The Best 30 Do’s and Don’t of Landscape Lighting Design

To help you create the best landscape lighting design for your property and backyard, our experienced landscape lighting experts have compiled a list of over 30 landscape lighting Do’s and Don’ts. We encourage you to read this list before planning your next design, making any purchases and installing any bulb, fixture or wire.

Why is this important?

Landscape lighting systems have become increasingly popular among homeowners. Think back to the last time you took a drive through any residential neighbourhood after dark. Chances are the majority of homes you passed by had some form of landscape lighting. This is because today’s landscape lighting systems provide homeowners with a wide variety of benefits. Sure, there’s the obvious aesthetic benefit of illuminating the unique architectural features of you home, but there are many other benefits as well. Some of these additional benefits include added safety, improved security and an increase in the overall value of your home.

With all these benefits provided by effective landscape lighting system, it’s no wonder that outdoor lighting has become a popular area for homeowners to focus on. However, if you do not have knowledge of current lighting design trends, techniques and best practices, you may end up with an ineffective and tacky-looking design. Worse yet, if you opt for a DIY installation, you could wind up creating potential safety hazards around your home and property.

Here is our list of Do’s for landscape Lighting:

Do install outdoor lighting

Many people spend a fortune on a beautiful landscape, only to have it shrouded in darkness come sunset. However, it’s the nightscape that creates some of the most dramatic effects on your yard, so don’t miss out on a beautiful landscaping opportunity!

An outdoor lighting system can increase the time you have to enjoy your beautiful property. What’s more, your landscape is often the first thing a visitor will see at your home, and as the saying goes, you only have one chance to make a great first impression. An outdoor lighting system will show your guests and neighbours that you care about your home’s appearance, both outside and inside.

Do use professionals to design and install your outdoor lighting system

You wouldn’t let an amateur build your house, so why would you trust your outdoor lighting to some hardware store clerk?

We’ve all been to a house where a poorly positioned spotlight blinds us as we pull into the driveway. Our Nite Time Décor experts can take that spotlight and reposition it so it showcases a portion of your landscaping (rather than startling your visitors!). A professional knows how to do things properly. They know how voltage works and how to work with it. Professionally installed outdoor lighting system is just that – a system. Not a haphazard spew of randomly placed lights.

Do use a variety of lights

Using the same kind of lights – same colour, same intensities  – in all areas of your landscape lighting design will not help you achieve the aesthetic look you’re likely going for. Using the same lights across your whole system will make your landscape lighting design appear dull, flat and un-textured.

We recommend using a variety of lights that have different lighting angles, colours and intensities. This is not to say that you should use red, green and every colour under the rainbow, but rather that you should incorporate a variety of soft, warm colours throughout a number of areas around your home and property to create depth and ambiance.

Do use the right amount of fixtures

When it comes to the fixtures in your landscape lighting design, less is not always more. In fact, when homeowners try to cut costs by skimping on light fixtures, it often ends in disappointment. Sometimes, homeowners will opt to increase the brightness of their bulbs instead of purchasing and installing the appropriate amount of fixtures needed for their landscape lighting design. When this happens, it creates a stark contrast of extreme brightness and extreme darkness in your design. This is far from the ideal lighting style you are likely looking to achieve, and will act as more of a distraction than anything else.

If you are looking to cut costs, we recommend installing your landscape lighting system in phases or zones. Start by illuminating the area closest to your house and work your way out. This will help make the installation easier, less costly and will guarantee that each zone is illuminated in just the way you want it.

Do focus on your home

Before positioning outdoor landscape lighting around the natural features of your yard, light up your home. Highlight the walls of your house and the architectural features that make your home unique. This offers better security and safety, as well as a beautifully elegant backdrop for the rest of your outdoor lighting.

Do start by lighting the front elevation of your home

Starting your lighting at a higher elevation will help you set the balance of your lighting design. From there, you can move into smaller areas and focus on highlighting individual plants.

Do take your entire property into consideration

When installing garden lights, make sure that they mesh with the other fixtures in your landscape lighting design. A beautifully lit garden will look out of place if the rest of your property is under-lit or features few too many fixtures.

Do use lights to improve the safety of garden walkways

This will ensure that all areas, especially those that change levels (steps and stairs) receive the right level of lighting to prevent trips and falls.

Do prevent glare

Use shields to ensure that the light from your Burlington landscape lighting system is properly directed.

Do make use of multiple layers

As with many other areas of design, complexity in layers adds beauty to the overall effect of your landscape lighting. Using layers in an area of lighting adds depth and three dimensions to your outdoor landscape lighting. For instance, positioning several spotlights from different angles against a statue can create silhouettes and layers to offer a detailed lighting effect, which would not have been accomplished with only one light.

Do illuminate shrubs and other areas to improve security

Shining a light on these areas will eliminate possible intrusion points and improve the overall safety of your garden and yard.

Do make use of uplighting for a natural look

The uplighting landscape lighting technique draws the eye upwards, giving the plants in your garden the illusion of size and grandeur.

Do down light pathways

Proper pathway lighting with down lighting are highly underrated, and also very rare. It’s difficult to find situations in which you can adjust your landscape lighting so that a path is lit from above. So, if you find the opportunity, take it. This is a gorgeous way to add illumination and safety, and has the added appeal of being uncommon in outdoor lighting.

Do consider daylighting lighting options

When planning your garden lighting design, be sure to take dawn, dusk, and evening activities into consideration. This is when you’re most likely to be utilizing your garden for parties and social gatherings. Play with effects in these lighting situations in order to produce the perfect mood.

Do maintain your outdoor lighting

Just because your landscape lighting is installed, doesn’t mean you can forget it. For best results, regular cleaning and maintenance will be required.

