Wait! Aren’t floodlights those horrifying things up high on the corners of the house with about 9 million watts, so the whole yard is lit up like a prison, and yet aimed right into your eyes, so you can’t see anything? Yes, those are floodlights, but that’s not what we’re talking about.
We’re also not talking about taking the brightest light you can find and blasting it across the front of the house. Why do people do that!!?? It’s ugly and it’s dangerous.
Wash lighting or Floodlighting is a basic technique of outdoor lighting that places lights low in the yard in such a way that shoots a wide beam upwards at your home or any other intended feature. The intention is to highlight the architectural features of your home by washing it with light, which increases its curb appeal, enhances security, and more. In terms of outdoor lighting, it is more commonly called “wash lighting”. Here are some tips to follow:
Multiple Lights are Needed
To properly floodlight your house, combine other layers with your home’s floodlighting. Trying to make one huge bulb cover the whole facade of a house will actually do the opposite of what you are trying to achieve. It will diminish the details by over-brightening everything, like an overexposed photo. You lose all the details because everything is so bright. The right technique creates a soft subtle amount of light to feature certain architectural elements without over-lighting. Using other techniques in combination with flood (or wash) lighting ensures that everything is balanced and the items you want to highlight really do stand out.
Balance is Key
It looks odd to have two features that are far apart lit up, but the space in between is dark. You end up with more of a “creepy house” vibe than a welcoming one! So we make sure there are no dark creepy spaces by combining fixtures and techniques. We can use very wide beam spreads to highlight the various horizontal features of your home and narrow beam spreads for the vertical features.
Choose the Appropriate Fixtures
Most of the fixtures will be hidden, so the function is far more important than the style. However, for the ones that show, there are many options. We will help you make the right choices.
Floodlighting New Homes
A different lighting treatment should be given to a new house with young landscape elements compared to an established house with mature foliage. The lighting requirement for trees and shrubs increases as they grow bigger– as your landscape changes, so should your landscape lighting system. We’re happy to help with this.
We can illuminate your house with light to make it beautiful, safer, and more secure, without over-brightening. Let us show you how!
Located in Summerfield, NC Southern Lights- Architectural and Landscape Lighting serves properties and property management companies throughout the state of NC including Greensboro, High Point, Jamestown, Burlington, Reidsville, Oak Ridge, Brown Summit, Winston-Salem, Clemmons, Raleigh, Charlotte, Kannapolis, Salisbury, Gastonia, Matthews, etc.
Southern Lights has installed hundreds of outdoor landscape lighting systems and carries more certifications than anyone in the state. We specialize in lighting designs and service everything we install as well as lighting systems installed by others. With attention to detail and a solid knowledge of design, Southern Lights is the leading outdoor landscape lighting firm in the state of NC and beyond. See why our clients choose us. Contact us today by web (online form) or phone 336-451-4969.
