What kind of landscape lights should I get?

[ShiroKuro]

We have three landscape lights, something like this, except not that tall:

They are in bad shape. One of them is burned out but the casing/fixture is so rusted, we can't change it. One works (but also looks like it can't be opened), and the other has a red bulb in it (which I hate) and also can't be opened (bc rust). They're hard-wired, and turn on and off with the porch light switch. I can see some kind of cord (metal?) going into the ground, it's very rusted too.

S I have an electrician coming out in about a week and half (I have some other jobs for him) and I thought I would have him work on this while he's here.

I could buy new fixtures and have him replace them with other hard wired ones. Or I could have him remove them and then we could replace them with solar-powered ones that you just stick in the ground. I think there's enough sun there that the solar option would work in the summer, not sure about winter though. I don't mind paying for the hardwire if that's the better option...

Does any one have any experience with this? Any suggestions?

TIA!

[Steve Miller]

The 120 volt (house current) ones like that aren’t popular any more. Nowadays everyone wants 12 volt LEDs that run off of a little transformer. The transformer usually has a timer and some have photocells. They can be as bright or brighter than the 120 volt ones depending on what you choose.

The nicest fixtures are ones from Nightscaping.

Expensive but the materials and craftsmanship are absolutely first class.

[Also high quality but not as fancy as Nightscaping are fixtures made by SPJ lighting. ]([link https://www.spjlighting.com/a/s/url ]

Solidly made, less expensive than Nightscaping but still kinda $$$. We installed a lot of their stuff over the years.

Great customer service - they once replaced a 10 year old transformer that was 9 years out of warranty without my even asking. The guy at the little factory told me “These things shouldn’t go bad”. Gained them a customer for life.

[Kichler is another quality brand. ([https://www.kichler.com/products/landscape-lighting ]). Amazon and some landscape supply houses

But these are all pretty expensive and the plastic versions, generally sold in sets with the transformer, have gotten pretty good. Not lifetime good but probably 10 years good. I have a ten year old Home Depot Hampton Bay set at the lake that just this year required a new transformer and one fixture fell apart. Not bad for how little they cost.

[wtg]

From what I've seen, solar powered landscape lights are a crapshoot. Some work OK, others fail in short order. I bought a decent quality solar powered address sign, and I'm on my third one, all covered under warranty. I took delivery of the original purchase in November 2023. It's crazy.

Go with the ones @Steve-Miller describes.

[Steve Miller]

The solar ones are never bright enough for my taste. They make nice accents but really won’t light up a path, tree, etc.

The ones I’ve tried don’t last very long either.

[Steve Miller]

I’ll add that the expensive pictures can be repaired if they ever fail. Not so with the ones from big box stores.

[ShiroKuro]

@Steve-Miller and @wtg tjanks! This is super helpful!

I think I’ll stick with the hard wired, now to figure out what to get. The JSP Lighting store might be good. Although I don’t see the prices and that makes me nervous
Maybe I need to look at their site from my laptop.

[ShiroKuro]

Hmmm does any one know if it’s possible to put a timer inside a light switch?

We can get a sensor lightbulb for the porch light, but not for the path lights (if we keep the hardwire set up). And since the path lights and porch lights are on the same switch, I’m wondering if there’s another option to get these set up to go on automatically.

[ShiroKuro]

Because the other option to get tings automated is to put sensor light bulbs in the fixture on the porch, get rid of the hardwired path lights and switch to solar for the path lights

[wtg]

@ShiroKuro said in What kind of landscape lights should I get?:

Hmmm does any one know if it’s possible to put a timer inside a light switch?

We can get a sensor lightbulb for the porch light, but not for the path lights (if we keep the hardwire set up). And since the path lights and porch lights are on the same switch, I’m wondering if there’s another option to get these set up to go on automatically.