For example, say you install our lovely area lights or tiki lamps and during one summer, there is a particularly violent windstorm. This could cause your lamps to be knocked out of alignment, causing the light to be splayed haphazardly throughout your yard. Or, after several years, maybe a light bulb burns out or electrical cords start creeping their way into view.

Luckily, professional landscape lighting installation companies are committed to providing you with quality customer service long after the installation has been completed. Visit our Service and Maintenance page for more information about how Nite Time Decor can continue to help you as the years go by.

Do consider LEDs from Nite Time Décor

LEDs are more than just the latest fad in trendy energy conservation. They really do the trick for offering beautiful outdoor landscape lighting while saving you money on your hydro bill. Though the initial start up cost appears pricey, the amount of money you’re saving in electricity more than makes up for it in the long term. Nite Time Décor has done the savings breakdown calculations on LEDs for you if you’re still not convinced.

Garden and landscape Lighting Don’ts – Be careful to avoid these mistakes:

Don’t forget the second story

While you’re figuring out how to light up your home, don’t forget to include the second story. With this, you’ll also want to include any peaks, pillars, overhangs, and other aspects that will look ethereal when illuminated above your lawn. Elevated lighting helps your lawn stand out in the night.

Don’t ignore small or dark spaces

Many homeowners focus purely on the larger, grandiose aspects of their landscaping. However, the small details are sometimes what can provide the loveliest accents to outdoor lighting.

Find the little areas in your garden that are easily forgotten, and offer them dignity in beauty through lighting. The benefit of this is also added security. When you light dark spaces, you create fewer holes for intruders to sneak through. Consider highlighting smaller features or areas of your garden in order to increase the “wow” factor of your design.

Don’t over illuminate

One of the major and most common mistakes that Nite Time Décor Oakville sees is the issue of over lighting. The beautiful thing about outdoor landscape lighting is that it doesn’t have to work hard to light up an ebony night.

Think of the moon and stars in the country – they are beautiful not because they ignite the brightness of the sun, but because they glitter and shimmer in a way that illuminates without blinding. Produce a similar effect with your landscape lighting design, and you’ll quickly leave the realm of airport tarmac and enter into an ethereal realm of splendour.

Don’t unintentionally create shadows

When you combine light without balance the result is unintentional shadowing. Lighting one area while leaving another in shadows doesn’t just look visually uneven, it will also reduce the safety and security of your property.

Don’t distract with light

Remember to direct light away from windows in order to reduce glare. Failure to do this could result in unwanted light reflections on your yard.

Don’t use low-powered lights

You may have created the perfect outdoor lighting design, measured it out diligently and perhaps even placed all the fixtures in the right places, but installing low-powered lights can cause any great design to fall flat.

With low-powered lights, the spread of your lights will be too weak to illuminate a large area, or the beam may only be able to light up a small portion of the object your trying to highlight.

To avoid low-powered lights, stay away from the cheap, low quality battery and solar-powered lights. Saving a buck or two may feel better on your wallet up front, but it will certainly cost you in the long run when you realize your outdoor lighting design is actually hurting your curb appeal.

Don’t be afraid to experiment

Use different wattages and beam spreads in order to create a truly unique lighting experience in your garden.

Don’t light for a runway

Countless numbers of homeowners make the mistake of lighting pathways and driveways with fixtures positioned in a straight line. This is boring, and tends to make your garden walk or driveway look like an airplane landing strip. Get creative with the placement – stagger the lights a bit to gain a more aesthetically pleasing outdoor lighting experience.

Don’t ignore limitations

Everything has its limits. When you’re choosing fixtures for your home, make sure to understand the limitations of both your home’s design, as well as the limitations of the fixture itself. Sometimes what you had envisioned for your home’s outdoor landscape lighting design just won’t work within the inherent boundaries of the architecture of your house. That’s okay: there are always solutions. And whatever solution you find is bound to look more beautiful for being perfectly tailored to the needs of your home.

Don’t isolate areas of your property

It can sometimes be difficult to decide what areas of your home and property are most important to include in your landscape lighting design. If you do not plan out your design correctly, you may end up isolating areas of your outdoor space. Take walkways and trees for example. These are common areas to illuminate in a landscape lighting design, however if you light up only these areas, and leave the surrounding areas completely unlit, you will isolate the space and create adverse effects.

To ensure you are not creating an extreme lighting contrast, we recommend incorporating other areas of the larger landscape into your outdoor lighting design. This can be as simple as placing lights in the plant beds and trees along the outer edge of your property.

Don’t forget your neighbours

In the dark, it’s easy to forget that your property is not isolated, and any addition of light can potentially affect the people next door. The form of light pollution caused by a glaring or unshielded outdoor lighting system is called light trespass. Not only will your neighbours find it annoying to have their sleep disturbed by your lights shining into a bedroom window, but it may also present a safety hazard if their steps and pathways are obscured by the glare from your home.

As you do your own thinking about the kind of lighting design you want, consider your neighbours with these tips:

Do aim before you fire

Every light should only illuminate the intended area and should never be directed along common lines of sight. When lights are improperly aimed, the resulting glare reduces rather than improves our eye’s ability to see at night and could cause danger.

Most fixtures you use should be adjustable, especially lights that are mounted at or above eye-level.

Lights that are vertically mounted, such as PAR lights and other types of spotlight should always be aimed at less than a 45 degree angle, and never straight out. While doing this, pay attention to the direction of the light and what other nearby areas might be affected.

Do shields up!

All good lighting designers will tell you: The thing to admire about a good lighting design is the effect it creates, and not the bulbs or fixtures used. If a bulb is clearly visible, then it is causing glare and it will throw light into unwanted areas, such as your neighbour’s yard.

