Ask the Builder
Low Voltage Landscape Lighting Problems
By Tim Carter
©1993-2012 Tim Carter
Summary: Low voltage landscape lighting problems can be avoided if you keep track of cable runs. Your outdoor lighting is best served with low voltage light bulbs of quality - and gloved fingers!
Plan the Cables
Many homeowners who have low voltage landscape lighting have problems with cut power cables. It is easy to forget over time where shallow buried cables lie. To avoid this, try to plan your cable runs so they might not fall where you will possibly landscape in the future. After you install the cables, consider making a detailed map of your light layout and where the cables are. Take measurements off permanent outdoor points like corners of your house, edges of patios, any feature that is not likely to move. Take this drawing once completed and put it in a zip-lock plastic bag and nail it to the wood panel where your main electric circuit box is. You should remember that it is there as you think about buried cables when you start to dig in the future.
Bad Bulbs
I have received complaints from people who feel low voltage light bulbs burn out too soon. This can happen for two primary reasons. If you buy cheap bulbs, don't expect them to last. There are imported low voltage bulbs that are flooding our markets. They look great, but they usually don't perform as well as a domestic name-brand bulb.
Also, you really need to wear cotton gloves when you install them. NEVER touch a low voltage bulb with bare hands. The oils from your hand cause the high quartz content glass around the bulb to actually become brittle. This can cause the high pressure gas inside to leak out!
Companion Articles: Outdoor Lighting, Landscape Lighting, Low Voltage Landscape Lighting Resources, Low Voltage Outdoor Lighting Manufacturers
