Design tips for low voltage deck lighting.

Designing your own low voltage deck lighting system is a simple home improvement project, but it gives you the perfect opportunity to be really creative. There’s such a wide variety of brilliant low voltage deck lights and accessories to choose from, you’re really limited only by your imagination.

You don’t have to be an expert electrician or an architect to design a good deck lighting scheme, but there are a few practical tips you should follow.

Three deck lighting design tips:

1. Safety first.

Your low voltage lighting scheme should not only look great, it should provide safety and security around the deck at night.

Use spotlights to highlight stairways, steps, doorways and the deck edge.

Recessed deck lights are designed to be mounted right into the surface of the deck, and are also great for highlighting potential hazards.

2. Avoid glare.

A strong, harsh light is very uncomfortable on the eyes. Don’t place a strong light source where it will bounce directly off a hard surface, such as the surface of the deck or a wall.

Indirect lighting is best. Try to design your lighting scheme so that the lighting fixtures themselves aren’t visible from the deck. Aim to create a gentle, even wash of light over all parts of the deck.

3. Experiment!

Low voltage lighting is very safe and easy to set up. You can have lots of fun trying out ideas and playing around with your lighting design until it’s just the way you want it.

Set up your deck lighting fixtures temporarily, and turn them on to see how they look. You can make all the adjustments you need before fixing the lights permanently.

For more information on deck lighting, please read this article on outdoor deck lighting ideas.