Professionally designed fixtures that are intended for use in an outdoor lighting system will always be shielded. This allows for placement of the fixture in such a way that the beam can be accurately focused without exposing the bulb. It also prevents light from bleeding into surrounding areas. If your existing lighting uses an unshielded floodlight or other type of bulb, you can purchase shields to fit most sizes of fixture.

Don’t rely on solar lights

Solar lights may seem like a great, environmentally-conscious option in theory, but the fact is there are some downfall to using solar lights as well, and if you want to have a consistent and effective landscape lighting system, it’s best not to rely solely on solar lights. The main problem here comes from the inconsistency of the effectiveness of solar lighting. While they might work great in the summer months when the sun is shining bright for the majority of the day, you will see these lights perform 30-50 per cent less efficiently in the winter.

If you are looking for environmentally and energy-conscious ways to illuminate your outdoor space, we suggest using LED lights. LED lights use a fraction of the energy that hydrogen-based bulbs use and are reliable for use all year long. On top of that, LED lights also provide a wide variety of colour options to choose from.

Avoid making mistakes in your garden lighting design by planning your approach with a professional.

Do contact a professional

Whether you’re simply planning your next landscape lighting design, or you have a chosen design that’s ready to be installed, it’s best to contact a professional landscape lighting company.

At Nite Time Decor, our experienced team of landscape lighting professionals can help you design an outdoor lighting design that is perfectly suited to your home and property. We service homeowners and businesses throughout Hamilton, Halton, Burlington, Oakville and Mississauga, Ontario.   Contact us today to get started!

DIY vs Professionally Installed Outdoor Lighting – What is the Best?

The summer outdoor entertaining season is almost upon us. Is your yard guest-worthy? Why let all that hard landscaping effort go to waste once the sun goes down? With well-placed lighting, you can enjoy the beauty of your gardens and yard all night long. But lighting is expensive, we hear you.

Do you really need an expert or can you pull this off on your own?

DIY Projects

Budget

If your budget or interests dictate something simple like staked-in solar pathway lighting, definitely do that yourself.

The solar lighting is dependent on receiving enough sun so keep in mind how much sun that area receives, and how important it is to have good light year round. In winter especially, solar powered devices may be weaker than in the peak summer months. You’ll likely have to replace them frequently, but that leaves lots of opportunities to change things up.

Cheaper Low-Voltage Products

There are a variety of boxed outdoor lighting sets in numerous shapes, sizes, and prices on the market. These are typically low-voltage units, and come with numerous fixtures but minimal wiring limiting the range and placement of lights. Often, these cheaper options come with poor quality fixtures, switches, timers, and parts. These types of sets typically come with a 1 year warranty, so replacing these parts may happen more frequently than you’re prepared for.

Durability

As soon as you place lighting outside, it’s at the mercy of the elements. Ask yourself if the set you have your eye on will stand up to Mother Nature twelve months of the year. Don’t throw away your hard-earned money. Plastic parts and cheap components will only cause more headaches down the road.

DIY Skillset

DIYers need to honestly evaluate their skill level. Do you have a good working knowledge of electrical parts and components? The heartbreaking consequences of these mistakes can’t be fixed with money.

 

Professional Installation

Here are five great reasons why we think hiring a professional will pay off in the end and make you glad you never went DIY.

Experience

Landscape lighting designers have extensive experience on a large variety of projects. They understand what’s essential for outdoor lighting and will help you realize your dreams for lighting those outdoor spaces while keeping your budget in mind.

They understand what works well together and what doesn’t. They can see the overall project and understand how smaller changes affect the big picture.

Professional lighting experts will work with you to help personalize your system with your own sense of style, while showing you the available options each step of the way and making suggestions that will help bring the whole system together into one cohesive lighting design.

Safety

Professional outdoor lighting designers and installers are trained in working with electricity and electrical systems. It only takes one wrong move when dealing with electricity and you are dealing with damage to the equipment and wiring or worse to you or a loved one.

Understanding how to work around other utilities means they know who to contact for proper locates and how to design and work around them safely without compromising your vision for illuminating those outdoor spaces after dark.

The DIY handyman needs to honestly assess whether they’re comfortable working with electricity (sometimes electricity and water), heights, or digging.

Safety for everyone is a priority before, during and after the installation of your outdoor lighting system. Experienced lighting designers understand electrical code and inspection requirements and will work with the local authorities to ensure all required permits and inspections are completed.

Fixture Selection

For the average homeowner, fixture selection is limited to what is available at the local hardware store. This is not the case for Nite Time Decor or other professional lighting service companies. Landscape lighting service providers have access to many different high-quality manufacturers and suppliers (many unavailable in big box stores) and can help you choose not just an adequate fixture for each space, but the fixture best suited to the aesthetic, budget and lighting requirements for that space. With Nite Time Decor, your options are endless when it comes to available fixtures and styles.

Outdoor Lighting Design

Professional installation means that your yard won’t look like everyone else’s on the block.

Whether you’re looking to enhance curb appeal, provide better security, or provide ambiance to your yard after dark, professionals will recommend fixtures and elements, with varying bulb wattage and colours, prevent annoying glares and creepy shadows, and ensure distinctive highlights are prominent.

At Nite Time Decor our talented team of designers offer beautiful illuminating ideas for all types of properties, including commercial highrises, nightclubs, restaurants, and residential properties. From big installations to small repairs, Nite Time Decor offers all of the products and services needed to meet your unique lighting requirements.

