If ever there was a stylish way to add lighting to your outside space, it has to be the installation of a garden lamppost. Not only are lamp posts an attractive addition to any garden, they are also incredibly functional, providing extra security to your home.
The range of lamppost styles available is large, so whatever your taste, be it contemporary or classic, you'll find something to suit. The same goes for construction material - bronze, copper, aluminium, all are available.
If the main reason for installing a garden lamppost is safety or security, then the best places to site it would be at the beginning of a driveway or the end of a walkway - anywhere that increases visibility for people using your garden. Not only will you prevent trips and slips but you will deter loiterers too. For highlighting garden or architectural features, you'll find that the wide light-arc given by a lamppost can create some stunning lighting effects.
For ease of installation, solar powered posts are probably best - you won't have to worry about laying electric cables. And don't be put off by the rather dim solar lighting you may have seen in the past - advances in technology have made solar powered lampposts a credible option to the electrically powered models.
Not everything is perfect, of course, and with a lamppost the fly in the ointment is the amount of digging you'll have to do. For stability the lamp should be sunk into a hole that is at least two feet deep and, as some experts recommend that you site the post below the frost line, you're actually looking at more like thee feet in some colder parts of the country!
Only once you have dug deep enough can you consider laying the armoured cables. We won't pull our punches here - we strongly recommend that you employ a fully experienced and qualified electrician. If you do intend to lay the wires yourself it is vital you consult the local building regulations, which will be very specific about exactly how deep the cables should be laid. And whether you or your electrician is doing the installation, don't forget to buy enough cable. We recommend that you allow additional length to allow for stripping back at both ends to permit the relevant connections to be made.
The chances are that you will be opting for low energy lamps and, basically, you will have a choice of three types - the spiral, the stick and the GLS. For discrete good looks, the GLS wins hands down. After all, your lamppost won't have come cheap so why spoil the effect with the incredibly ugly spiral or stick versions which, not to put too fine a point on it, stick out like a sore thumb!
Your final decision is whether or not to install a sensor. You could have either a movement (PIR) sensor or a daylight one. By switching on your lamppost when you have forgotten to do so, a sensor will add to your sense of security. - 30228
The range of lamppost styles available is large, so whatever your taste, be it contemporary or classic, you'll find something to suit. The same goes for construction material - bronze, copper, aluminium, all are available.
If the main reason for installing a garden lamppost is safety or security, then the best places to site it would be at the beginning of a driveway or the end of a walkway - anywhere that increases visibility for people using your garden. Not only will you prevent trips and slips but you will deter loiterers too. For highlighting garden or architectural features, you'll find that the wide light-arc given by a lamppost can create some stunning lighting effects.
For ease of installation, solar powered posts are probably best - you won't have to worry about laying electric cables. And don't be put off by the rather dim solar lighting you may have seen in the past - advances in technology have made solar powered lampposts a credible option to the electrically powered models.
Not everything is perfect, of course, and with a lamppost the fly in the ointment is the amount of digging you'll have to do. For stability the lamp should be sunk into a hole that is at least two feet deep and, as some experts recommend that you site the post below the frost line, you're actually looking at more like thee feet in some colder parts of the country!
Only once you have dug deep enough can you consider laying the armoured cables. We won't pull our punches here - we strongly recommend that you employ a fully experienced and qualified electrician. If you do intend to lay the wires yourself it is vital you consult the local building regulations, which will be very specific about exactly how deep the cables should be laid. And whether you or your electrician is doing the installation, don't forget to buy enough cable. We recommend that you allow additional length to allow for stripping back at both ends to permit the relevant connections to be made.
The chances are that you will be opting for low energy lamps and, basically, you will have a choice of three types - the spiral, the stick and the GLS. For discrete good looks, the GLS wins hands down. After all, your lamppost won't have come cheap so why spoil the effect with the incredibly ugly spiral or stick versions which, not to put too fine a point on it, stick out like a sore thumb!
Your final decision is whether or not to install a sensor. You could have either a movement (PIR) sensor or a daylight one. By switching on your lamppost when you have forgotten to do so, a sensor will add to your sense of security. - 30228
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Want to find out more about garden lampposts, then visit Duncan Munday's site on how to choose the best lamp post for your garden.
