Hi All: I'll start by saying, I'm new to landscape lighting, but I'm pretty handy and capable of taking on the job. But since I've never done this before, I wanted to get some advice and answers to some questions. Attached is a landscape plan, where I've added fixtures, hubs, and wire-runs. Here's where I could use some advice: 1) I would like to use a clamp-connect transformer. And since the 300w version is limited to five wires, I can't exceed five runs in my project. Is it "okay" to do a couple of t-junctions to separate hubs? I won't daisy chain the hubs together, but want to make a t-junction from a single run to power two different hubs. 2) When using hubs, is it imperative to keep all the lengths to each fixture the same length? Some of these fixtures could wind up with LOTS of coiled up wire. I'd prefer to avoid that if I can -- otherwise I'll just be burying extra wire in the ground. 3) Any thoughts on wire gage? Some of these runs to the transformer are kind of long, and I want avoid going under as few sidewalks as possible. I also need to avoid going through the lawn to avoid sprinkler systems. Thanks all for the advice and feedback. If you have ideas on how to optimize or make this easier, I'd welcome that as well! -Jake
Hi, Jake. Full disclosure, I don't work for VOLT. I'm just a lighting enthusiast. I'll address your softball questions and I'll let Evan or another VOLT rep address the more technical ones. First, you're not limited to single wire run per tap. If you do use more than one run per tap, Evan will correct me if I'm wrong but I think it's probably a good idea to distribute them evenly across taps (rather than having one or two taps with multiple wires and unused taps). If you have cracks anywhere spanning the width of your walkways/pathways/driveway, or deep expansion gaps, you may be able to avoid going underneath a sidewalk at all. It's generally a good idea to keep the wires from each fixture the same length but if you're off by a few feet or so, it shouldn't make a difference in terms of voltage issues. In my own yard, I've buried any cable that could be a trip hazard or easily cut during lawn maintenance. Otherwise, I've just been creative. Some extra cable I've wrapped or rolled into a neat bundle and then hidden it in mulch or behind foundation shrubbery. I've also hidden some of my wiring underneath a few of my landscape boulders. Hope this helps.
You can certainly make a T-junction to lead to two separate hubs. The most important factor is really the load - we recommend no more than 80W or 8-10 fixtures (whichever threshold is reached first essentially). While LED is extremely flexible/forgiving compared to classic halogen systems, we still typically don't recommend hub hopping because it has led homeowners to hooking up hub after hub after hub I.e. leading to voltage loss issues. A voltmeter is truly the handiest tool here when getting complex for a precise and balanced design. The 25' nomenclature associated with the runs off the hub is more centered around the fact that we offer 25' lead wire options with fixtures - you do not need to keep all of the runs off the hub at 25' specifically. Obviously, we do not recommend a 100' run off a hub though. Having some extra lead wire tucked away may prove handy in the future for expansion or maintenance as well. 12-gauge is used for most residential properties and is rated for uses up to 150', our clamp-connect tech can accept 10-gauge as well (rated for 250')
