Garden Lighting Help sheet No. 7: - Installation of low voltage garden step lights
Surface mount steplights
In solid pillars or upright sleepers, drill a 20-25mm diameter exit hole behind the luminaire to accommodate the heat shrink joint. Drill a 15mm hole to run the cable up from ground level. |
Bring low voltage cable up through and out of the wall or pillar behind the required position of the garden light. Leave 300mm of cable for connection to the flying leads at rear of the steplight via a crimped joint sealed in heat-shrink tubing. (Order T9962 cable joint kit separately.) The joint can then be pushed into a 20-25mm diameter hole in the wall or pillar behind the garden light – few steplights have internal terminals to connect a cable into the fitting itself. Run low voltage cable from the transformer position up through the pillar or wall. Use T9918 1.5mm2 ground burial 2 core stranded low voltage cable (not PVC twin & earth mains cable.) Position the light at least 300mm and preferably 400-500mm above ground level to maximise light spread. |
Use 20mm conduit to protect cable through a brick pillar (where construction permits) & through any terrace/path base en route from the transformer |
Recessed steplights
Recessed garden steplights can be built into a wall during construction with the fitted cable brought out at the base or back of the wall for connection to the supply cable from the transformer via a crimped joint sealed in heat-shrink tubing. (Order T9962 cable joint kit separately.) Position the light at least 300mm and preferably 400-500mm above level ground to maximise light spread around a patio; for step lighting, position the light in front of the riser of the bottom step and above the tread of the top step of the group of 2 or 3 steps to be lit by each fitting to avoid unnecessary shadows (see graphic below). For existing walls, drill a recess hole for the light and a 10mm hole for the cable to the base or back of the wall; fix the step light into the aperture with cement mortar to maximise heat dissipation. Do not use expanding foam fixatives as these will drastically reduce heat dissipation, reducing lamp life and reliability
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Exterior electrical installations should be undertaken by a qualified electrician