Sockets

Written By Dave Fetterolf

So you are shopping various lighting manufacturers offerings for better pricing, and you cannot understand why there is such a price discrepancy in today’s market. After all, every lighting company in the market today offers fixtures made with aluminum, copper, brass, and different variations of composite materials. Well, the answer may very well be inside the fixture: in the socket.

Some of the low voltage lamps we use in the landscape were originally designed for indoor use only, such as the MR16 lamp. Others, such as the bayonet base and bi-pin lamps, were derived from the automobile industry, and intended to be used in a relatively “dirt free” environment. Many years ago, introducing the outdoor elements to these lamps was a major consideration for lighting manufacturers. Not necessarily due to negative effects on the lamp, but because of negative effects on the socket that holds the lamp. Lamps have a predetermined life span that ranges from 750 hours to 10,000 hours, depending on which lamp you are using. Homeowners understand that replacing lamps is part of owning a landscape lighting system. Sockets however, must last “forever”, or at least as long as the raw materials used in the manufacturing process of the lighting fixture.

Most of the leading lighting manufacturers understand this, and have developed sockets that can withstand outdoor environments. Many years ago, the MR16 socket that we adopted from the track lighting manufacturers, was basically nothing more than a piece of cardboard covered with a thin sheet of mylar, and the springs that hold the lamp in place were not always made from stainless steel. Although this socket operates perfectly in a relatively dry and clean environment, it cannot withstand the moisture, humidity changes, and dust that is present in outdoor use. Through trial, error, and loads of money spent on R & D, the leading outdoor lighting manufacturers began using sockets made with stronger materials and stainless steel springs and contacts. This eliminates socket degradation and prevents rusting.

Remember the old saying, “Beauty is only skin deep, but Ugly goes straight to the bone”? Well this is absolutely true when it comes to lighting fixtures. Before you decide on using one manufacturers offerings versus others, take a minute to look inside the fixture to determine how long that particular fixture will continue to add “Beauty” to your customers landscape.

Uplighting

Have you ever really stopped to think about how light effects our personalities, moods, and sense of well being? Have you ever noticed how light color and brightness “set the mood” of a particular setting?

As landscape lighting designers, we have the ability to actually influence and control the moods of our customers. Achieving this is actually quite simple, if you keep one basic rule in mind: natural light always comes from above.

In our everyday environment, all of our light is derived from above. Whether it is the sun, the moon, or track and recessed lighting in your home, all of the light in our lives is generated from above. This creates a natural feeling of comfort and calmness. In landscape lighting, we have the ability to “create drama” by placing light sources in the ground projecting light up. Subconsciously, this creates an unnatural feeling in humans, forcing us into focusing on the “up lit” subject. By understanding this simply concept, we can design more dramatic and effective landscape scenes.

There are, however, many different techniques in uplighting. The most common is simply to place fixtures at the base of a subject and project light up. Although effective, this only creates a one-dimensional scene. A more dramatic scene can be achieved by using multiple fixtures and “cross lighting” the subject you are trying to showcase. Whether a tree or a statue, cross lighting will create a broader and deeper scene.

If you have a solid surface such as a wall or fence near you subject, you should experiment with shadowing and silhouetting techniques. Shadowing can be achieved by placing fixtures slightly in front of you subject and directing the light through the subject creating shadows on the wall. Shadowing creates depth and movement to the landscape creating a multi dimensional scene.

Silhouetting can be achieved by placing the light source behind the subject and grazing the background wall. This also creates movement in the landscape, but the effect is always limiting to the size of the subject you wish to highlight.

So next time you are evaluating a landscape for a lighting system, remember to identify places where people will gather and relax, and use downlighting as your main source of light to create a scene of comfort and calmness. Conversely, remember to use various uplighting techniques to create drama and draw attention to specific areas of the landscape.

Projection Type Lamps

Written By Dave Fetterolf

Over the past several years, I have noticed a trend that has me somewhat concerned: the simplification of the landscape lighting market. Before you jump to any predetermined conclusions, let me explain my concerns. I am not speaking of simplification of the manufacturing, shipping, or even the installation of lighting fixtures; I am referring to the trend that most all manufacturers are following of including a “basic” lamp in the packaging of each fixture. Not every fixture mind you, as most path lights and deck lights utilize general illumination lamps, I am specifically referring to fixtures that require projection type lamps such as MR lamps and PAR lamps.

Lets just assume for a moment that industry related manufacturers began to “follow suit” with this idea. How seriously would an irrigation contractor be if the only nozzles he utilized in every application, turf and shrub irrigation, were 12’ center strip nozzles? What about the landscape contractor that only treated his clients landscaping with 15-15-15 fertilizer year round? I know I may be going a bit overboard here, but this trend has me really bothered.

Looking at this from a contractors prospective, I can certainly see the advantages of having all necessary components package together for ease of installation at the job site, but what this has created is a large variation between a lighting installer and a lighting designer. A lighting installer simply takes the fixture out of the packaging, hooks up the wire, and installs the fixture in the ground. A lighting designer, on the other hand, specifies certain lamp wattage’s and beam patterns for every fixture. This allows for much higher degrees of intensity and focus, and also creates a “layered” effect of the landscape.

As we have discussed in recent months, the most commonly used fixture in the landscape today requires a MR-16 lamp. Most manufacturers can provide any lamp that is requested, but due to inventory demands, most distributors only want to inventory “high turn” items. Since beginning lighting contractors design their lighting systems and order their supplies based on catalog pictures, chances are they are going to get a fixture with a 20 watt BAB MR-16 lamp. This is where the problem begins. If contractors would begin purchasing their fixtures and lamps separately, they would have an inventory of lamps to choose from for any and every application.

This problem was created honestly, as manufacturers where trying to give the customers ease of installation, but unfortunately, I believe that it has negatively effected the contractors ability to design what is best for the ultimate customer: the homeowner.