Inadequate lighting for night swimming .. any suggestions?

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J

Jeannie in CT

0
Jun 22, 2009
26
Hi everyone :-D

Next year we are hoping to add more outdoor lighting to our yard. It's not adequately lit for nightime swimming and I get nervous when friends come over with little ones to use the pool. Last year I purchased a light designed for pools that drops into the water a bit and lights the pool with a halon bulb. It lasted only the one season and wasn't cheap. Before I contact the pool catalog company for a replacement bulb (if they sell them) I was wondering how everyone else kept their pool area well lit. Thank you!

Jeannie 8)
 
Dave,

You have a built-in pool light? You are living the good life! :goodjob: I don't think that's an option for my above ground pool. I'll probably just do what I did last year and string up a ton of small miniature white Christmas lights on the 10x10 canopy that shades our pool deck. It casts a decent amount of light, just not quite enough.

One year I placed a bunch of Tiki torches in buckets filled with sand all around our pool. It looked like something out of the show Survivor. Necessity is the mother of invention.

Jeannie 8)
 
We have an above ground pool and we went to either Home Depot or Lowes cant remember ( Its an age thing) and bought two (2) pole lights like you would have on a front walk and installed them onto the deck. Then I hard wired one to the other and from the second one I got an extention cord and cut off the female end and wired it to the the wires and then pluged it into an outlet that is ran off of a light sensor that comes on at dusk and goes off automaticly 2-4-6 hours later, However I have set. I think it is set on 2 hours right now because it doesnt get dark until later in the evening.
We got our power for the plug off the outlet for the filter.

If you look closely at this picture in the right hand corner you can see one of the lights and there is another one at the opposite end of the deck each with 100w bug bulbs in the sockets (6 total) and it gives off plenty of light.

100_1813.jpg
 
I have an above ground with a light in the return fitting. The bulb is in the center and the water return is actually built around the light fixture. I am also supposed to have a fiber-optic light tube running around the perimeter of the pool under the rails, but I never did install it. The light is good, but I haven't been able to adjust the direction of the return at all.

I also have a spotlight with a green lense mounted on a tree in the area.
 
Thanks for all the pics and ideas everyone! You certainly are a helpful bunch! :-D Someone submitted a photo showing people relaxing by a fire pit. It looks so inviting! Are you looking for a new best friend? :wave:

Jeannie 8)
 
Get the aqualuminator - it replaces your return with a light/directional return jet and you can get a clip-on fountain attachment as well.
The aqualuminator comes in 2 styles - halogen with a couple of different color tinted lenses or Multi color LED - Get the LED model.
 

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matt4x4 said:
Get the aqualuminator - it replaces your return with a light/directional return jet and you can get a clip-on fountain attachment as well.
The aqualuminator comes in 2 styles - halogen with a couple of different color tinted lenses or Multi color LED - Get the LED model.
Click to expand...

Matt, my wife's going to hate you for mentioning this, because I'll probably have to buy one now.. :lol: How well does the LED model light up the pool? Needless to say, I'm not all that thrilled with the Nightliter.
 
Hey Mike - haven't been able to test THEIR LED model, only my own - and it works well.
When my Halogen bulb in the unit gave up the ghost, I looked at getting an LED light head replacement from them, problem was I had to buy it all new - it runs on 12V DC not 12V AC like the halogen does. So here's what I did:
I bought a multi color LED MR16 bulb that worked on AC voltage - similar to this one - except this one has a remote and is pretty fancy compared to what I was able to get back 4 years ago. http://www.diytrade.com/china/4/product ... light.html
I set the old light head in boiling water for a few minutes - this softens the mastic sealer for the lens, the lens then just turns a bit then lifts off - clean as much mastic off as you can.
Then I removed the guts and drilled through the resin on the rear of it so I could slip the wires for the new MR16 bulb through (I soldered wires onto mine but you can also buy simple MR16 connectors with leads).
Once you put the new bulb into the enclosure I resealed it with fresh mastic (acrylic caulking is almost identical to what was used). On the rear - I mixed up a bit of fiberglass resin and sealed the hole with a small piece of fiberglass cloth stuffed way in then topped up with resin - the cloth is to stop the resin from running through into the enclosure.
Crimp a couple of spade connectors on it and you're done. The way mine cycles through it's settings is by turning it on/off a specified number of times for different effects - the remote ones probably just need you to push a button on the remote.
All in all - pretty cool and will likely outlast the pool!
 
