place the light will therefore have an impact of the durability. When living in a warmer climate your fixture won’t face the same wear and tear as climates with more variations, the same if you would place your light in a sheltered area.

The material you choose for the fixture can affect where it can be placed. Consider the pros and cons with the materials available as plastic can maybe withstand moist but easily crack in warm weathers and metal that is strong and durable but could be affected by the moist sea air.

Try LED lights

The bulb requirements will be different for individual fixtures but for an energy efficient and customizable experience you should select LED lights when possible. These are long-lasting, durable and you have the possibility to incorporate smart LED bulbs that can be controlled remotely if needed.

Decide on a reasonable size

When deciding on the exterior lighting, make sure to pick the right size! If choosing a too small light fixtures, they will look as of the house is a gigantic and when picking too big, then they will look like the giants!

The standard guide to selecting the right size of the light fixture for the entrance is: a 1/3 of the height of the door for one light and 1/4 of the height of the door when having two lights. The same with the light by the garage doors etc. But if you want decorative lights for your garden or patio, then you should choose smaller light fixtures and maybe string lights to set the ambiance.

Pick a good color for your home

Next to size, you should select outdoor lighting that fits the style of your house. Use the lighting fixtures to complement the look or enhance it! As you have so many models to choose between, take your time here and gather inspiration from other homes with similar styles.

Try frosted glass!

There is a myth that frosted glass softens the light and therefore most outdoor lights usually come with clear glass. Frosted glass does mute the intensity of the light but at the same time it also amplifies the coverage area meaning, a lower wattage lightbulb with frosted glass will cover as much space as a higher wattage bulb with clear glass! This could be an additional way to save on electricity!

The frosted glass is also easy to maintain outside as compared to clear glass, it requires minimal cleaning to look clean.

Decide on the right strength

When deciding on the right wattage for your light you do need to consider the placement and usage of the light fixture. If you want security lighting or to light up a dark driveway, you should probably choose a higher wattage bulb to maximize illumination. But if it’s decorative cozy lighting for your porch or for your front door, you could save money and choose a lower wattage bulb.

In general, warmer more dimmed bulbs are better for outdoor settings, as they brighten the area without creating too harsh a contrast.

Save energy with solar!

Another way of saving energy is selecting outdoor light that runs on solar energy. You also won’t need to worry about electric wiring outside and that can save you a lot of trouble.

Wired fixtures will provide stronger light and the solar powered lights won’t reach that same intensity so make sure to place them in spots where the brightness is not too important.