Exterior lighting is what gives a home presence at night. With the new varieties of lighting styles and energy efficient options, homes can take exterior lighting to the next level by adding a dramatic flair to your home when the sun goes down. There are numerous types of exterior lighting so let’s take a look at what might work best for your new home.
Floodlights
If a dramatic aesthetic is what you’re looking for, look no further. Floodlights are a perfect solution for selectively lighting portions of your home’s exterior, or in higher numbers, lighting up much of the exterior from select angles. Floodlight are available in different colours so they can be changed throughout the year to celebrate the seasons. As bright white light, floodlights increase security at night by making sure you have a well-lit property.
Walkway lighting
Walkway lighting is important for safety but it can add a distinctive visual impact to the landscaping and curb appeal of your home. Low-voltage downward facing lights create an ambiance reminiscent of elegant resorts and are the most common solution you’ll find in most hardware or lighting stores. If you are building new, you can explore embedding small LED lights directly into the edge of your concrete walkway or driveway for a distinctive contemporary aesthetic which will make visitors take a second look. There are myriad choices available so something is bound to fit your style!
Decks and stairs
Decks and stairs are great spots to add accent and safety lighting. The best part about the safety lighting, is you don’t have to sacrifice style for functionality. Small vent-style lights or miniature lanterns can create just enough soft light to make the stairs and deck visible but it also adds a layer of comfort to those sitting outside at night.
Landscape lighting
Landscape lighting is all about illuminating features of your yard. Take trees, for example. If your property contains several trees or perhaps one focal point with a large/rare tree, landscape lighting is a great way to draw the eye to these features. Consider a floodlight at the base of a tree, lighting it from below or even a light behind a tree providing a glow at night. Bollards are not only great for walkways but can be placed amoungst garden plants to add incredible texture to your yard at night.
Post lanterns
Post lanterns usually work best with larger properties but are not limited to them. Similar to the lamp posts you’d see in a classic film, these make a great accent piece at the end of a driveway or a spot near a gathering area in your yard where you wish to have strong outdoor light. Traditional lantern styles are quite common but options can be found to match a contemporary home design.
Lanterns and torches
While tiki torches can get the job done, they require fuel and are not child-friendly. Torch lighting has come a long way, though, as solar torches are now both affordable and convenient solutions to solving your light problems. They are great year-round as they only require a few hours of sunlight to maintain their glow and winter is certainly the darkest part of the year. Lantern lighting attached to the home can be wired much like a regular light but strategically placed fire and solar-powered lanterns make for great ambiance.
Cove lighting
This style of lighting goes especially well with homes featuring recessed walls, covered walkways, outdoor railings–basically any features where you can hide a line of strip lighting to give viewers the illusion of a glowing home. Strip LED lighting is bright and comes in numerous colours, making it flexible for any home design but the idea is to conceal the placing of the strip so it is not immediately visible.
A great example of using cove lighting would be a covered front exterior foyer. By tucking the strips into the deeper parts of the roof and railings, the glow is seen from afar but the lighting is no where to be found.
Smart lighting
Recent innovations in LED and high efficiency lighting have been married to smart phone technology. Homeowners can now install outdoor safe smart LED lights featuring unlimited colours choices and strengths, while being able to control them all from a smart phone.
Most outdoor or garden lighting systems come with timers or photo-censors that detect and turn on when it starts to become dark outside. Timers and schedules can now be made from the comfort of your living room. With GPS on your phone, your home lighting can even be set-up to detect your location and turn on your exterior lights as you are driving up to your home.
Smart lighting technology allows homeowners to control their exterior lighting in ways never seen before. If your lighting isn’t already “smart” you can simply add an outdoor smart plug or smart light switch to control your exterior lighting from your phone.
Lighting is a great way to bring your chosen aesthetic outdoors and with so many options available you can find something to will fit your style and meet your budget.