Tips for Maintaining Your Low Voltage Landscape Lighting System

Tips for Maintaining Your Low Voltage Landscape Lighting System

 By Mike Gambino

fountain rawIn my opinion one of the most overlooked necessities of landscape lighting system ownership is maintenance. For some strange reason most don’t think of it and are adverse to paying for it but it is absolutely as necessary as taking care of your automobile, swimming pool and landscaping if you want it to perform its best and last. Luckily if your landscape lighting system is built from the highest quality materials like a Gambino landscape lighting system then maintenance intervals will not be nearly as intense as required for the above mentioned amenities.

A few tweaks to your outdoor lighting will shed the best light possible on your property, from accent fixtures in a tree or on the ground to the fixtures lining walkways.

When we conduct scheduled  inspections and maintenance on your outdoor light fixtures, we follow these procedures to make this visit run more smoothly and next time’s shorter and simpler. We charge on a time and materials basis because we find this to be the most fair way for both us and the client since every visit is different. One of our main goals is to keep maintenance costs as low as possible on our systems for our clients.

1. UPGRADE BURNED-OUT LAMPS, Check Timers

DSCN0412We begin by turning the system on replacing lamps that have burned out.

If budget allows, consider replacing the bulbs with long-lasting LED lamps – their longer lifetime means they require less frequent replacement, and the ensuing labor savings and lower energy consumption justify the higher product cost.

A good way to cut costs for lamp replacement in halogen fixtures is to follow a re-lamping schedule and replace all lamps at the same time. This way, the cost of  transportation is reduced. For all types of fixtures, another way to cut costs is to make sure the fixtures are not on when they are not supposed to be. A common way of dealing with lamps being on during the day is to make sure timers are set and working properly. That goes for photo sensors that turn the lights on and off automatically as well if the system is so equipped.

2. Time for an upgrade?

While we are replacing  those lamps, we  take a look at the ones that are underperforming. If the fixture was installed when the plant or tree was immature it may need a lumen or optic beam spread upgrade. If we need to increase the lumens by increasing the lamp wattage we must take new voltage readings at key points in our system and make adjustments inside of our transformers to compensate for the power changes to ensure the system remains in balance and operating at its peak. Neglecting the necessity to do so will affect system performance and reliability.

 3. CLEANING AND PRUNING

DSCN0298We also check to see how clean the fixtures are. If any are significantly dirty, we start cleaning – you may be surprised at the results.

You lose a lot of lumens from just dirt and lime buildup from sprinkler spray on glass lenses. Light colors can also shift from dirty lenses.

We clean both sides of glass fixture lenses thoroughly. If the fixture is equipped with internal reflectors then we clean those too. Then, the gaskets, o-ring and silicone seals are inspected  to make sure they’re working as intended – if we find  water, dust or moisture  inside the fixture, it could signal that the seals aren’t performing right and we either change or repair them.

Typically, whenever the weekly gardening service comes, you’d hope the gardeners would keep plant materials and foliage pruned away from fixture lenses, but it never happens. I’ve seen hundreds of thousands of fixtures in my day that have a bulb that’s working, but the fixture’s just covered or blocked. You’re paying for the electricity, but you’re not getting the light. So part of our responsibility is to selectively prune plant material so that it doesn’t interfere with lighting effects. Blocked fixtures also create unattractive “hot spots” in the garden when lights come on after dark.

Fixtures installed up in trees need special attention. If the wiring was installed properly it may not need adjustment for the first few years but eventually it will need to be loosened so it doesn’t interfere with or become damaged by the growth of the tree. DSCN0613

4. CONSIDER THE ENVIRONMENT

One environment-specific concern is highly important in coastal areas, where fixtures are subject to high amounts of moisture or exposure to salt or other corrosive contaminants. These  properties may need more frequent site visits to prevent possible problems created by the harsh environment.

Standard fixtures aren’t equipped to stand up against the assault, so our fixtures have been designed to withstand all environmental conditions.

There are special materials that can be used to make the fixtures more resistant and special hardware. The system builder or owner should do his homework to select the correct fixture or communicate with the installer to make sure the proper materials are used to stand up to the environment before it is installed.

5. MAKING THE JOB EASIER

Every step of our maintenance process is designed to make our next visit easier and less labor and time intensive. We prioritize our tasks as this visit next visit. Not all procedures need to take place at every visit. It all really depends upon the maintenance interval, environment and landscape itself and every property is different. Each is handled on a case by case basis. Client expectations are also part of the mix. We have some clients who place a high value on their outdoor lighting and want the system at its peak at all times, don’t mind paying for it and we are on site four times or more a year to ensure that. And then we have others that are not so diligent, do not want to pay for that level of service and maintenance and up keep of the system sometimes suffer as a result.

Every year, or maybe even twice a year, there’s a need for some contact or maintenance with the outdoor lighting. Sadly, with some it usually doesn’t get done nearly that often because it/s not thought about or considered a necessity.

It’s not until something degrades or fails that attention is paid to the problem and that is unfortunate.

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I always advise anyone considering an outdoor lighting system to seriously consider the responsibility and cost of ongoing maintenance that is unavoidable. If you are the type that wants everything to look good and perform without problems but don’t wish to pay for maintenance then I respectfully say this amenity may not be for you.

Facebook-iceThis landscape lighting blog is published by Mike Gambino of Gambino landscape lighting inc. all rights reserved. Mike is a professional landscape lighting system designer/ builder and has been designing, installing and maintaining landscape lighting systems for more than 20 years. Mike resides in the Los Angeles area with his wife and 2 sons. To visit his website go to www.gambinolighting.com . To inquire about hiring Mike please  click here .

Blog articles may be published with permission on other websites without editing or removing links.

 

 

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