Greetings!!! I already have installed 5 G2 Fatboy lights with MR16 LED Bulbs (Bought the Volt G2 Fat Boy Spotlight Kit) on my property and I am looking to install and illuminate some more areas possibly around the back of our pool and near a step. Any suggestions on what types? Here is what I have now and what I am looking to add. Front Yard Day Time - The yellow arrows show where the lights are at. The one in the middle is highlighting only the tall bush and the 2 on either side. I am using a MR16 LED bulbs (5W | 38° | 2700K) right now on the light. Should I get a lower power and narrower angle? I have not installed a light here yet, it is in the next phase. I am going to run the cable straight to the back yard and connect to the 2nd transformer. At night all lit up. I am thinking about some pathway lights in the yellow circled area? Would it look good? The next 2 are showing trees in the backyard where I already have lights. Forgot to get a night shot. Now here is where I am trying to put some lights at the back of the pool. There is about 2 ft from the edge of the pavers to the fence. How many path lights should I put here? 3-4 lights? And I am looking to illuminate the step area at night too. Just one pathway light perhaps? Eventually a path way will be put there. Thanks! I can post different angled pictures if needed. Ryan
Hi, Ryan. Just some general recommendations for you. First, I think brightness is a matter of personal preference. If you're concerned that your lights are too bright, then you can always use fewer lights or tone down the ones you have with filters or lenses. It looks like many of your trees and shrubs are fairly young. It seems to me in cases where you're using two 38° spots, a single 60° might work just as well. I'm something of a minimalist myself so I'm biased. Often the only way to know what will work best is experimenting with different beam spreads and light lumens. As for the side of your pool, I'd be concerned that lights on that narrow strip of ground would get easily damaged or become a trip hazard. My preference would be to mount downlight or other lights with a good glare shield on the fence itself. If that is not an option, I'd install a few of the lowest profile path/area lights (see below) in that narrow strip and hope for the best. I get the impression that you've discovered that a little light goes a long way. My advice to you would be to first consider how much of an area you want to light and then choose a fixture you like that provides the coverage you need. There are path lights that produce a 16' diameter pool of light and some that produce a 5' diameter pool of light and everything in between. I also strongly encourage you to look at the lighting gallery images (there's at least one poolside lighting project) and more path lights that might suit your needs. Hope this helps. https://www.voltlighting.com/12v-in-grade-led-brass-mr16-turret-top-salty-dog/p/BDL-VWL-703-T-BBZ https://www.voltlighting.com/outdoo...i-all-star-innovator-brass/p/BVN-VPL-3025-BBZ https://www.voltlighting.com/outdoor-landscape-lighting-12v-path-area-lighting-pagoda/p/BDL-370-BBZ
Mesodude, thank you for your reply and advice. Sorry for taking so long to reply. Yes, all our trees and shrubs are around 3-4 years old. They were planted when the house was built. We are only using one spotlight per tree, the https://www.voltlighting.com/landsc...rass-spot-light-g2-fat-boy/p/BVN-VAL-2002-BBZ. For the strip of land by the pool, Here is a better image. Thanks for the advice. Ryan
Glad to help. Thanks for the photo. Again, if you place path lights in that strip, I’d recommend fixtures with smaller overall footprint. One other thing I may have forgotten to mention is that except for the submersible models, fixtures are water tight but they aren’t indestructible. IOW just as you would want a sprinkler shooting water up underneath most path light canopies, buckets of pool water routinely splashing up inside fixtures is probably not a great idea. Just FYI.
Another question. for up lighting a tree like I have for 4 of my trees, how far back should the light be from the tree truck? Thanks Ryan
Because cameras often don’t reflect the light levels and colors our eyes are seeing IRL, I’ll try to explain using the photos below. The top photo shows a pair of trees with trunks which I think are very attractively lit. The soft, warm light begins at the bottom of the tree and travels evenly several feet up before reaching the canopy. The fixtures appear to be a foot or less from the base of the trunk. In the larger photo, the tree on the right is similarly well lit with smooth, even light stretching from the base of the tree and reaching several feet up the trunk. The tree on the left, however, appears to have a great big hot spot down near the base Again, that could be the camera but IRL, you want to avoid that harsh effect. So your goal is to place your spotlight at a distance that allows you to both uplight the trunk as evenly as possible and avoid harsh hot spots. With a beam spread between about 38 degrees and 60 degrees and with some trial and error, you should be able to sufficiently illuminate the foliage of the tree as well. You may have to tinker with the glare guards and aim your lights at a fairly steep angle but you’ll get there eventually. Hope this helps.
