Important things to consider while choosing outdoor lights

If you are fortunate enough to have an outdoor area like a backyard, patio, balcony or garden, you’ve likely explored ways to decorate and personalize it for spectacularly vibrant nights. With the right knowledge and tools, it’s easy to create a unique outdoor space that is enjoyable and beautiful. Lighting is one of the most powerful ways to add ambiance and illumination while enhancing exterior aesthetics.

With the countless options available, selecting the perfect outdoor lights can be overwhelming. Twinkly smart lights shine in over 16 million colors and are the only mappable lights available.  This Twinkly app uses your smartphone camera to locate the position of the LEDs no matter how you position them, creating a virtual map that allows you to customize and create dynamic lighting effects to match any style, mood or theme. Twinkly offers a wide selection of lighting styles for every outdoor setting, from Festoon lights to LED curtains, icicles and string lights in every length. You’ll find the perfect decorative lighting solution for your outdoor space year-round. You can even combine outdoor and garden lights with Twinkly Music, a small yet powerful sound sensor that makes Twinkly lights dance to any music or ambient sounds.

Whether creating a display of Christmas lights or designing everyday outdoor lights, consider these factors to ensure your adventure into outdoor illumination is both magical and practical. Take safety precautions and versatility into account. Carefully assess weather resistance, electrical safety, installation details, and aesthetic flexibility to create a breathtaking outdoor home lighting setup that is also safe and smart.

Weather resistance

One of the first considerations when choosing outdoor lighting is how well it holds up to various weather conditions. Twinkly lights offer superior quality and durability, but make sure to use models specifically certified for outdoor use to guarantee safety and performance. Before you purchase your garden lights, verify the IP rating. An IP 44 or higher guarantees resistance to outside elements like rain, while anything lower is for indoor use only.

Make sure your outdoor lights are properly secured: While indoor lights can be hung using lightweight hooks and simple adhesives, it is essential to firmly secure outdoor lights during installation with sturdy hooks or zip ties, so they won’t come loose in windy conditions.

Electrical safety

Electrical safety is of the utmost importance when it comes to outdoor lights. LED lights consume minimal energy. However, if you are decorating a large housefront or big backyard with multiple devices, ensure that your electrical system can support the additional load of your decorative lights without overloading circuits. Before hanging your lights, verify that you have a proper outdoor electrical outlet. They are usually equipped with a watertight cover and a GFCI (ground-fault circuit interrupter) to shut off electric power if necessary.

Outdoor Lighting Installation: The how-to's

Before you start, plan your layout by visualizing where each light strand will go. Consider the natural flow of your outdoor space and ensure there's an accessible power source for each device. Prepare the clips, hooks, or ties designed for outdoor use to mount lights securely during outdoor lighting installation. Twinkly lights can be controlled no matter how you position them using a Wi-Fi connection. Check that your Wi-Fi network has an adequate outdoor range and consider investing in a Wi-Fi extender if necessary to get the most out of your smart lighting features. If you don’t have a Wi-Fi network at home, you can establish a direct connection to your Twinkly device’s controller which features an internal Wi-Fi signal.

Aesthetic versatility

Make the practical choice with decorative smart lighting that offers the ultimate versatility and creative potential. Evaluate the size of the outdoor space and all possible places to hang the outdoor lights. This way you can determine the length of the LED lights and choose a style that best suits your needs.

For example, Twinkly Festoon is a great choice for backyards and large backyard patios thanks to the 45mm bulbs which also provide illumination. They can be strung over seating areas or along perimeters, depending on your layout. On the other hand, Twinkly string lights easily decorate smaller balconies and can add a creative touch to patios, yards and gardens. They shine with festive magic at Christmas and give off fairy light vibes in summertime, depending on how you use them.  

Beyond the physical style of the lights, Twinkly smart LEDs guarantee superior versatility with a palette of millions of colors and app-controlled effects that can be changed and customized at any time with the swipe of your smartphone screen. Smart lights transform your outdoor space to match any occasion, mood, or theme. Experiment with colors, patterns, and animations to create a mesmerizing outdoor atmosphere that truly reflects your style.

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