Requirements for street lamps
Installation of street light sources involves year-round exposure of lamps and lanterns to a number of meteorological influences.
Taking this factor into account, all purchased lamps must meet a number of requirements:
- Sufficient strength of the products, especially the lampshade.
- Moisture resistant.
- Availability of grounding.
- Ease of practical maintenance of the lamp, especially spring and autumn cleaning.
The photo of the façade lighting shows that all lamps are equipped with durable and moisture-resistant shades.
The shape and design of a garden lamp must fully correspond to the interior of a summer cottage or private house.
Choosing lamps to illuminate the garden inside
Specialized stores for the site and garden stock a huge assortment of lamps in different price categories. Let's divide them into three large groups, which differ from each other in the type of lighting element installed in the device. Here are the most common varieties now:
- Sodium . Inside the lamp of such a lamp there is sodium in gaseous form. When an electric current passes through it, the lamp emits a soft and even light with a warm tint. This feature makes sodium lamps indispensable for decorative lighting of objects on the site. It is impossible not to note the long service life of such lamps, it is about 3 - 4 years.
- LED . These lamps have taken over the market in recent years and are considered the most high-tech. It is for this reason that the price tag for LED lamps is still high, although even at this cost the purchase will be profitable. An economical, surge-resistant LED lamp can last about 6 years. Also, on many models it is possible to adjust the power, and, therefore, adjust the illumination to individual needs.
- Halogen is the most common group of devices at the moment. The principle of their operation is similar to sodium lamps: there is a gaseous substance in the lamp bulb, the passage of current provokes a glow, which, by the way, is much brighter than that of standard incandescent lamps. Such lamps are a complete golden mean in this segment: they are quite cheap, do not break down for a long time, are quite economical and provide a lot of light.
We would like to separately mention autonomous lamps for the site. Although they are, in fact, representatives of the group of LED devices, they work according to a unique principle. At the top of such a lamp there is a solar battery, and while the sun is shining, the lamp charges the battery, which then powers the lighting element. Due to the fact that LED is used as a lamp, the charge lasts for a very long time. Consequently, such a lamp fully justifies its title of autonomous.
Let us demonstrate in the photo what designs there are for autonomous lamps for the site - from classic to avant-garde.
A separate advantage of such a device is its mobility. Conventional lamps need to be mounted, as well as wiring to them. Autonomous models, in most cases, just need to be stuck into the ground - this completes the installation process. Dismantling of devices occurs with the same simplicity, so you can easily, if necessary, remove all lighting fixtures from the local area for a while.
Types of facade lamps
All commercially available light sources differ in a number of parameters, including size, shape, lamp power, and color temperature.
There are a number of differences in the method of installing decorative lighting:
- The luminaires can be mounted directly into the facades of residential and auxiliary buildings. When choosing such models, you should pay maximum attention to the methods of securing the fastenings.
- Ground lights. Such sources for facade lighting are of particular value. Various models may have support posts, for example, twisted metal or reinforced iron. Small lamps on short stands are placed along garden paths to visually highlight the pedestrian area.
- Hanging models. These include sconces, ceiling chandeliers and lampshades that can illuminate a sufficient area. They are most often used for arrangement on a summer terrace, under a canopy, at the entrance to a house or garage, in a summer kitchen.
- One of the latest trends of the season in landscape design is recessed lighting. These include spotlights that very beautifully emphasize the style of a garden plot and highlight a particular area of the house.
In addition, ground lamps are often used, which are installed directly on the site with green spaces. Such models are equipped with a durable body and are resistant to moisture and temperature changes. It is up to the owner of the garden plot to decide which lamps are best to choose for illuminating facades.
Functions of yard lighting
First, let's decide why we need light on the site. There are generally three main functions that different types of yard lighting perform.
- Security. Most thefts, especially in the private sector, occur under the cover of darkness. Thieves often believe that the darkness will allow them to leave the area undetected, and sometimes this trick works. Proper yard lighting will help thwart the plans of intruders. Lighting devices with a motion sensor are quite capable of preventing more than one theft, since they act as a kind of visual alarm.
- Convenience. This function is the most logical: some areas are very dark at night, and moving around such an area is problematic. Yard lighting solves this issue and also allows you to move around safely. Usually, to perform this function, they buy the simplest lights and place them on one or both sides of the paths - this arrangement turns out to be quite sufficient.
- Aesthetic function. Using light, you can give an area a unique look. Typically, lighting fixtures are installed next to ornamental plants, landscape design elements, or simply provide architectural lighting for a private home. If there is a desire to give the design of the site even more originality, use colored lighting rather than ordinary lighting.