Warranty and Maintenance

Most lighting companies including Nite Time Decor, stand behind their work and will work with you until it’s done to your satisfaction. The provide a warranty for their lighting fixtures. They can help you understand the programming and regular maintenance of your system. They will be there for you long after the installation is complete. Having a good maintenance plan and ongoing support is value that cannot be replaced when installing your own DIY outdoor lighting system.

Those are just a few of the many benefits of hiring a professional landscape lighting designer and installer to help you with your outdoor lighting project. 

Contact Landscape Lighting Experts

Landscape lightings adds visual interest to your home while simultaneously making it safer and increasing its property value. If you would like to discuss your landscape lighting project, or request a free estimate, contact Nite Time Decor today!

Effective Landscape Lighting Requires Pruning

Over the years, we’ve installed many beautiful landscape lighting systems for our clients throughout Mississauga, Oakville, Burlington, Halton and the Hamilton region.

Often, their attention to beautifying their homes at night is accompanied by gorgeous daytime landscape designs that feature ornamental trees, bushes of various shapes and sizes and colourful flowerbeds.

After all this careful planning, the one thing that surprises us time and again is how often Oakville landscape lighting maintenance can be overlooked by homeowners.

Every now and then, we’ll get a call a year or two after the system installation regarding concerns over lights that should be brighter, misdirected beams or shadow spots that were not a part of the original lighting design. Typically, it’s assumed to be a problem with a fixture, or a bulb that is fading prematurely. The problem often turns out to be overgrown foliage and not the lighting hardware.

Are your gardens getting in the way of their own illumination?

Don’t let your petunias drown out your residential landscape lighting. Prune your plants to match the fixture. There are a few special techniques to keep in mind when it comes to pruning for your landscape lighting. These techniques aren’t difficult, and can be easily incorporated into any gardening practice.

At Nite Time Décor, we want to make sure you get the most out of your outdoor lighting services. That’s why we’ve compiled a list of pruning tips to help you trim back the shrubbery to show off your gorgeous residential landscape lighting.

Why bother pruning?

If you’re one of those homeowners that usually skips pruning in your gardening practice, you may be wondering why pruning is important. The fact is that pruning has several benefits beyond simply providing more room for your landscape lighting.

Healthy Trees and Plants

A good trimming and pruning regimen improves more than just the look of your garden; it’s essential for the health of the plants and trees. Unchecked growth can undermine the core strength of bushes and trees by pulling nutrients away from the base.

This is commonly visible in evergreen bushes, such as junipers, when too much growth in the extremities results in the core becoming dry and weak. Simply trimming overgrown branches and twigs back to just before the bud can keep the plant strong while returning its shape.

Annual and perennial plants that are allowed to grow too wide are not going to be as healthy as those that are trimmed regularly. Think of your plants like you think of your hair. When you trim your hair every 8 weeks, you’re removing the dead hair that has been sucking up all of the nutrients from the roots. In this way, you’re providing your hair the opportunity to grow more rapidly, but with considerably more health and strength.

Plants are the same way. Those old decrepit endings on your plants hog the nutrients from the fresh new sprouts, essentially weakening the whole plant. This creates a cycle where unhealthy branches block out the light from your landscape lighting. Left to hang in unruly tangles, the foliage and blossoms will prevent your lights from bringing safety, security, and aesthetic appeal to your home.

When Should You Prune

To get the best results, you’ll want to prune just before the growing season starts. This is usually best done in early spring, but it depends on the plant and the plant’s individual peak growing season. However, pruning is always best practiced before budding and growth has taken full force, as trimming at this time may only cause damage. Your plant uses up all its energy to grow, and can’t spend any more on repair post-pruning.

Throughout the summer, keep on top of your plant pruning and  your landscaping maintenance . Remove the dead leaves, twigs, and branches from both the plant itself and from the base of the plant. These will harm your garden and get in the way of your landscape lighting.

To keep your plants healthy and to prevent your daytime foliage from fighting with your night time ambience, consider these trimming and pruning facts for your landscape lighting maintenance plan:

How to prune for residential landscape lighting

Many landscape lighting companies use shrubbery and gardens as a way to conceal fixtures. When done properly, this creates a lovely effect. This means, though, that you need to keep up on trimming.

To “thin” the plants, again think of how your hairdresser thins out your hair. You remove strategic areas of your foliage to make the tree appear less weighty. This process also creates more areas through which the illumination from your lighting fixtures will shine.

For larger trees, thinning reduces the amount of weight that the main limbs must bear and allows better light penetration by scaling back the amount of foliage.  If you are going to thin your trees out, keep in mind that older trees shouldn’t be thinned as much as younger trees, as they are weaker with age. Furthermore, only 25% of the foliage and branches should be removed in a single trimming.  In every case, a branch or twig should always be cut just after its collar or base, never grazing to closely to its parent branch.

“Raising”, if you have a number of ground-installed fixtures, your landscape lighting maintenance will include a lot of raising. This involves trimming the low-laying twigs from the base to increase the amount of ground clearance and remove any obstruction from the light.

Finally, keep up on cleaning the plants. This simply involves removing dead, diseased, or weak branches.

To keep your lighting system looking just as great as it did the day it was installed, don’t forget to include the garden flora in your landscape lighting maintenance work.

We can Help Beautify Your Landscape

Illuminate your gardens with Nite Time Décor’s landscape lighting services. We help homeowners in Burlington, Mississauga, Oakville, along with the Halton and Hamilton regions by transforming their homes after dark with architectural outdoor lighting.  Contact us today to receive a complimentary quote.

When was the last time you saw a night sky full of stars in the city? It’s probably been a while. Stars in the city sky are a rare appearance, and it’s all because of light pollution. Light pollution is a term that’s frequently thrown around, but what does it actually mean? Did you know that your landscape lighting can contribute to pollution?

