Trained landscape architect
Landscape lighting in Kernersville, NC
Landscape lighting in Kernersville: low-voltage LED for paths, steps, trees and beds, with the wire buried.
Free written estimate before work starts
- Trained landscape architect.
- Since 2000 in business.
Low-voltage LED or solar lights?
| What matters | Low-voltage LED | Solar stake lights |
|---|---|---|
| Power | Low-voltage LED: A transformer steps house current down to 12 volts and sends it through buried cable. | Solar: A small panel charges a battery in each light during the day. |
| Light at night | Low-voltage LED: Steady, the same every night, aimed where you want it. | Solar: Depends on how much sun the panel got; often dims late in the evening. |
| Control | Low-voltage LED: A timer or a dusk sensor switches every zone together. | Solar: Each light switches itself. |
| Best for | Low-voltage LED: Steps, walks, entries, trees and anywhere light has to be dependable. | Solar: A casual accent in an open, sunny spot. |
Paths, steps, trees and walls we light
Most layouts mix a few of these, planned so the light lands where you need it and nowhere else.
- Paths and stepsSoft light on every edge and change in level, so guests find the door without a flashlight.
- The front entry and the houseThe door lit and a few washes on the front, so the home reads finished from the street.
- Trees, uplitA Japanese maple, a dogwood or a big oak lit from below. Bare winter branches look good lit too.
- Beds and wallsLow fixtures among the plants and lights tucked under a wall cap.
- Decks and patiosStep lights and lights under a rail, for evenings outside after sunset.
- Timer or dusk sensor controlEvery zone switches on and off together, with nothing to remember.
Fixture plan, wire, then a night check
A fixture plan
Where each light goes, what it lights and how the zones split, marked on a plan of the yard.
We set the transformer and wire
The transformer plugs in near the house, and the low-voltage cable runs to each fixture in a shallow trench through the lawn and beds, so nothing is left on top of the ground.
We aim the lights
Once the fixtures are in, each light is aimed and the timer set, so the walk, the steps and the features read the way the plan intended.
A night check
After dark we look at the yard with the lights on and re-aim anything that glares.
Where a lighting budget goes
A front walk and entry is a very different job from lighting a whole backyard. Each of these shows up as a line on your written estimate.
- Number and type of fixtures
- Path lights, step lights, uplights for trees and washes for walls each cost differently, and most layouts mix several kinds.
- Length of the wire runs
- Fixtures far from the transformer need longer, heavier cable to keep every light at full brightness.
- What the trench goes through
- Open lawn is quick. Hard clay, thick roots, established beds or crossing a walk or a drive take more time.
- Zones and controls
- Splitting the front and back on separate zones, or adding a larger transformer for a bigger layout, changes the parts list.
- Adding to other work
- Lighting planned with a new patio, wall, deck or bed goes in while the ground is already open, which is simpler than retrofitting a finished yard.
When to put in landscape lighting
Lighting can go in most of the year, but fall is the season most people want it. The evenings get short in October, and after daylight saving time ends in early November it is dark well before dinner.
Ground conditions matter more than the month. Piedmont red clay bakes hard in a dry late summer and turns heavy and slick after a week of rain, so the trench work goes best between those extremes.
If you are also aerating and overseeding the lawn in September and October, plan the wire runs first, so the trench lines are seeded with the rest of the yard.
Plants keep growing after the lights go in. A shrub that was a foot tall at planting can block a path light in two seasons, so expect to re-aim a fixture or two as the beds fill in. In winter we also do Christmas light installation.
Lighting planned with the rest of the yard
Good outdoor lighting is mostly about where the light does not go. A few well-placed fixtures on the front walk, the porch steps and one good tree look better than a row of bright stakes, and they keep glare out of your windows and your neighbor's.
Total Lawn Care Triad designs and installs low-voltage landscape lighting for Kernersville homeowners. Each layout is planned around your beds, walls and patios, so the lights fit the plants and structures that are already there or are going in.
Because we also plant, mulch, build walls and decks, and care for trees, we route the wire and set the fixtures where they will not be in the way of the next bed edge, mower pass or root zone.
Yard damage, LED or solar, and adding lights later
How much does landscape lighting cost in Kernersville?
Fixture count drives most of it, then the fixture type, how far the wire runs and what it has to cross. We walk the property, lay out the lights and give you a free written estimate instead of a flat price.
Will installing it tear up my yard?
The cable goes in a narrow, shallow trench that closes back up. In lawn the line usually disappears once the grass grows over it, and in beds it sits under the mulch.
Is LED or solar better for my yard?
For steps, walks and entries, low-voltage LED. It gives the same light every night and runs on a timer. Solar lights depend on a full day of sun, so they suit a casual accent in an open spot, not the steps you walk in the dark.
Can you light my deck, steps and walls?
Yes. Step lights, lights under a deck rail and lights tucked under a wall cap are common parts of a layout, and we build decks, walls and patios too, so lighting can be planned with them from the start.
Can more lights be added later?
Yes, if the transformer has room for the extra load. Tell us at the estimate if you expect to add a bed or a patio later, and the layout can allow for it.
Book a lighting design visit
Tell us about the job. We come out, look at it with you and put a price in writing. Nothing starts until you approve it.
Rather talk, or send a photo?
Request a free written estimate
Your name and phone, so we can reach you. Everything else helps.