Outdoor step lighting on Deck?

[PureLuck]

After calling four electricians, one called back and came to quote.
He basically quoted $2k for (8) lights on Deck steps. We have two steps going down to lawn/pool area but they are long. Thus 8 lights.
It also included a Kichler transformer and the wiring.
After reading reviews online (where literally one electrician noted it takes minutes to install), the lights are about $50 each, and box is about $400.

Have any of you run your own lights???

Having a hard time paying this guy 2 Grand to do this, plus he quoted time and materials to fix a lighting issue with our spot lights.

Said he charges $65/hr...

 

[grumpiebk]

Keep calling for quotes. Perhaps a landscaper that can do it? We just paid about 2k for 2 transformers (cheaper than kichler), 10 path lights, 7 uplights (~200 feet of wiring) and tied into our automation. I think we got a good deal as we got other higher quotes, but still 2k seems like a lot for 8 lights.

 

[PureLuck]

Keep calling for quotes. Perhaps a landscaper that can do it? We just paid about 2k for 2 transformers (cheaper than kichler), 10 path lights, 7 uplights (~200 feet of wiring) and tied into our automation. I think we got a good deal as we got other higher quotes, but still 2k seems like a lot for 8 lights.

What brand did you use?

 

[GDN]

Seems pretty steep, but a lot of unknowns. Assuming they are wood steps and you can drill a hole or cut a hole without causing integrity problems. Do you have a place for the transformer? Do you have an outlet close by? Is the transformer indoor or out?

If you are handy and don't need to wire a new outlet, working with low voltage lighting is easy and safe. I'm not a fan of the white or bluer LED lights, but some good warm versions are on the market - for longevity - I'd use LED these days. You can probably buy a good transformer, wire and 8 light fixtures for a few hundred bucks - all depending on the quality you want. I'm sure you can find some high dollar brands and spend 2 to 3 times the amount you'd maybe buy the Home Depot brand for - so the quality and line you choose will affect the price.

The labor will add up in a hurry as well - so do it yourself and save a bundle.

 

[grumpiebk]

What brand did you use?

We used Hampton bay, the Home Depot brand. Same lights as Singuy. They have a sturdy metal pole base and look much nicer than what they cost.

 

[PureLuck]

. Assuming they are wood steps and you can drill a hole or cut a hole without causing integrity problems.

Do you have a place for the transformer?
Do you have an outlet close by?
Is the transformer indoor or out?

If you are handy and don't need to wire a new outlet, .

We are in the middle of removing all deck boards, so very easy access to behind steps.

The electrician suggested we put the transformer at the pump station by our shed. (See pic)

We could do the transformer either way, inside the shed or outside the shed by the breaker for the heater.

We have a full electrical panel in the shed and a ton of outlets in there as well.

Electrician suggested running the wiring up through the retaining wall so that it is already there when we finish landscape and want to light that.

 

[GDN]

With the deck boards up this should be an easy job - I'm thinking you can easily save yourself $1500 even if you buy some fancy lights - looks like top end are $25 to $35 each - I see some 8 for $50 on Amazon. Buy a roll of 100' or 200', however much you need, of low voltage wiring and a transformer and you are set. This is a few hour job. I will only say this, leave plenty of extra wire behind each fixture so if you need to pull the fixture out and replace or work on it in the future you'll have room to work. Also a good majority of low voltage lights have very easy "push to clip" connectors on them where you connect them to the low voltage wire. That is the easy cheap way. Do yourself a favor and cut those connectors off if your lights have them and use outdoor rated wire caps and splice the wires together behind each light - you'll get a much better connection. There are a few youtube videos showing this, but it's very straight forward and very simple now that you've already got the deck boards up.

I would agree it would probably be nice to have some lights up on top of the wall some day, but you may want to run a dedicated run from the transformer to the deck and then another dedicated run from the transformer to the lights behind the wall. To get the wire to the deck, I'd probably still run it up behind the wall down to the deck area and then drill a hole down low through the wall and under the deck. You may have to dig a few inches of dirt from behind the wall where you want to pass through the wall to under the deck, but shouldn't do too much.

 

[PureLuck]

With the deck boards up this should be an easy job - I'm thinking you can easily save yourself $1500 even if you buy some fancy lights - looks like top end are $25 to $35 each - I see some 8 for $50 on Amazon. Buy a roll of 100' or 200', however much you need, of low voltage wiring and a transformer and you are set. This is a few hour job. I will only say this, leave plenty of extra wire behind each fixture so if you need to pull the fixture out and replace or work on it in the future you'll have room to work. Also a good majority of low voltage lights have very easy "push to clip" connectors on them where you connect them to the low voltage wire. That is the easy cheap way. Do yourself a favor and cut those connectors off if your lights have them and use outdoor rated wire caps and splice the wires together behind each light - you'll get a much better connection. There are a few youtube videos showing this, but it's very straight forward and very simple now that you've already got the deck boards up.

