3 options for professional landscape lighting systems
Did you know that there are several different types of landscape lighting systems available in Texas today? Voltage is the primary factor in differentiating each system.
- 120 volt lighting is normally used on commercial properties, but there are many of these systems on Austin area residential properties as well.
- 24 volt lighting was developed about 6 years ago to compete with 12 volt LED lighting, but was not very successful
- 12 volt lighting system and better yet, 12 volt LED landscape lighting system.
120 Volt
The 120 volt products are usually large, not terribly attractive and commercial looking. They use either halogen or HID (high intensity discharge) lamps and ballasts. The primary lighting source used in these fixtures is the HID lamps which these days are metal halide lamps. They used to use mercury vapor lamps in these fixtures, but the MV products have been banned for use in the United States and many other countries. This lighting must be installed by a licensed electrician, and we do use an electrician when working on these landscape lighting systems. Our company has been known to convert these existing systems to 120 volt LED – or even 12 volt LED – and it is not too complicated. This easy conversion makes the system much more energy efficient and maintenance friendly for the consumer.
24 Volt
Then there are the dreaded 24 volt low voltage landscape lighting systems that were developed to compete with the 12 volt LED landscape lighting systems. In my opinion, this was a bad idea right out of the gate. The initial selling point was that the contractor could cut the amperage load in half by using 24 volts instead of 12 volts. While this is true, the wattages stay the same — and a watt is a watt no matter what the amperage is; the consumer pays by the amount of wattage they use, in kilowatt hours. So the installer could use smaller wire due to the lower amperage loads, saving them a little money on wire. The down sides are that the client doesn’t save anything. In fact, since the 24 volt system is only manufactured by one outdoor lighting company, the parts cost more. When the educated consumer figured this out, sales took a nose dive. The final bad thing is that most companies who installed these landscape lighting systems are not taking care of them and they are failing at an ever increasing rate. The consumer who can’t reach their contractor for service attempts to replace the light bulb themselves with the similar-looking 12 volt lamp from the local home improvement store (knowing they have a “low voltage” lighting system). They replace the 24 volt lamp with a 12 volt lamp, and it burns out very quickly because it’s getting twice as much voltage than it can handle. They replace it again and again with the same results. Then they call us, completely frustrated and thinking that they need a new lighting system. We quickly determine the problem and explain all of this to them. We normally will recommend replacing the transformer with a UL1838 listed 12 volt unit and replace the lamps with 12 volt LED lamps. This converts the system to a regular 12 volt LED system that almost anyone can maintain.
12 Volt
Our favorite is the 12 volt LED landscape lighting system. The benefits here are the ease of installation, safety of the 12 volt system, energy efficiency and it is very maintenance friendly. Contractors are not required to be licensed electricians to install this system in most states (unlike the 120 volt lighting mentioned earlier). Because wiring does not have to be installed 18” deep using a trencher like the high voltage lighting, the lawn is virtually undisturbed. These are big money saving issues for the client. The 12 volt system is safe around children and pets alike (have you ever seen a dog chew a wire?). The 12 volt LED system is very energy efficient using about 75% less energy than the older halogen or HID lighting. Since the LED lamps or fixtures usually last about 40,000 hours there are no burned out lamps to replace for YEARS – which saves maintenance material costs. Also, since LEDs don’t produce much heat, they don’t cook the minerals of the water onto the lenses of the fixtures which takes a LOT of time to clean off. This saves maintenance time which saves even more money.
This system has tons of options for a design company like ours. There are now more options for LED lighting than we had for halogen lighting just 7 years ago. We have many different beam spreads, intensity and light color options to create even better warm, welcoming and beautiful outdoor lighting designs for homeowners AND commercial projects.
It’s my opinion that dollar-for-dollar, the 12 volt LED outdoor lighting system is the best overall value because it has great design flexibility, can be installed with minimal damage to a property, is very energy efficient, is easily serviced and it should last for at least 15 years if it is properly maintained.
We are here for you to design, install or service a professional outdoor lighting system for you no matter what you have. Please contact us here to schedule an appointment.
