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How to Install Low-Voltage Outdoor Lighting
In just a few hours, you can turn your yard at night into a celebration of light. Use low-voltage lights to highlight trees and shrubs or to illuminate walkways, steps and decks. You can start with a basic design, then add to it over time. |
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Installation is simple because low-voltage lighting systems are safe and easy to work with. Typical kits include a power pack that combines a transformer to step the current down to 12 volts and a timer to control the lights. A low-voltage electrical cable runs from the power pack and connects to individual lights, usually without splicing. Almost everything just snaps together. So grab your shovel and a few other tools, and you're ready to roll. |
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Choosing FixturesBefore you buy your lighting kit, walk around with a flashlight and study your yard at night. Highlight key features from different angles. Beam light up into trees and shrubs. Illuminate your front gate. Note which spooky spots need light. Your choice of fixtures is vast: globes, tiers, tulips, spots, floods even underwater lights for ponds. Shop around a bit before you buy. |
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Installing the Power PackA power pack transforms 120-volt house current into a low-voltage circuit. Typically, power packs are weathertight plastic shells that contain a hard-wired plug that connects to your house wiring, typically by plugging into a ground-fault circuit interrupter (GFCI); screw terminals for the low-voltage cable; and a timer that turns lights on and off. |
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Using screws provided by the manufacturer, mount the power pack to an exterior wall, at least one foot above ground. Once the power pack is secured, strip the low-voltage cable wires and attach them to the terminals on the power pack. Although the example shown is typical, consult your manufacturer's instructions in case of any variations.
You could also mount the power pack inside your house, say, inside a basement wall, so that you can plug into a receptacle inside. But such a location is not only less convenient, it also requires drilling through exterior walls and sheathing the cable in a length of conduit as it passes through the wall. It makes more sense to add an exterior GFCI and plug your power pack into that.
Laying Cable and Attaching FixturesAfter you mount the power pack, you're ready to run cable to your outdoor lights. Place your lights wherever you like. Though installation details vary, most lights are simple to set up: slide light shades over the fixture socket, attach that assembly to a riser post, insert a ground stake in the bottom of the post, and stick the stake into the ground. Then run the low-voltage cable on top of the ground alongside each fixture in turn. You can bury the cable, but we prefer to cover it with a few inches of topsoil, so it can be unearthed easily if necessary.
Each light connects to the cable via two wire leads that end in a cable connector. Cable connectors almost always look like two tiny jaws with a small, sharp prong emerging from each. Place a connector on each side of the cable and simply press them together till they lock. The prongs pierce the cable and thus complete the electrical connection.
Back at the house, plug the power pack into the GFCI, set the timer and bring on the night!
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