Hello, we are adding lights to the path to our front porch. We'd like to add light to the side of the house with the two windows. Should we use round wall wash lights or downlights? Note, the shrubs along the house are usually much more full. Thank you!
Hey there, From what you've mentioned, I would suggest the Round Wall Wash or any other form of uplighting essentially (a floodlight, spotlight, or in-ground light). While downlight methods are used on exterior walls (puck lights, hardscape lights, etc.), the project itself is a more involved installation and requires a bit more planning and labor. Using Round Wall Washes to illuminate from the ground up would be as simple as spacing the lights appropriately and mounting them using ground stakes.
Thanks for your reply. If labor/installation were not an issue, which type of lighting would you recommend to light up the side of the house? We are concerned with the shrubs partially blocking the light if we used ground or spot lights. Any suggestions you can provide are appreciated!
Completely understandable when it comes to foliage like that! Some homeowners do not prefer the 'shadowing' effects. If your goal was to specifically light up the open sides of the house with wall wash effects, then round wall washes placed at least 1' away from the wall (or spotlights using wider beam spreads) would be the most convenient type of installation. The illumination behind the shrubs/large bushes would create 'silhouette' effects. Another option which would also look beautiful would be Puck Lights mounted on the soffit. They are easy to mount with the pre-drilled screw holes but, running the wire is where the additional labor would come in to play with this type of install. Perhaps, with your angled roof, it may be even easier to hide the wire!
