Planning on doing some landscape lighting. Ground is mostly rock with wild growth/ ivys. I intend to go with low voltage because though it will get some sort of ground cover, it cannot be buried at all let alone the 18″ required for line voltage.
So, I intend to have it installed as follows:
GFCI outlet or quick disconnect mounted to side of house.
LV Transformer (magnetic) mounted next to outlet or quick disconnect.
Four lights run from transformer. The lights will be run as pairs in parallel.
Using 50W lamps so transformer will be 300W. Wanted to go to 75W but then the next transformer available is 600W ($$$).
Running #12 stranded outdoor wire. Will use with #10 if I go with the 600W transformer. This way more lights can be added in the future.
Lights will be mounted on 36″ stakes/ poles so that they do not get buried by snow or brush.
Client wants the lights to be dimmable from the Kitchen. Does the dimmer go before the transformer or after? Is it the same as indoor LV lighting? Are some transformers not rated for dimming? One company just told me I cannot use a dimmer with their transformer.
Comments? Thoughts?
Frankie
There he goes—one of God’s own prototypes—a high powered mutant of some kind never even considered for mass production. Too weird to live and too rare to die.
—Hunter S. Thompson
from Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas
Replies
Ask where the customer saw dimmable low voltage lights, there is none UL approved ones. But you can run two seperate lines, one low wattage and the other higher. The customer can run High, Low or both for three different settings. Line voltage can be used on the ground if the PVC conduit is protected by concrete, depending on what your Electrical Inspector advises.
Edited 1/31/2006 11:56 pm ET by Sungod
I have installed LV lights with dimmers indoors many times - the dimmers are made for this. Is LV exterior lighting different from interior LV? I have done it with electronic and with magnetic transformers.Someone please explain.FThere he goes—one of God's own prototypes—a high powered mutant of some kind never even considered for mass production. Too weird to live and too rare to die.—Hunter S. Thompson
from Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas
Cripes! 50 watt lamps? That's a lot of watts for a residential system. If they want to read a newspaper, or illuminate the side of a big house, they ought to use line-voltage lighting.
I have never seen dimmable low-v landscape lighting systems. One approach is to install two separate systems, one for low light and one for high, and put them on separate transformers.
They're balking at the price of a 600W (2x300 watt) tranny? Sounds like the client wants champagne for the price of beer. Quality landscape lighting isn't cheap, but it's cost-effective--because the client won't be replacing low-grade transformers and fixtures every couple of years.
Cliff
Edited 1/31/2006 7:46 pm ET by CAP
Why can't an exterior LV light system be dimmed using appropriate dimmer?What is different ELECTRICAL than an interior LV system where dimming is common?Yes the exterior system used more corrison resistant materials and methods to seal out moisture and/or drainage holes, etc. But none of that affects how it works electrically.
Electrically, the interior low voltage will work outside. But it won't last five years outside. The interior low voltage systems rot / rust almost immediately, if placed outside. Interior light bases are not waterproof, their aluminum bases rot quickly. Exterior rated line voltage lites will have copper bases. Take a look at low voltage system for boats. In my neighborhood there were over a dozen halogen low voltage light systems that no longer work, the bulbs burn out too easily. These were the ones from Home Depot or Lowes.
I was never considering using interior fixtures as exterior fixtures! I just don't understand why exterior fixtures cannot be dimmed. I thought it was a basic and simple question.Sounds to me like I can avoid all this by spending about 2hrs one night, with the Client, a walkie-talkie and a variety of lamps (10w, 20w, 35w, 50w) and go to each fixture testing out the light intensity. This way they can each be "dimmed" to the intensity he desires.Chances are he will not be adjusting this each time he turns them on as one would in a Dinning Rm or Living Rm setting.FThere he goes—one of God's own prototypes—a high powered mutant of some kind never even considered for mass production. Too weird to live and too rare to die.—Hunter S. Thompson
from Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas
I have low-voltage Xenon puck lights installed under the soffits of my shed and garage. They are controlled, and dimmed, through a Leviton #6376 (it's UL listed BTW), X10 module. The module is wired to the AC input of the 12V step-down transformer that runs the lights.For heavy or non-resistive loads Leviton also sells a non-dimming X10 module with a relay.