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Installing Low Voltage Walkway Lighting

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You have two main choices in installing walkway lighting. You can choose to install solar powered lights, which require no outside power source but are also notoriously unreliable, or you can install low voltage lights, which draw some power off of your home but are much more reliable. Not only are they more reliable, the amount of power that low voltage lights actually is so relatively small and will barely make a dent in you monthly power bills, making them the best option for your outdoor lighting designs. Here are a few quick tips on how to make sure that you install your low voltage lighting system correctly.

The first thing that you will need to do is pick out the walkway lighting fixtures that you want and plan out where you are going to install them. You can choose any type of fixtures that you want for your property, but when you buy them make sure that you know how big of an area the light covers or else just test for yourself. Find the radius of the circle of light the fixture makes and plan on buying enough fixtures to place them roughly this far apart up and down your path. When you get home, measure and lay out the fixtures this far apart, alternating the sides of the path you place your lights.

The next thing you need to do is install the low voltage transformer. If you've bought a kit, this should come with it, otherwise you need to figure out what kind you need. You'll first off want a transformer that can run two power cables out of it to place on both sides of your walkway and you'll also need one that can handle the total wattage of the system you're installing. Luckily, figuring this out is easy. Simply add up the wattage of all the lights that you have in the system and then add at least twenty-five percent. Add more if you plan on running the cable over a long distance. You will need to find a transformer that can handle at least this wattage.

When you install the transformer, make sure you also keep it out of the ground or anywhere where it can be in standing water so that you don't ruin the weatherproofing on it. Mounting it on the side of the house or on a post near the plug where you'll be installing it are two great options.

After this all that's left to do is run the cable to the lights. Use a 10 or 12 gauge cable, attached it to each light fixture and enjoy your walkway lights!