Landscape lighting

Landscape lighting in Edmonton: path, step, tree and facade lighting on low-voltage systems with timers and photocells, built to handle frost and snow.

Lighting that works with your yard

Landscape lighting turns a dark yard into a space you can use and enjoy after sunset. It lights steps and paths so people do not trip, shows off trees and gardens, and makes a home look welcoming from the street. In Edmonton, it also brightens the long winter evenings when the yard is covered in snow.

We design and install landscape lighting for homes and commercial properties, working with your landscaper or on our own.

How a low-voltage system works

Most landscape lighting runs on low voltage. A transformer, mounted outside near the house, plugs into or is wired to a GFCI-protected outdoor circuit and steps the power down. Low-voltage cable then runs to each fixture. A built-in timer or photocell turns the system on at dusk.

Low-voltage systems are safer to work around in the garden, and the cable can usually be buried shallower than line-voltage wiring. The supply circuit and receptacle, though, are regular line voltage and are a job for a licensed electrician. Whether a permit is needed depends on the work, and we check.

Designing the effect

Good landscape lighting is subtle. A few well-placed fixtures usually look better than many bright ones. We think about:

• Safety first: steps, path edges and changes in level.
• One or two focal points, like a large tree or an entry.
• Avoiding glare into windows, neighbours' yards and the street.
• Warm colour temperatures that suit plants and stone.
• How the yard looks in winter, when leaves are gone and snow reflects light.

We often set fixtures out temporarily at dusk so you can see the effect before anything is buried.

Lighting can also be split into zones on separate timers, so path lights stay on all evening while accent lighting on trees turns off at bedtime.

Built for frost and snow

Frost heave, snow-clearing and spring meltwater all take a toll on outdoor lighting. We use fixtures with sturdy stakes or mounts, rated connectors that keep water out, and cable routes clear of where you shovel, aerate or dig. Transformers go where snow will not bury them.

We can come back in spring to straighten fixtures pushed over by frost or snow and adjust aiming as plants grow.

Cost

Cost depends on the number and type of fixtures, cable run lengths, whether a new outdoor receptacle or circuit is needed, the transformer size and controls, and how much of the yard is already landscaped. Installing during landscaping is easiest; adding to a finished yard takes more care around plants and hardscape. For brighter security-focused lighting, see outdoor and security lighting.

Commercial properties benefit too. Landscape lighting around a building entrance, signage or planted areas creates a polished look and adds to safety for staff and visitors walking out at night. We can tie it into the same timers or building controls as your other exterior lighting.

Questions we hear