Optimal selection parameters
Purchasing a specific model of luminaires for installing façade lighting requires a detailed approach.
The future owner should pay attention to the following factors:
- Level of protection against moisture and dust. On the product packaging you can find the IP index, which indicates the degree of protection of the product from various external influences.
- The strength of the housing or lampshade, which allows you to place the light source in an open space. The most popular lampshades are made of tempered glass, universal plastic, and lightweight and corrosion-resistant aluminum.
- Type of lamps used. For street lighting, more and more preference is given to LED lamps or halogen lamps, which make it possible to illuminate the courtyard area very effectively, and at the same time, save financial costs on electricity.
- Rating of manufacturing companies. Immediately before purchasing a particular model of façade lamp, you should read the reviews about the manufacturing company.
- Before purchasing a lamp or luminaire, you should carefully inspect it for external damage, cracks, chips, and the presence of wiring insulation.
You should also check with the seller about the product’s maintenance requirements, expected service life, power and presence of a motion sensor.
If installation of the sensor is not provided for in production conditions, you can verify the possibility of self-installation.
Automation on/off
Despite the fact that the presence of sensors requires additional costs and also complicates installation, it is convenient and economical. There are time relays that can turn the street lights of a house on and off at a given time. It makes sense to install such systems on security and functional lighting. You can also think about installing a relay for decorative lighting - also convenient.
Street lighting at home consists of several parts
In less-frequented places, where you only need to turn on the lights when you are there, you can install motion sensors. They can also be part of security lighting - if there is movement, spotlights that were not working before will turn on. The surprise will not be pleasant. Another thing is that the sensor can trigger on a dog or other animal that comes into its field of view. But the security functions will still be more effective.
Another opportunity to automate the street lighting of a private home is to install a photo relay. It reacts to a decrease in the amount of light, including the lamp power circuit. Also in automatic mode, the power turns off when the sun begins to rise.
Another video on the topic
Calculation of façade lighting
The first and most important step for the future owner is to calculate the required lighting for the building's facade. This indicator directly depends on the initial area of the garden plot, the size of the load-bearing wall for placing hanging lanterns and lamps, and the presence of a decorative gazebo or other recreation area for the owners.
In addition, the preliminary design must take into account the materials used for exterior finishing in order to install façade lamps. For ground lamps, it is advisable to know the level of soil acidity, which can have a detrimental effect on the base and lampshade material. The calculation is carried out in accordance with the requirements of GOST.
How to calculate façade lighting:
- External architectural lighting should provide good visibility and figurative expressiveness of the most important objects, and the comfort of the light environment, help identify the originality of the composition and the quality of planning and development.
- The lighting created should have a beneficial effect on the psychological mood of the residents of the house.
- To illuminate objects with “cold-white” color shades of surfaces and green spaces, lamps with a color temperature of 4000 to 6000 K should be used. To illuminate objects with “warm white” colors, lamps with a color temperature of 2200 to 3500 K should be used. .
Light sources with a power of more than 150 W, installed directly on the ground at the level of possible human contact with heated parts, must be equipped with decorative protective covers.
The best lighting devices for your site
Initially, we choose street lights for our dacha, based, of course, on external characteristics. And only then do we think about the functionality of the lighting device.
Decide on the following points:
- general climatic conditions that the lantern must endure;
- humidity;
- temperature amplitude, daily and seasonal;
- wind activity and wind rose for your territory.
If the conditions are harsh, you can compensate for this with high-quality materials for the lamp. Paying a little extra for the flashlight at the beginning will ultimately benefit you in terms of service life.
When choosing a lamp for your site, study the energy consumption standards. In the price-quality ratio of a lamp, service life is also important. Very often, taking into account the durability and energy consumption of a light lamp, you can save a lot.
Solar street lights justify their cost with a very long service life, despite the price of one bulb. Accumulating light during the day, they release it at night. This is a choice not only for those who want to save money, but also for those who care about the environment.
For spot accents, LED street lights are best. Landscape designers actively use these lamps to create the effect of soft and unobtrusive lighting.
Installation of facade lighting
After selecting the light source, type of lamps and type of luminaire, you can proceed directly to installation work.
To do this, follow the instructions on how to illuminate the facade:
- First of all, it is necessary to select the type of facade lighting: local, widespread, artistic or dynamic lighting (using LED lamps).
- The next stage of independent work is to repair the facade. All installation work is carried out only after defects in buildings and external finishing materials have been eliminated.
- All wiring for decorative lamps should be connected to a separate circuit breaker in the panel.
In addition, the wiring should be enclosed in corrugated tubing or other type of insulating material.
Next, they mount the lamps, and only then begin to connect the electrical wiring. If you plan to install a timer or motion sensor, then do the installation at this stage.
