Former irrigation and then lighting guy here.....i've been out of the loop for a few years because of medical conditions. I am not working anymore but I have a long time client wants to add to the lighting system I did 11 years ago. When I first designed and went over it with him and his wife, his wife was a nightmare and being difficult because thats who she is....anyway, I wasnt allowed uplighting or downlighting...only path and hardscape..... He's now divorced (good for him) and wants to resume with my original ideas... Anyway when I did the project I was using Kichler integrated LED lighting as they gave a good warranty, probably the best back then but it was also affordable as compared to cast, unique etc.....Before Kichler I was using Vista but their stuff was swiss cheese and were failing within a year. The other important reason for Kichler is that the warranty was good because they are integrated fixtures......totally sealed per se and no bulb to replace....moisture and electric dont mix, what kills lighting is moisture and also no maintenance every year replacing bulbs so it was a win win.... My question is for those using fixtures that you can swap out bulbs, has the quality improved? Does moisture get in? Are bulbs needing replacement every two years? Overall opinions between those and an integrated led fixture? I am still able to get my dealer cost through supply house, which would be Kichler but cost has gone up, like everything else. I used to see Volt back in the day which are still around and they have their 'pro' wholesale division called 'AMP' and ive looked at their fixtures as compared to Kichler. In the past I wouldnt have gone near them but now they've been around a while, have narrowed things down to be more efficient and I like the look and ease of use with their products, though I dont know the quality of the fixtures or the LED lamps. So my first questions are posted above and then additional questions are of the volt/amp fixtures/lamps..... Opinions please?
Better late than never, but I've had some of Volt's replaceable spot lights for going on almost 4 years now. Never replaced a bulb, and never had one fail.
