{"id":1220,"date":"2018-12-12T13:15:58","date_gmt":"2018-12-12T13:15:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/houstonlightscapes.com\/?p=1220"},"modified":"2018-12-12T13:15:58","modified_gmt":"2018-12-12T13:15:58","slug":"outdoor-lighting-fixtures-guide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/houstonlightscapes.com\/resources\/outdoor-lighting-fixtures-guide\/","title":{"rendered":"OUTDOOR LIGHTING FIXTURES GUIDE"},"content":{"rendered":"

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OUTDOOR LIGHTING FIXTURES<\/h3>\n

Guides to outdoor and landscape lighting usually suggest specific design uses for the various types of fixtures. Readers, however, aren\u2019t always familiar with the trade lexicon. Let\u2019s go over the outdoor lighting fixtures menu and shed a little light on it.<\/p>\n

FLOODLIGHTS AND SPOTLIGHTS<\/h3>\n

Floodlights and spotlights are the basic workhorse fixtures of the electric age. They\u2019re similar, but not identical. Floods are generally brighter and illuminate wider areas than spots.\u00a0 In fact, floodlights are still the mainstay of high-voltage commercial and institutional systems where security and safety are paramount. In contrast, spotlight fixtures are more refined, more subtle, and throw more focused beams. We use them in landscape lighting the same way they serve in stage shows. They provide emphasis, calling the eye to a feature. Most residential outdoor and landscape lighting should avoid brute force floodlights. Less is more. Artfully chosen spots, however, provide beautiful effects uplighting and moonlighting trees, shadowing, and grazing.<\/p>\n

WALL WASH<\/h3>\n

Wall wash lights are a cousin of floodlights that work well in residential designs.<\/a> They throw a beam that evenly illuminates a broad surface.\u00a0 Fixtures are usually mounted above the wall itself, aimed down at a very shallow angle so the light, yes, washes the wall. The wide angle of these fixtures means placement about 3-4 feet apart works to provide uniform illumination. Any wall with a textured surface is a good candidate for wall wash.<\/p>\n

WELL FIXTURES<\/h3>\n

Well fixtures install nicely in turf, aimed up, flush with the surface so mowers can pass over them. The lighting effect is similar to wall wash, only bottom-up instead of top down. Well lights are perfect for lighting isolated vertical features like columns and statues. Since they can be installed flush with hard surfaces, they\u2019re useful for path lighting in walkways and driveways, too.<\/p>\n

PATH AND AREA LIGHTS<\/h3>\n

These fixtures show the way<\/a>, throwing illumination down and away from the bulb.\u00a0 Area lights cover a wider radius, revealing the area around the path as well. They typically mount on low uprights 1 \u2013 1.5 feet high. The intervals between them should be just enough for safety, with no dark spots. Too many, and it looks like an airport runway.<\/p>\n

DECK AND STEP LIGHTS<\/h3>\n

These fixtures are special types of path and area lights. Step lights generally mount on the vertical surfaces (risers) of each stair, illuminating the flat step below it. When steps have enough overhang step lights can mount underneath, shining down. \u00a0\u00a0Deck lights are similar, but mount on upright rail posts and lighting the deck itself.<\/p>\n

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  OUTDOOR LIGHTING FIXTURES Guides to outdoor and landscape lighting usually suggest specific design uses for the various types of fixtures. Readers, however, aren\u2019t always familiar with the trade lexicon. Let\u2019s go over the outdoor lighting fixtures menu and shed a little light on it. FLOODLIGHTS AND SPOTLIGHTS Floodlights and spotlights are the basic workhorse…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":773,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[49,5,35,20],"tags":[21,50,51],"class_list":["post-1220","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-concepts","category-landscapes-lighting","category-led","category-outdoor-lighting","tag-outdoor-lighting","tag-outdoor-lighting-fixtures","tag-outdoor-lighting-fixtures-guide"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/houstonlightscapes.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1220","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/houstonlightscapes.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/houstonlightscapes.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/houstonlightscapes.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/houstonlightscapes.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1220"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/houstonlightscapes.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1220\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/houstonlightscapes.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/773"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/houstonlightscapes.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1220"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/houstonlightscapes.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1220"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/houstonlightscapes.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1220"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}