Nite Time Décor loves everything to do with lighting. That’s why we want to see nature’s lanterns when we look up from our gently illuminated backyards. We’re sure you do too.

At our Oakville residential lighting service, we feel that there is a delicate balance when it comes to getting the right amount of outdoor light. You need to see what you’re doing. But wouldn’t it also be nice to see rest of your yard? Or the stars? If you use your residential landscape lighting in strategic ways, it’s possible to achieve the right amount of light, as opposed to creating unnecessary light pollution.

If you’re ready to take steps towards preventing and decreasing light pollution, read on for tips about how you can adjust your landscape lighting services to accomplish just that.

What is light pollution?

Light pollution is excess lighting in the sky or poor use of artificial outdoor light. It’s what makes stars so difficult to see in the city, and brightens the night sky to be lighter than the natural indigo, to be almost purplish at times.

Light pollution sounds harmless, but in fact it has a several negative side effects for human health. These include hypertension, anxiety, increased headaches, deteriorating or weakened vision, disruption of sleep and, in recent research, a possibility of increasing the chances of cancer development.

In addition, artificial lights disrupts the natural patterns of wildlife.

According to International Dark Sky Association, “Every year millions of birds die colliding with needlessly illuminated buildings and towers. Migratory birds depend on cues from properly timed seasonal schedules.”

Artificial lights can cause birds to migrate too early or too late and miss ideal climate conditions for nesting, foraging and other behaviors.

Luminous pollution has three components:

Light trespass: This is when light is cast where it doesn’t belong or where it isn’t wanted or needed.

Glare: This is when light is too bright. It can be annoying for some people, hazardous in certain cases, and can inhibit some people’s ability to see properly.

Sky glow: This happens when light is projected into the night sky, either directly or by reflection. This can obscure your view of the stars.

Lighting of any kind is expensive enough to run. You don’t want to waste any of your residential landscape lighting by having it shine in unintended areas. By being precise with your lighting, you will not be paying for waste and your landscape lighting will be more visually appealing.

 

Here are tips to prevent outdoor lighting pollution: 

 

Trim Down your landscape lighting

Sometimes, less really is more. Too many homeowners over illuminate with landscape lighting. Not only does this contribute to pollution, but it can look aesthetically unappealing as well.

Nite Time Décor Oakville recommends that you go for a minimalist look in your landscape lighting. This is a more chic style, and also saves you money and resources. Further, you’ll drastically reduce the amount of light pollution in your neighbourhood by going a little softer on the landscape lighting.

Subtle, softer low voltage lighting is another way to trim down the pollution from your outdoor lighting. These soft glows offer a more subdued, welcoming effect, rather than a bright, prison yard appearance.

Use Dimmer Switches Indoors

Ever thought your lamps were too bright? Wish you could have mood lighting to create a more comfortable, warm feeling in your home? Dimmer switches can accomplish this for you, while also reducing the light pollution surrounding your house.

Turn Off Unnecessary Lights

If you’re not in a room, why keep it lit up? The same goes for your yard. When you’re not using your lawn, you should keep only those lights on which are necessary for safety and security.

All of your Nite Time Décor Oakville landscape lighting services used for aesthetics can get switched off as soon as the neighbours begin going to bed. In the case of your backyard, your aesthetic lights or those brightening gathering areas don’t need to go on at all when you’re not using the yard.

Flipping off unnecessary lights both inside and outside the house will save you money, resources, and will prevent light pollution in your neighbourhood.

Getting in the routine of shutting off what you don’t need is an all around benefit for your home.

Down Lights Contain Beams

Down lighting is often recommended when using landscape lighting to light up cottages, but the technique works beautifully in the city as well. Down lighting offers a more direct, controlled beam of your outdoor lighting. Rather than shining up into the sky, down lighting centers on a single fixed focus.

We Can Help!

Nite Time Décor is committed to responsible lighting that isn’t wasteful. We can make recommendations or adjust your current Nite Time Decor landscape lighting so you know you are doing your part.

If you would you like to gently illuminate your home and backyard without causing pollution, contact us today to receive a complimentary quote on a new beautiful and professionally installed Nite Time Décor landscape lighting.  We serve homeowners throughout Mississauga, Oakville, Burlington, Halton and the Hamilton region.

Why are floodlights outdated?

Too often security lighting comes in the form of floodlights. Regardless of how effective they are for lighting up a space – and even then, are they? – these ugly monstrosities of outdoor lighting create an eyesore on your lovely home. Say no to the floodlight with modern security landscape lighting Oakville! Not only are floodlights on the corner of homes highly flawed in their execution, but they can also create dark areas that are perfect for unwanted intruders.

So how else can you protect your home? Read on to find out about the flaws in floodlights and the modern solutions from Nite Time Décor Oakville landscape lighting services.

Problem #1: Unsightly aesthetic

Let’s uncover the most evident downside to floodlights before we go any further. Floodlights, if posted on poles around your home, may provide ample lighting. Yet, there’s also something about floodlights on posts that make them appear straight from a prison yard.

To solve this problem, most homeowners put floodlights on the corners of their homes instead. As you’ll see, this causes its own set of problems with outdoor lighting. And to top it all off, these types of lights don’t look anymore attractive or welcoming to guests on the corners of your home as they do on posts around the yard.

 

Problem #2: The light that cried wolf

Floodlights are hooked up to sensors that flip on when an intruder passes by. The problem is that most of the time your floodlight can’t tell the difference between a cat and a burglar. If the sensor has been adjusted to precise perfection, then you may get an effective sensor that only lights up for burglars. Otherwise, your neighbours and you will be so used to seeing the light flip on that you may not make a move when it actually matters.

