Comparing Low Voltage Landscape Lighting and Solar Landscape Lights.

When you want to show off all of the yard work you have accomplished this spring you have a choice between low voltage landscape lighting and solar landscape lights for your yard. This can be a difficult choice but after you consider the location of your house and the features of low voltage landscape lighting in comparison to solar outdoor lights you may feel illuminated.

First of all, if you don’t want to deal with cables and electricity outdoors, you may want to choose solar lights for your outdoor landscape design. These units are a little more pricy than the low voltage lighting, but they are a breeze to install. The ease of installation alone is not the only thing to consider when choosing outdoor lighting, though.

You also have to consider the location and the intended purpose of the outdoor lighting. My husband and I chose solar lights over low voltage lights simply because they were easier to install. There were no wires to hide and no electricity was being used whatsoever. The bigger price tag was well worth the savings we would reap in time alone.

Unfortunately, we hadn’t considered our overall landscape. We live on two wooded acres of land. This secluded place really needs extra outdoor lighting. We just didn’t realize that it needed low voltage landscape lighting instead of the solar version. There are three large oak trees in our front yard that add interest and beauty to the landscaping. The large trees also provide a lot of shade.

Outdoor Solar lights require about eight hours of sunlight in order to work properly. The solar lights worked but they were relatively dim. They really did not provide adequate illumination for the area and we needed it. The secluded street has no streetlights and it can be very difficult to navigate through certain areas of the yard without outdoor lighting. Luckily the solar lights came in handy for a neighbor who lives on the top of a hill. His yard boasts stone pathways that beg for night lights and there is no big trees. The solar lights worked well in his sunny area but shady places require low voltage landscape lighting. Fortunately, he happened upon a great deal on the solar lights at our neighborhood garage sale.

We installed the low voltage landscape lighting and we were amazed by the difference. This outdoor illumination was worth the work and the whole learning experience may have been more expensive if our neighbor hadn’t stopped at our garage sale.

For more information on outdoor landscape lighting, please read this article on Outdoor Lighting Fixtures.

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