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Landscape Lighting
Topic Started: Apr 28 2008, 08:18 AM (1,331 Views)
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Does anyone have any experience with outdoor landscape lighting? My son and I built a house three years ago and were advised to try the solar lights. We did and those simply do not work. The light they give off after a sunny day is very weak and on a cloudy day is nada.

So this spring we are going to install an electrical set of out door lights. We want a mix of lights going down the rather lengthy sidewalk and also some spotlights to highlight certain areas in the evergreen bed.

We have looked at many sets online and I have a question. Is a 20 watt spotlight bright enough? They also sell 50 watt spotlights but we are wondering if those might be too bright. Some of the spotlights will shine near bedroom windows and we don't want the bedrooms looking like the SWAT team is ready to storm the house. :lol2:
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Almtnman
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I haven't had any experience with the outdoor lights, but I think maybe a low voltage light set would be better, something in the 12 volt range. You would have to bury the wire along where the lights will be placed, but that shouldn't be too much of a problem. Some place like Lowe's or Home Depot could probably advise you on the floodlights and what would work.
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Thanks for replying. The die is cast. We bought the 20 watt set. I'll let you know how it turns out. B)
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mugrb
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09:15 PM
The die is cast. We bought the 20 watt set. B)

You mean you bought the diecast aluminum 20 watt set. The die is cast doesn't make any sense.

All dies are cast in iron. I work in a metal stamping plant as a press operator.

Any who, I have a solar powered unit and it works great. It is a motion activated security light with 36 super bright white L.E.D.'s. I'm blown away by the amount of light coming from this unit. Great when we lose power do to storms and the motion activated lights will still work.

The 20 watt should be most sufficient. We use to have the 12 Volt Malabu set in plastic using 4 watt standard incandescent wedge base bulbs. They produce good light too. We had an 88 watt power-pack timer. We used the maximum of 22 light fixtures. Both the tiered and the floodlights.
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mugrb
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So much for my energy saving solar powered motion activated security light with 36 super bright white LED's. :angry:

It gave off awesome light when it was working. B)

But quit working after only a few days of service. :hammerhead:

One of the parts inside must have shorted out causing the battery pack to overheat a unsolder the power pack plug from the circuit board. Either a bad diode or transistor. :'(

Oh well, it's just $40 for the unit. No warranty either. :gun2:

Bought it @ Harbor Freight online. :alien:

Oops, forgot to place the picture on here. :rotfl:

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bearhuntinggal
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Hey, mugrb, I h ave ordered from Harbor Freight over the years, do ya still have your receipt? I think if you called them, you just might get it replaced, UNLESS it says on your receipt "as is"...... Seems to me, they were a good company to work with .. <_< ... Let me know.....
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mugrb
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bearhuntinggal,May 17 2009
11:36 PM
Hey, mugrb, I h ave ordered from Harbor Freight over the years, do ya still have your receipt? I think if you called them, you just might get it replaced, UNLESS it says on your receipt "as is"...... Seems to me, they were a good company to work with .. <_< ... Let me know.....

Not after taking the golden screw driver to it. :huh:

Not worth the cost of shipping it back to them. :'(
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