Problem #3: Short life span

Floodlights, in comparison to almost every other landscape lighting fixture, have short lifespans. Usually these types of lights are on a photocell, which burns out easily, particularly if it’s flipping on regularly.

Problem #4: Dark spaces

When floodlights are on the side of buildings, they tend to light up huge areas of space while leaving many other areas in the dark. If you do happen to have Nite Time Décor Oakville landscape lighting services in other areas, the floodlights will ruin the aesthetic.

If you don’t have other outdoor lighting, then these floodlights are making perfect entry points for burglars and other trespassers with the dark, forgotten gaps.

Solutions: Nite Time Décor landscape lighting services

Nite Time Décor offers outdoor lighting that will provide both an appealing aesthetic, and safety and security to your home. Our lifetime maintenance guarantee offers excellence and security.

Though this article is on commercial security lighting, it will provide some useful information about how to light up your yard with landscape lighting without sacrificing either security or beauty.

The thing to remember is to cover up dark patches along walls, fences, trees, and pathways. Once you do that, you’ll just need to add in some design tips from one of the pros to gain highly functional, gorgeous Nite Time Décor landscape lighting services.

Begin your landscape lighting design and installation today with a complimentary light demo and quote from Nite Time Décor Oakville.

Commercial landscape lighting can bring curb appeal and safety to your business. There are numerous benefits to having exterior lighting. Unfortunately, this type of landscape often presents a number of problems when it comes to illuminating it properly.

How often do you use your commercial property at night? Whether you operate a golf course, trendy nightclub or manage a high-profile office building, effective nighttime lighting is essential for providing a safe and welcoming place of work. Not only does this attention to exterior lighting help to accentuate your building’s entrance and architectural detail, but it also improves safety by illuminating walkways, parking lots, and hazardous obstructions.

Buildings and facilities with high quality exterior lighting systems are safer for foot customers, passing motorists, and staff members alike. With that being said, designing and maintaining good exterior lighting for retail properties, storage areas, parking lots and other commercial areas isn’t always easy.

Good Exterior Lighting vs. Bad Exterior Lighting

Believe it or not, most commercial outdoor lighting installations provided more bad lighting than good. Bad lighting can be defined as any kind of light that is counterproductive, reduces safety and security, or results in higher-than-normal operating costs. This occurs when a commercial lighting system is poorly designed, misapplied, defective, or features poorly aimed fixtures. The result is hard shadows, strong glares, wasted light, and unnecessary light pollution.

How to Spot Bad Exterior Lighting

Bad exterior lighting is relatively easy to locate. Simply look for misplaced light or glare. This is known as “obtrusive light” and is recognized as any kind of unwanted light, specifically urban sky glow or light trespass (any lighting that crosses a property line). Both of these forms of light pollution are commonly caused by glare.

Glare and Your Commercial Lighting System

If your commercial lighting system is guilty of glare, it could be due to a lack of light. While many people believe glare is caused by an overabundance of illumination, the opposite is actually more accurate: glare is caused by inefficient and ineffective lighting.

In order to minimize glare on our commercial lighting projects, the experts here at Nite Time Décor pay close attention when selecting the appropriate fixtures and luminaire optics. The correct placement is also key, as is the use of protective light shields. Wall-mounted lights are a great option for lighting narrow passageways, such as alleys or compact parking areas between buildings. Wall-mounted lights can also be used to light building entrances and walkways, depending on the design of your building. Ground-mounted flood lights can also do the trick, provided they’re positioned properly so as not to distract pedestrians and motorists.

Little White Lights

The trend in commercial exterior lighting is leaning heavily towards white light, especially fixtures that feature a good colour rendering index. In fact, the use of yellow or orange low-pressure lights has been steadily declining for years. This is because long-life, white lights offer building owners an option that reduces maintenance and labour costs, as well as improves the overall lighting of their property. The use of Light Emitting Diodes (LED) is also steadily rising, as more and more building owners commit to a greener, more cost-effective lighting option.

Costly Bills

One of the major problems that many business owners have with professional designed and installed commercial landscape lighting is the cost. Lighting up a business for safety and security can be a costly undertaking; however, what would you rather be spending your money on: landscape lighting or a costly slip and fall lawsuit? Proper lighting will help protect you from these types of unfortunate accidents, saving your money in the long run.

Save Energy with Timers & Motion Sensors

Finally, timers are a key piece to any commercial exterior lighting system. These nifty tools help improve energy efficiency and cut operating costs. Motion sensing security lighting is also a smart investment, as it provides a protective glow of light only when necessary.

Shine a Light on Curb Appeal

While it may feel like an unnecessary expense, creating beautiful commercial landscape lighting with gorgeous fixtures can actually bring you more money. This is a way to market your business by attracting in the eyes of your customers. When they see how well you take care of your business, patrons are more likely to investigate your services. Remember that first impressions make a huge impact on new clientele.

Focus your efforts on accent lighting and highlighting the areas of your property that are particularly appealing.

Let Us Be Your Guide

Improvement in commercial lighting equipment are happening all the time. Trust Nite Time Décor to provide you with the most modern and efficient lighting fixtures on the market. Contact our exterior lighting experts today to book an onsite consultation and light demo at your place of business. We design and install professional outdoor lighting in Mississauga, Burlington, Oakville, Halton and in the Hamilton region.

Have you ever noticed how a few strategically placed lamps can change the entire ambiance of a room? Well, the same can be said for your front porch! Whether your home boasts a beautiful wrap-around deck or a small front stoop, there are plenty of things that you can do to improve the overall look and feel of your front entry. Entryway lighting is crucial for setting the mood and inviting in your guests, so don’t hold back. Make the most of your front entrance lighting with a professionally designed and installed outdoor lighting system from Nite Time Décor.