We've had the tiki torches (mostly for bug proofing)but I get nervous at how high I have to get the flame to actually have some light around the pool. AND, I don't like them near the walkways as I don't want anyones hair burned on the way in or out of the pool. I've got them in sand in big ol' flower pots but I worry about them tipping over or getting tipped by wind or peoples.

Since the pool is fairly close to the house - I generally aim the outdoor porch light towards the ladder. I think I'm going to look for a porch light that has multiple bulbs so I can have one for the back porch and one aimed towards the pool ladder and maybe a switch to turn one or both on/off.

For INSIDE the pool lighting, I don't like the idea of PLUGGING in a light for my AGP so last season I got one of those small globe PARTY LIGHTS (from target) that are battery operated. Funny, the thing says, 'don't submerge' but it's made to go in water (I guess just not UNDER WATER for any lenght of time). It has several setting but I generally keep it on the no flash, multi-color setting or the solid color slow change setting. Otherwise the other settings are too hectic (and too DISCO). Ha!

dpool

I've been thinking of replacing the tiki torches with TALL candles sold in the grocery store (some have religious pictures) I think they'd fit in the wrought iron torch holders have - but again - fear the mess (and danger) if they tip over or fall and break.
 
matt4x4 said:
Hey Mike - haven't been able to test THEIR LED model, only my own - and it works well.
When my Halogen bulb in the unit gave up the ghost, I looked at getting an LED light head replacement from them, problem was I had to buy it all new - it runs on 12V DC not 12V AC like the halogen does. So here's what I did:
I bought a multi color LED MR16 bulb that worked on AC voltage - similar to this one - except this one has a remote and is pretty fancy compared to what I was able to get back 4 years ago. http://www.diytrade.com/china/4/product ... light.html
I set the old light head in boiling water for a few minutes - this softens the mastic sealer for the lens, the lens then just turns a bit then lifts off - clean as much mastic off as you can.
Then I removed the guts and drilled through the resin on the rear of it so I could slip the wires for the new MR16 bulb through (I soldered wires onto mine but you can also buy simple MR16 connectors with leads).
Once you put the new bulb into the enclosure I resealed it with fresh mastic (acrylic caulking is almost identical to what was used). On the rear - I mixed up a bit of fiberglass resin and sealed the hole with a small piece of fiberglass cloth stuffed way in then topped up with resin - the cloth is to stop the resin from running through into the enclosure.
Crimp a couple of spade connectors on it and you're done. The way mine cycles through it's settings is by turning it on/off a specified number of times for different effects - the remote ones probably just need you to push a button on the remote.
All in all - pretty cool and will likely outlast the pool!
Click to expand...

I'm going to start calling you MacGyver. Too cool that you made your own LED light! :goodjob:
 
we got one of those clip on spot lights for barns...not the prettiest thing, put in a yellow flood light bulb as to not draw in bugs. It was the one with the clip on it(from Walmart) and clipped it to the corner of the gutter on the garage...works great and kids love it.
 
Hey 98xc600:

I hope you've got a pool heater! I gotta hand it to ya, if you can swim in a pool in an area where you need a campfire when you get out, you've got thicker blood than I! I don't like to swim when my pool gets much under 85. Of course if it's 99 or so out (plus 75%+ humidity) and I've been working outside all day, 80 feels pretty good!
 
Snark said:
Hey 98xc600:

I hope you've got a pool heater! I gotta hand it to ya, if you can swim in a pool in an area where you need a campfire when you get out, you've got thicker blood than I! I don't like to swim when my pool gets much under 85. Of course if it's 99 or so out (plus 75%+ humidity) and I've been working outside all day, 80 feels pretty good!
Click to expand...

LOL! Yep we have a heater. We think it's perfect at 80-85. You have to remember up here in the frozen tundra of Minnesota 6 months out of the year the pool looks like this.

So really the fire is only to get the frost out of the ground!! :lol: :lol:

3126066344_66bc336a0a_b.jpg
 

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