Depending on how you plan to use it, outdoor lighting can serve a variety of purposes. You can brighten the outdoor spaces you use most often or highlight the parts of your landscape that you love.
Outdoor wall lighting aims to provide enough light to boost the visibility and safety of walkways near the front of the home. It brightens porches and deck areas so you can enjoy the outdoors even when the sun goes down. It also improves the curb appeal of your home!
When choosing fixtures for the exterior of a building, make sure to choose ones designed to work outdoors. Indoor sconces cannot see use outdoors. Though they may light your living room or dining room, they typically do not feature the correct location rating and cannot seal against moisture the same way outdoor fixtures can. This means they could stop working after a heavy rainfall or they could pose a safety hazard.
Outdoor fixtures include wall sconces or ceiling lights design for use outdoors. This means they should carry either a damp or wet location rating. Damp location rated fixtures can see use in areas that may get damp, but not wet, like covered areas with minimal contact with rain, snow, or ice. Wet location rated fixtures can safely see use in uncovered areas that may get hit with water or rain.
Consider the aesthetic you’re looking for and what design aspects already exist around your home. Color scheme plays a vital role in the appearance of your home. What color is the door? Does it use chrome or brass accents? What about the color of the trim around your home? Matching the outdoor wall lights to these aspects can create a more cohesive look. For example, if the door uses brass handles, consider a matching brass fixture.
Depending on where you live, you may also have to consider local codes. Some areas, like certain parts of California, require Dark Sky compliant lighting. Dark Sky lighting requires the fixture to minimize the amount of blue light in the environment and requires the fixture to be fully shielded. For more information about Dark Sky friendly lighting, check out our blog What is Dark Sky Friendly Lighting?
An exterior sconce works well brightening entryways, doorways, or garages. The fixture should fit proportionately to the space. For entryways, measure the size of the door and then divide that measurement by 1/3 and 1/4. That way you can choose a fixture between 1/4-1/3 the size of the door to allow for the correct fixture size.
Ideally, they should sit so the center of the fixture falls around 66 to 72 inches above the floor. This should land around eye-level for most people.
For garages, you can use the same 1/3 and 1/4 measurements based on the height of the garage door. Where to place the lights and how many to use depends on the size of the garage and your own personal preference.
With a single car garage, you can choose two lights on either side of the door, or you can use a single lantern on the side closest to the walkway. You could also place the light directly above the door so long as the garage door can still work. Lastly, you could place three evenly spaced lights: one on the left side, one on the right side, and one in the center.
AFX Lighting offers award-winning fixtures that blend smart design with stylish designs. They offer energy efficient lighting that maximizes the quality of the light source technology to offer optimum performance and efficiency.
Brighten your outdoor spaces with an outdoor ceiling light or wall sconce by AFX Lighting! AFX offers wall sconces available in a variety of styles and color options so you can find the one that best matches the aesthetic of your home. They offer outdoor LED wall sconce fixtures that provide a modern lighting design, like their 12W LED Boon or 12W LED Concord sconce, or more traditional designs like this 60W LED Campton fixture. Additionally, they offer a variety of fixtures in different styles and color finishes. Discover fixtures like the 23W LED Blaine sconce with a textured gray finish. Textured bronze provides a stylish 28W alternative as well.
They also offer selectable CCT options that allow you to choose the color temperature you need. CCT selectable options offer you set color temperature options so you can choose the one that matches the ambiance. Many AFX outdoor light fixtures offer a choice between 3000K, 3500K, or 4000K. Choose between a warm, inviting light or a crisp, bright white to brighten the exterior of your home.