{"id":797,"date":"2014-04-17T12:12:27","date_gmt":"2014-04-17T18:12:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/night-scenes.com\/?p=797"},"modified":"2014-04-17T12:12:27","modified_gmt":"2014-04-17T18:12:27","slug":"down-lighting-dos-and-donts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/night-scenes.com\/2014\/04\/17\/down-lighting-dos-and-donts\/","title":{"rendered":"Down Lighting, Moon Lighting Do's and Don'ts"},"content":{"rendered":"

Here are the down lighting do’s and don’ts to know<\/h2>\n

Down lighting is one of my favorite lighting techniques.\u00a0 I love creating a beautiful and soft full moon effect in the landscapes of the Austin and central Texas area.\u00a0 We have a lot of spectacular live oak trees which really lend themselves well for this lighting effect.\u00a0 So, what are some of the Do\u2019s and Don\u2019ts of down lighting?<\/p>\n

DO<\/strong> install the lighting fixtures at least 20\u2019 and preferably 30\u2019 up into the tree.\u00a0 Placing the fixtures this high in the canopy keeps them well out of the line of sight for those moving around the area below.\u00a0 It also allows the light to filter through many additional branches and limbs to create a stunning and more natural moon lighting effect.<\/p>\n

DON\u2019T<\/strong> use a \u2018too bright\u2019 light source.\u00a0 I see a lot of people using 100-watt mercury vapor lights in trees and calling it \u201cmoonlighting\u201d.\u00a0 Natural moonlight is only .01 foot candles, and it has 4000K color temperature.\u00a0 A 100-watt mercury vapor light will put 2-3 foot candles on the ground or more, depending on how high the fixture is; and the color is usually closer to 5600K \u2013 much brighter and bluer in tint and looks nothing like natural moonlight.\u00a0 We use 4 or 6 watt LED lamps with 4000K color temperature<\/a> to more closely match the color of NATURAL moonlight.<\/p>\n

\"Properly<\/a>
Properly Mounted Down Lighting Fixture<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

DO<\/strong> use stand-off hanger bolts to attach down lighting fixtures to trees.\u00a0 Attaching mounting brackets directly to a tree will cause many problems.\u00a0 As the tree grows, it will grow around and eventually consume things that are attached to the trunk.\u00a0 This means that the mounting bracket will eventually end up IN the tree, not on the tree.\u00a0 Beetles and other insects will also crawl under that bracket and damage the tree.<\/p>\n

DON\u2019T<\/strong> staple wire to the tree!\u00a0 Ever!\u00a0 There are some out there who use wire staples to attach the wire down the tree trunk because it\u2019s the fast way to do it.\u00a0 The first problem is that some of the metals used in those staples can poison the tree.\u00a0 The holes created in the tree if the staple falls out will become the home of destructive bugs that will damage the tree.\u00a0 There is also the critical fact that the staples holding the wire (if it doesn\u2019t fall out) will get swallowed up by the tree as it grows.\u00a0 It consumes the staple and wire, damaging the entire lighting system as it pinches the wire causing short circuits.\u00a0 This results in a very expensive service call when we end up having to cut the wire off to make the repairs.\u00a0 We can\u2019t dig the staple out because it can damage the tree even more than the consumption of the staple and wire. This just makes me crazy!\u00a0 We use only stainless steel screws and zip ties that will break away as the tree grows. We love trees and simply hate seeing them mistreated by installers who care more about a quick paycheck than the beauty of the environment they work in.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
The Right Way To Attach Wire To A Tree, With Stainless Steel Screw<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

DO<\/strong> get regular maintenance for down lighting to ensure the safety of the tree and the best operation of the lighting system.<\/p>\n

I hope these Do\u2019s and Don\u2019ts help you to know and understand what to look for when dealing with down lighting installations.\u00a0 If you do see these don\u2019ts on your property, please let us come fix it for you.\u00a0 Contact us here.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Here are the down lighting do’s and don’ts to know Down lighting is one of my favorite lighting techniques.\u00a0 I love creating a beautiful and soft full moon effect in the landscapes of the Austin and central Texas area.\u00a0 We have a lot of spectacular live oak trees which really lend themselves well for this … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1461,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[27,11,5,184],"tags":[8,9,231,216,217,232,233],"class_list":["post-797","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-design-2","category-installation","category-blog-posts","category-tree-lighting-2","tag-austin-landscape-lighting","tag-austin-outdoor-lighting","tag-austin-tree-lighting","tag-central-texas-landscape-lighting","tag-central-texas-outdoor-lighting","tag-landscape-lighting-austin","tag-outdoor-lighting-austin"],"yoast_head":"\nDown Lighting, Moon Lighting Do's and Don'ts - NightScenes Landscape Lighting<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"When it comes to down lighting (moon lighting) there are certain do's and don'ts and we'll point them out for you here. 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