The Romance of Porch Lights

What does a well-lit porch mean to you? For years, leaving the porch light on was a symbol telling neighbours that you were home and ready to socialize. It was a welcoming beacon in the middle of a dark night. A warm embrace after a long day of work. When the light was left on, it meant that someone cared enough to turn it on; someone was waiting.

Now, thanks to custom designed outdoor lighting systems, you can recreate this same feeling with unique lighting effects and romantic walkway lighting without having to flick a switch!

How to Perfectly Light Your Front Entrance

Your front door and porch lighting is important for three reasons:

It makes an impression.

Whether it’s through down lights or spotlighting, the proper lighting techniques can change the entire look and feel of your property. Whether you’re hoping to create a grandiose look or execute a contemporary feel, our technicians can suggest the right lighting fixtures and techniques to play up your home’s unique features.

It improves safety.

The right lighting is key to reducing trip hazards around your front door. Combine them with path lighting to create a whimsical path towards your home.

It extends the living area outside by illuminating windows.

Homes that lack porch lighting are often cast in deep, dark shadows, especially around windows. Remove “black holes” from the front of your property with professionally placed landscape lighting.

Size Matters

In our experience most homeowners tend to choose entry lighting fixtures that are too small for their porch or entryway. This is especially the case with homes that have large front doors and tall porch ceilings.

When it comes to wall-mounted lights, our Nite Time Decor outdoor lighting experts recommend fixtures that are anywhere from 1/4 to 1/3 the height of the door. Alternatively, you can opt for spotlights and up-lighting fixtures to case a warm glow on the door.

The Dos and Don’t of Porch Lighting

When it comes to perfecting your porch lighting, it pays to take your time and really assess your design needs. What’s more, you’ll want to use the lights properly once they’re installed. As such, it’s important that you…

Don’t leave the lights on all night. This will waste power, causes light pollution and could potentially anger your neighbours. Instead, request that our Nite Time Decor landscape lighting experts install a timer on your  lighting system. This will ensure that your porch light turns on and off on a set schedule.

Don’t just turn the light on when you’re alone or feel vulnerable. Doing so could put you in danger. Instead, do turn set your front entrance lights to come on automatically.

Don’t leave the light on 24-hours a day when you’re away on vacation. Make sure that it’s set to turn on with your outdoor lighting system.

Do realize that indoor lights can help enhance the look and safety of your porch as well.

Things to Consider When Planning New Porch Lighting

Safety First

When choosing your outdoor lighting design, there are a few qualities you’ll want to consider. Of course, safety is a major concern. Lighting up your front entrance takes nighttime risks away, but there are certain areas in particular that will be easy and efficient to illuminate. These include:

1.Stairways
2.Doorways
3.Edges
4.Railings

By adding a bit of soft lighting to these features, you’re able to alert visitors to areas that may have otherwise caused injuries or accidents. What’s more, our warranty ensures that your Nite Time Decor outdoor lighting design will always be in proper operating condition, creating a safe and beautiful yard and entrance for many years to come.

Avoid the Glare

It’s also a good idea to consider softening your outdoor lighting, in order to reduce unwanted glare or a sickly colouring. Conventional exterior lights often glare down from the ceiling of a porch or off the walls of a house. Not only is this blinding, but it detracts from the safety that a lighting system is intended to add.

With new lighting technology you can create a more comfortable atmosphere. You’ll find that modern outdoor lighting designs include multiple fixtures at a low voltage. This creates an atmosphere that’s both aesthetically pleasing and safe.

Variety is Key

When you conceptualize your outdoor lighting design, you’ll want to look at a variety of fixtures to increase the form and function of your door and porch area.

Here are some ideas for lighting up your porch in a way that suits your personal style, without neglecting function. If you’re in need of some examples, our gallery features a number of great examples.

Accenting: These fixtures provide downcast lighting from walls, posts, or railings. Nite Time Décor’s downlight is great for accenting, and provides a soft, overhead lighting to accent walls or stairs.

Post Lighting: These fixtures are positioned at the top of posts or railways to illuminate a large space. Our area light is great for walkways and large decks and porches that require additional light from above. Don’t be fooled by the aesthetics of the lamp – functionality isn’t neglected for aesthetics, and it beautifully lights up any area in which you want to avoid accidents and injuries.

Recessed Lights: These lights are not only great for illuminating your space, but also for space saving. These are installed right into your deck floor or lawn to light from the bottom up. Recessed light fixtures have many uses: around stairs and decks to avoid tripping, around ponds to stop someone from falling in, or around gardens to prevent trampling by a wandering visitor.

If you’re looking to achieve this effect, you may be interested in our in ground well lights. If you don’t want in ground lights, but like the idea of lighting from the bottom up, you may wish to try a spotlight, or above ground well light.

Contact Nite Time Decor

Dress up the front entrance of your home with beautiful custom designed and installed lighting from Nite Time Décor. Contact our outdoor lighting designers today for a free consultation.

Top 3 Pet Friendly Lighting and Landscaping Ideas

If you’ve ever owned a pet, you know these fuzzy creatures are as much a part of your family as your own flesh and blood. Adorable and fun to cuddle, cats and dogs make for great companions in almost any home. However, let them out into your yard to play and that relationship can quickly sour. As a loving owner, you want to make sure that your pet is healthy and happy. As a homeowner, you want to keep your home, yard and landscape lighting system in tip-top shape.

The key to keeping everyone happy? Compromise. Your yard can look great and provide a safe space for your pet to play – both during the day and at night.

Here are some ideas to help you pet-proof your property from our Burlington landscape lighting company.

