LIGHTING - SPRINKLERS - DRAINAGE - HARDSCAPES - DECK - PATIO

Illinois Landscape Lighting System

How to Choose a Landscape Lighting System

There are many different manufactures of landscape lighting available and over the last 17 years I have learned Witch manufactures build quality fixtures, have easy availability, and stand behind a strong warranty.

I have found that there are three major players in the Chicago market. They are Kichler, FX, and Nightscaping. Of the three I like Kichler the best because of their potted LED fixtures that comes with a 15 year warranty on the fixture and the bulb. Below is a 15 year cost break out to compare different lighting systems.

 

Light Type

 

Hardware Store

High Quality

High Quality

Kichler Potted

Halogen Bulb

Halogen Bulb

LED Bulb

LED Bulb

Installed correctly

$100

$200

$240

$300

5 years bulbs

$30

$30

$40

$0

5 years labor

$300

$250

$50

$0

New fixture needed

$60

$0

$0

$0

10 year bulbs

$30

$30

$40

$0

10 years labor

$300

$250

$50

$0

New fixture needed

$60

$0

$0

$0

15 year bulbs

$30

$250

$40

$0

15 years labor

$300

$30

$40

$0

New fixture needed

$60

$120

$120

$0

Total

$1,270

$1,160

$620

$300

 

As you can see cheap hardware store lights cost very little to install but cost more to keep running. The Kichler potted LED fixture costs the most to install but there are no other costs involved in keeping it running.

If installation cost is a big factor your next best choice is to buy any led fixture you like from one of the three recommended manufactures. Another important reason to always choose LED fixtures is that they use 5 times less electricity than halogen lights.

More important than which manufacture you choose is the contractor that installs it because warranties are only as good as the installation company behind it. At Allscape Services we not only stand behind the manufactures warranty but also will provide any labor it takes to replace the faulty fixture or bulb for free.