Yes, Intermatic makes a bunch of in-wall timer switches. We have one for the coach lights that flank the overhead garage door. There's a deep overhang that makes it dark enough there so that the lights stay on all the time, even during the day. We had to install an in-wall timer to turn them on and off.

https://www.intermatic.com/Catalog/us/Products/In-Wall-Controls/Electronic-In-Wall-Timers

Piece of cake to install. Ours is the basic one, either the ST01 or ST01A. It keeps track of sunrise/sunset times and turns on/off the lights on a semi-random schedule within a 10 minute window either way from sunset/sunrise.

Because the other option to get tings automated is to put sensor light bulbs in the fixture on the porch, get rid of the hardwired path lights and switch to solar for the path lights

I don't think you'll be happy with the quality of the solar fixtures in terms of reliability or the amount of light they give off.

[ShiroKuro]

Awesome thank you!!!

[wtg]

I just added a comment to my previous post about solar lights for the path...

[wtg]

The Intermatic switch also has a battery in it so that it saves the time and you don't have to reset after a power outage. We probably change out that battery once every five years. Depends on the cumulative duration of power outages....the battery is not rechargeable, and it's a weird size like an N, so we always have to go to HD to buy one when it dies...

[ShiroKuro]

Hmm our switch is part of a three block switch. Two are outdoor lights, one is for inside the entry hall.
Wonder if those can be split some how …
Probably the question is if we need an electrician, how much it will cost. And will we need to do drywall repair…
I really want to have the outdoor lights automated for when we’re traveling…

[wtg]

I'm sure it can still be done, even if it isn't a one-for-one swap of switches.

There are light fixtures that have built-in sensors, and ones that have combo light and motion sensors. The ones I've seen are at Menards and Home Depot and they can be flaky and the sensors don't seem to last very long. Plus they tend to be on the cheaper side and rust/deteriorate. If you have a nice quality porch light you may not want to swap it out, but if it's a builder grade thing you could look at replacing it entirely.

[ShiroKuro]

Well, the porch light fixture and the garage fixtures match, so I'd like to keep those if I can.

I bought some bulbs that have sensors on them, I'll try them tonight and see what I think. But probably the best better is a timer inside the switch plate...

[Big_Al]

@ShiroKuro If the sensor bulb works in the porch light, I think you might replace the switch with a timer. Then the landscape lights would turn on and off at the set times and the porch light would work at command of the sensor during those times. This would mean you only have to replace the switch. The downside is the porch light could only be activated by the sensor during the on period for the landscape lighting. You may or may not see this as a significant disadvantage.

I have a front porch light fixture that includes a sensor and I have really liked it because it lights the porch when someone approaches from outside at night. When the light was controlled only by a switch, I had no illumination when approaching the porch unless I left the switch on the entire time I was gone.

Big Al

[ShiroKuro]

@Big_Al do you mean motion sensor? I got a light sensor, not motion.

I also got light sensor bulbs for the path lights, not sure if they’ll work or not though. The path is in full sun right now and it’s too hot, so I’m waiting for the sun to sink a bit first before trying it.

[wtg]

@ShiroKuro said in What kind of landscape lights should I get?:

Hmm our switch is part of a three block switch. Two are outdoor lights, one is for inside the entry hall.
Wonder if those can be split some how …
Probably the question is if we need an electrician, how much it will cost. And will we need to do drywall repair…
I really want to have the outdoor lights automated for when we’re traveling…

You have something like this? Or maybe not a Decora style, but still three small switches...

And will we need to do drywall repair…

As long as there is space in that area, I would think an electrician could open up the drywall carefully and put a larger box in the wall that would accommodate two regular size switches and a timer. Or two mini-switches and a timer.

[Big_Al]

@ShiroKuro Yes, I did mean motion sensing. My front porch light and the floodlights above my garage are both motion sensing. They also sense daylight so they don.t turn on during the day. They have an override feature that keeps them on all night if you cycle the switch on-off-on so they can be forced to stay on ithrough the night but then turn off when day comes and resume their normal motion-sensing operation.

Big Al

[ShiroKuro]

thanks @Big_Al

Hmm, well the light sensor bulbs didn't fit in the path lights, so that won't work...