Idea #1: Pets Will Be Pets

Your pet spends just as much (if not more!) time in your yard as you. As such, shouldn’t you make an effort to ensure the space is suited to their needs too? Whether it’s including a grassy area for afternoon naps, or a flood light for late night bathroom breaks, accommodating your pets’ needs with these pet friendly ideas, will go a long way to improving the harmony in your home, and the overall beauty of your yard. Of course, animals are going to have some annoying habits – digging and chewing are two of the most frustrating – but even these issues can be managed with a little planning and perseverance.

For diggers, consider creating an area in your yard designated for this activity – preferably away from any buried landscape lighting wires. Encourage your pet to bury bones and other toys here in order to salvage the rest of your lawn.

If your old landscape lighting system has exposed electrical wires, do yourself and your pet a favour and contact our maintenance department at Nite Time decor landscape lighting specialists today. When installed properly, your landscape lighting systems should be pet proofed and be of no concern to your pet. However, regular maintenance is required to ensure that all components are properly protected and/or buried.

Idea #2: Take Preventative Measures

Protect your home and landscape lighting system from the potential of pet damage by instituting some simple preventative measures. For instance, if digging is definitely an issue with your pet, consider placing decorative rocks or paving stones around garden areas or landscape lighting fixtures. Raised areas, such as flower beds, are also a great option as the differing elevations makes them difficult for digging.

Idea #3: Keep Safety in Mind

Keep your pets’ health and safety in mind when selecting your landscaping vegetation and outdoor lighting materials. It’s worth noting that cats are more likely to nuzzle and chew on plants; if you have a few feline friends at your house, consider pruning and cutting down on the amount of ground cover vegetation that’s growing around your landscape lighting fixtures. Instead, plant a pet friendly garden of catnip, cat thyme, mint, or valerian somewhere safely away from your system.

At Nite Time Décor, we’re careful to avoid the use of sharp metal edging in order to protect sensitive paws. We also take special precautions to ensure that all of the electrical wiring and mechanical components of your system are safely out of reach of your pet.

Contact Nite Time Decor Today!

Pets are curious creatures by nature. As a pet owner, it’s your responsibility to ensure a safe and healthy environment is available to explore. Improve the look of your property will at the same time keeping your pet out of harms way with professional pet friendly landscaping and lighting services from Nite Time Décor. Call 1-800-952-3006 for more information or book a free onsite consultation using our online quoting system.

How to Prevent Damage to your Outdoor Lighting

For homeowners who purchased and installed their landscape lighting system years ago, they may find that their system isn’t running like it used to. This is common if you’ve installed a landscape lighting system and have simply left it on its own for a great length of time.

Our team of experienced lighting professionals have decided to compile this list of the best prevention tips to help keep your system in prime, working condition all year round and to prevent damage.

Benefits of Landscape Lighting

A professionally installed landscape lighting system has many benefits. Not only does it highlight key aesthetic features of your home and boost curb appeal, but it also helps to increase safety and security around your home and property. Outdoor lighting systems give the impression that someone is home, even if that is not the case.

These are just some of the many benefits that a landscape lighting design can bring to your home. But, like many things in life, your landscape lighting system will only be effective if it is in working condition.

Luckily for our Nite Time Decor customers, outdoor lighting maintenance to prevent future damage is usually not a laborious task.

Outdoor Lighting Prevention Tips

Follow these tips to prevent damage to your outdoor lighting systems – either accidentally or purposefully by potential intruders.

Keep Landscape Lighting Away from Lawnmowers

When cutting the grass, avoid mowing too close to landscape lighting. You could potentially hit the lighting with the lawn mower or have debris shooting out the side of the mower. Both situations can cause damage to your light fixtures. A simple solution is to place a bucket over your light fixtures before mowing the lawn or using a weed whacker to trim around your lights.

Protect Outdoor Lighting from Rain, Snow and Fertilizer

Landscape lighting components can potentially get damaged from heavy rain, snow, or fertilizer. You can protect the glass portion of the lighting with a protective glass treatment to help prevent the glass from getting scratched or foggy.

A solution that does not involve treatment is to position lights under the cover of awnings and overhangs to protect against weather hazards. You should also check your lights weekly for signs of wear or damage and replace any broken or burned-out bulbs. In addition, you should clean off the lights monthly with a damp rag to ensure there is no dirt build-up. After a rain or ice storm, dry the lights off and clear away any ice that has frozen on to the fixture.

Placing Outdoor Lighting Away from Traffic

To prevent damage before it occurs, try having your lights placed in areas that don’t receive a lot of foot traffic. You can place your outdoor lights in a way that will highlight your garden and illuminate any unwanted company that happens to wander into your yard. Our down light is an excellent example of a light that can multi-task!

To further discourage unwanted traffic around your home, set your exterior lights on timers. It is preferable to have them come on once it gets dark. However, if the lights operate on a light-sensor, this step is not necessary. Having your exterior lights on a daily routine is useful in creating the impression that there is always someone at home.

Perform Regular Maintenance Checks

Regular maintenance checks will do wonders for increasing the longevity of your landscape lighting system. Simply walk around your property on a weekly or monthly basis and keep an eye out for any damage to your bulbs, fixtures, or wires. If you take this opportunity to clean and straighten your fixtures, and clear away any build up of dirt, snow or ice, your system is sure to be more effective all year long.

Contact Nite Time Décor Oakville

Preventing damage to your landscape lighting system starts with properly creating your design. From choosing quality materials to planning out the exact placement for each light, you’ll want to be sure you are making the right choices. Our team of landscape lighting professionals can help you make these important decisions. If you reside in Mississauga, Oakville, Burlington, Ancaster, Halton or the Hamilton regions, contact us today to find out how we can help you create the landscape lighting design of your dreams.