Types of Outdoor Lighting
Illumination of facades and decorative elements of buildings can be implemented in several ways. The general light fill allows you to illuminate the entire area of the facade. Typically, designers use this option for street lighting of large buildings. In the case of small buildings or if the walls of the house have a smooth texture, it is more profitable and more interesting from an aesthetic point of view to use several lamps with colored lamps. It will be much more cost-effective and beautiful.
Local or accent lighting is intended to highlight architectural fragments, for example, stucco elements, niches, columns.
Contour lighting allows you to outline the silhouette of the building. It can be highlighted entirely or individual fragments can be highlighted. In this case, LED tubes or cords are used. Light elements look advantageous on roof details, balconies, and stairs. Given the low cost and variety of forms, contour lighting can also be quite easily dismantled if necessary or transferred to other areas of the facade.
Illumination of the facade of a private house and the adjacent landscape with hidden lighting is considered quite effective. Most often it is done under the eaves of a building or under a concrete slab of a balcony, and in an area under bushes and under trees with a low crown. This can be easily done using LED silicone tubes.
Festive façade lighting can be transformed using various projection techniques. Using a computer or a special digital program allows you to control the projector and change both the color scheme and lighting intensity. Spotlights, LED strips, spotlights, etc. can also be used.
Photo of house facade lighting
More lighting or better savings?
The initial lighting design for the dacha is convenient because it allows you to immediately decide on the installation of electricity. In order not to be surprised by the bills for garden lighting, you can use batteries, path lighting using solar batteries, and lights that react to the movements of a passerby. Please note that in winter the batteries discharge quickly and the illumination drops; any light experiments will require money one way or another.
There are no SNiPs or GOSTs for garden lighting. This is a personal decision of the owner of the house, and it depends not only on the size of the plot, but also on taste preferences.
The first step to designing light accents is to study photos of street lamps. With their help, you can show your imagination on your own site and make it convenient and comfortable.
Street lighting of a private house: pros and limitations
Despite the obvious positive aspects, home lighting has some limitations that you need to be aware of.
Advantages
When planning the lighting of a country house site, you should start directly from the building itself.
First of all, the illuminated facade looks great when viewed from the outside of the house. However, it is not always necessary to install a large number of lamps. Even garlands hung under the roof canopy add significant variety to the exterior of the house. But if desired, the walls of a home or the architectural features of a building can be used to create amazingly beautiful paintings.
Another point is that the house becomes special, with its own zest, and you can always refer to some characteristic features in the lighting solution that will help you quickly find the building among all the others.
Another plus is that the lamps can be installed in such a way that they illuminate not only the building, but also the area near it. It will be possible to move around the house without any problems.
Peculiarities
It is necessary to install lighting fixtures in such a way that their light does not fall into the windows of neighboring houses, does not blind passersby and is not excessively strong - if you have to block the spotlight from the spotlight with thick curtains, you should reconsider its location and lamp power.
Lamps should not be visually overloaded - a lighting fixture that is too large or too small will not only not give the expected effect, but will also look ridiculous. It is also worth using a computer program that will help calculate the required number of lamps, their location, appearance and lamp power.
Decorative lighting outside a country house should also take into account the degree of security of the installed lighting fixtures. It is indicated by the IP icon with two numbers: the first shows how protected the electrical part of the equipment is from dust, the second is the protection against moisture. Based on this, facade lighting requires a degree of protection of at least 44 - the design of such lamps does not allow objects larger than 1 mm to pass through, and is not afraid of either rain or a stream of water from a hose. The higher the numbers, the lower the possibility of the lamp becoming dusty and getting wet.
As for the materials from which lighting fixtures are made, metal, in particular aluminum, has proven itself to be the best. It is lightweight and non-corrosive. It is also better if the body is not prefabricated, but cast - it is more reliable.
Street lights for wall mounting
If initially, when planning the house, high-quality street lighting was thought out, then on the walls - for example, above the front door or windows, at the entrance to the garage - electrical wires will be laid out for the installation of wall-mounted street lamps.
What to do if you got a house without wiring in the right places? Or, would you like to have street lighting, but are afraid of huge electricity bills?
In this case, solar-powered wall lamps will be the solution. They will have an attractive and romantic design - Romanesque, Gothic or Victorian. In fact, you get a modern lighting device:
- it will be protected from precipitation;
- rechargeable battery with increased capacity;
- light element with a long supply of light hours.
Like garden lights installed in the ground, the wall-mounted version will also need sunlight. The battery needs to be exposed to daylight for several hours to charge.
Wall lanterns will cost more than simple garden lamps: the price consists of the battery and complex design.
