Help with exterior home lights

last year

We just finished shingling our home and having ABC Seamless Steel Siding install the ‘Sage Green steel installed. We love it! The next step is to have 6 x 6 cedar pillars installed in the front of our home.

Please help me decide which exterior lights to install. Thank you!

Featured Answer

wdccruise

last year

last modified: last year

Follow Dark Sky Principals for any outdoor lighting.

If you install wall lights adjacent or near the front door, they should shine downward onto the porch or sidewalk, not onto the wall or outward into the yard.
You could attach shallow wall lights (example) under the eaves above the garage door that wouldn't shine outwards.
If visitors need lighting to illuminate the driveway from the sidewalk, use low-voltage (12 volt) path lights (example).

"We also want to have the opportunity to be able to change the color of the lights."

Nah, just use white lights with 2700K or 3000K (maximum) color temperature.

Here are two dark-sky lights you might like from lumens.com and lampsplus.com. You can specify the "dark sky" criteria in searches on both websites.

Bradford Outdoor Night Sky Wall Sconce

Modern Forms Balthus 14" High Bronze LED Outdoor Lantern Wall Light

Walk outside and see the stars!

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Comments (8)

PRO
HALLETT & Co.
last year
Where are the lights going and why cedar columns?
Jane Beasley
Original Author
last year
Hi there…the load pillars (there are 3) in the front of our house, currently are hunter green and white, and will be replaced by 6 x 6 pillars. The exterior lights will be on the left and right side of the garage and to the right of the front door and also to the left of the window to the left of the front door.

We also want to have the opportunity to be able to change the color of the lights.
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Sigrid
last year
If the pillars are metal and in good shape, I'd just clad them with the cedar, not replace them. It will look the same and be a lot cheaper and easier.
PRO
RL Relocation LLC
last year
you dont need dark sky under a roof line. uses down light on side and back exits. I will say this any fixture in weather needs a good quality powder coat or it will rust in no time. i perfer brass but its not alway in the budget. for the front porch I would use pocket lanterns or basically flush mounts that way you can get some size but not have them stick out too much.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/the-great-outdoors-by-Minka-Lavery-Irvington-Manor-19-in-Chelesa-Bronze-Indoor-Outdoor-Hardwired-Pocket-Lantern-Sconce-with-No-Bulbs-Included-72170-189-C/328800587

https://www.visualcomfort.com/galena-pocket-wall-lantern-ol14400/

https://hedgeapple.com/catalog/henry-street-pocket-lantern_1346565/
PRO
RL Relocation LLC
last year
unless the post are damaged, why not just clad them or wrap them to make them larger, it would save money.
wdccruise
last year
RL Relocation LLC "uses down light on side and back exits"

None of the suggested lights follows Dark Sky principles. In fact all three lanterns have solid bottoms so they can only shine outwards where light is neither needed nor desired. The Minka Lavery light even contains a mirror that uselessly reflects light away from the sidewalk that requires illumination and into the yard which doesn't.
PRO
RL Relocation LLC
last year
im over the dark sky under a porch.