Extend your living space into the outdoors. We design and install stunning, weatherproof lighting schemes that make your garden usable all year round.
Your garden shouldn’t disappear when the sun goes down. With the right lighting, your patio becomes an evening dining room, your pathways become safe walkways, and your favourite trees become dramatic architectural features. Whether you have a small courtyard in the Golden Triangle or a sprawling lawn in Norfolk, professional lighting adds depth, security, and significant value to your property.
At Yare Electrical, we don’t just stick a few lights in the ground. We provide a full Lighting Design & Installation Service. We consider sightlines, shadows, and textures to create a magical atmosphere, while ensuring the electrical infrastructure is safe, robust, and Part P compliant.
Tired of Solar Lights That Don’t Work?
Cheap solar spikes die in the winter. Our hard-wired LED systems are guaranteed to shine bright 365 days a year.
Designing Your Outdoor Space: The 3 Layers of Light
Great garden lighting isn’t about flooding the whole area with brightness (which looks like a football pitch). It is about creating pockets of light and shadow. We design using three key layers:
1. Task & Safety Lighting
This is the practical layer. We install low-level Bollard Lights or recessed Walkover Lights along pathways and steps. This prevents trips and falls, ensuring you can carry a tray of drinks from the kitchen to the patio safely. We also light up the BBQ area so you can see if the burgers are cooked!
2. Accent & Feature Lighting
This creates the drama. We use adjustable Spike Spots to uplight trees, highlighting the texture of the bark and the canopy of leaves. We can wash light across textured brick walls or illuminate statues and water features. By lighting the furthest boundaries of your garden (e.g., the rear fence), we draw the eye out, making your garden feel larger from inside the house.
3. Social & Ambient Lighting
For decking and seating areas, we use softer, warmer light (2700K). This can be achieved with wall lights on the exterior of the house, or subtle LED tape hidden under the lip of bench seating or steps, creating a floating effect.
Mains Voltage (230V) vs. Low Voltage (12V)
We tailor the voltage to the application:
- Mains Voltage (230V): Best for wall lights, large post lights, and security floodlights. It requires armoured cable (SWA) buried deep in the ground for safety.
- Low Voltage (12V/24V): Best for flower beds and spike lights. We install a waterproof transformer to step the voltage down. The cables are thinner and safer; if you accidentally put a spade through a 12V cable, there is no risk of electric shock. This makes it ideal for areas where you might replant flowers regularly.
Smart Garden Control
Gone are the days of having to walk to the garage to flick a switch. We integrate your garden lighting into your smart home:
- Wireless Switching: We install systems like WiseBox or LightwaveRF. This allows you to turn your garden lights on via a remote fob or an app on your phone.
- Voice Control: “Alexa, turn on the garden.” Perfect for impressing guests at a BBQ.
- Dusk-to-Dawn Automation: We can set your lights to come on automatically at sunset and turn off at midnight to save energy. This ensures you never come home to a dark house.
Security Lighting: Deter Intruders
A well-lit garden is a secure garden. Burglars hate the spotlight. We install high-power LED Floodlights with PIR (Motion) Sensors.
However, we understand you don’t want a prison-style searchlight blinding you every time a cat walks past. We position sensors carefully and use “Lux Adjustments” so they only activate when it is truly dark. For comprehensive protection, we can link these lights to your CCTV system and Intruder Alarm.
The Installation Process: Built to Last
Garden electrics face the harshest conditions: rain, frost, UV rays, and wildlife. If installed poorly, they will fail within months. Here is how Yare Electrical guarantees longevity:
1. Armoured Cabling (SWA)
We do not use standard grey kitchen cable outside. We use Steel Wire Armoured (SWA) cable. This has a tough steel sheath that protects the live cores from being cut by gardening tools or chewed by rodents. We connect this back to your fuse board via a dedicated circuit, often utilising our external power supply expertise.
2. Waterproof Jointing
Water ingress is the #1 killer of outside lights. We use Resin-Filled Joint Kits or IP68 Gel Boxes for all underground connections. These create a permanent, watertight seal that will never leak, preventing the nuisance tripping of your RCD.
3. Quality Materials
Cheap lights rust. In the damp UK climate, powder-coated steel often fails. We recommend Marine Grade (316) Stainless Steel, Solid Copper, or UV-stable Polycarbonate fittings. These materials age beautifully and withstand the elements for years.
Why “Solar” Isn’t The Answer
We are often asked: “Why should I pay for wired lights when solar lights are £5?”
The answer is Physics. Solar lights rely on the sun to charge a tiny battery. In a British winter, we have short days and weak sunlight. Solar lights simply do not gather enough energy to stay on past 5pm—exactly when you need them. Furthermore, the cheap plastic housing degrades quickly, letting water in.
If you want reliable light that works on Christmas Eve as well as it does in August, hard-wired is the only professional solution.
Why Choose Yare Electrical?
- Part P Registered: Installing electrics in the garden is “Notifiable Work” under Building Regulations. We handle the paperwork and issue the certificate you need to sell your house.
- Tidy Groundworks: We respect your lawn. When trenching cables, we carefully lift the turf and relay it, leaving your garden looking neat.
- Warranty: Our workmanship is backed by the NICEIC Platinum Promise (6 years), and we only supply lights with robust manufacturer warranties.
Illuminate Your Garden
Ready to see your garden in a new light? Contact Yare Electrical on 01603 626400 for a free design consultation and quote.