I would agree it would probably be nice to have some lights up on top of the wall some day, but you may want to run a dedicated run from the transformer to the deck and then another dedicated run from the transformer to the lights behind the wall. To get the wire to the deck, I'd probably still run it up behind the wall down to the deck area and then drill a hole down low through the wall and under the deck. You may have to dig a few inches of dirt from behind the wall where you want to pass through the wall to under the deck, but shouldn't do too much.

Thanks so much! I love doing things ourselves when it's worth it.

I was choking on the estimate, and thinking that outdoor lighting would require a master electrician..
Again, TFP peeps RULE!
THANKS

 

[GDN]

Thanks so much! I love doing things ourselves when it's worth it.

I was choking on the estimate, and thinking that outdoor lighting would require a master electrician..
Again, TFP peeps RULE!
THANKS

I'm not an electrician, but I'll try my hand at anything. My first bathroom remodel many years back was a slow process - I bought a basic electrical book, read up on circuits, how to design and wire and then drew them out. Took me a while, but was pretty pleased when it all passed.

On the low voltage transformers which just plug in to a wall outlet, I don't think there is any code around them that would require an electrician or even permit necessary - they are very much geared toward the do it yourselfer. There is a some code if the lights are within a certain distance of the pool - you just need a special transformer like this one - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0039QEK2G/ref=twister_B01LDJ5YMU?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

 

[Uncle Salty]

Do it yourself, it's easy and will save you a ton of money. Depending on the wattage total of the lights you're using you likely don't need the $400 Kichler transformer as it's rated for about 600 watts and with 8 lights you'll be way under that. I just installed 4 Kichler up lights for my palms today and with 100 watt transformer and 2 runs of about 250' of cable it cost me under $300. It was a chore running conduit under 8' of concrete but I did it in about 30 minutes and probably saved $400-$500 doing it myself.

Salty

 

[tcrote5516]

This may sound like a joke but I paid 42 CENTS per light and installed myself. Searching for deck lighting is like looking at wedding related services. Because of the name the price goes up (let's face it, not many trailer park homes with deck lighting, it's a bit more of an upscale consumer as evidenced by your $2,000 quote). Instead search for trailer, or truck marker lights.
They are flush mount, built tough as nails, 12 volt and cheap! The power supply was $20, about 400 feet of wiring was another $50, $20 in heat shrink connectors. All in with 100 deck lights for $132.

I bought a 100 pack of flush mount trailer lights on Ebay for $42
12v Power supply (400 watt)
100 feet of 14 gauge and 300 feet of 16 gauge cable

Place lights up like an airport taxi way now. Pic's show some but not all. I also have two large decks that have these lights all the way around the perimeter railings.

 

[jason176]

$65 is cheap, we're $115 hour. It is most likely something you can do yourself, just pay attention to any codes relating to wiring and pools, even if they are near the pool. As always, come back and ask questions.

 

[MRMrPool]

Hi all,

Low voltage lighting (it is required for lighting near the pool anyways in MD) does not require an electrical permit nor does the work need be done by an electrician (in MD anyways) and I just had our deck fail the electrical inspection cause I used solar lighting on the stairs...it was ok by code 6 months ago but that all changed I was told.
I bought 24 volt LED lights off of Amazon and did the install myself (you can get a plugin -- to a gfci outdoor outlet and use an outdoor rated transformer for not too much and then run 16/2 or even 22/2 wire to the lights, depending on the wattage) ... LED lights don't need much amperage ... and a simple mounted switch on the wall
I am using a 30 watt LED for area lighting and some 10 watt or lower LEDs for the stair tread lighting. I am adding it to my Jandy Power center on one of the relays and that technically will require an electrician to wire the transformer to a breaker in the subpanel so I can program the lights with the iAQualink, but if you use a simple switch it can be completely DIY, at least in Maryland.
Best to you,

 

[Iceman 21]

I used Volt brand lights (www.voltlighting.com) and did it myself. I have 15 lights in my backyard (I think) and about 10 in my front yard. All LED and I think I'm under $1500. Do it yourself and save a ton.

 

[GDN]

I used Volt brand lights (www.voltlighting.com) and did it myself. I have 15 lights in my backyard (I think) and about 10 in my front yard. All LED and I think I'm under $1500. Do it yourself and save a ton.

Those look like some very nice lights. They are a bit pricier than Home Depot, but if they are quality it is worth it to spend up front. I've completely replaced all of the landscape lights I have 3 times now (about every 5 years) and I replaced the bulbs in each of those once every year or every other year (Back when I had Halogen bulbs). So Home Depot seems cheaper up front, but I spend $300 to $400 every 5 years replacing 12 fixtures and that adds up vs buying a more quality fixture that will last 10 to 15 years perhaps. I will say that I've left the halogen bulbs behind as 9 of the 12 had burned out since last September - I replaced them with LED bulbs from Amazon. Think I'll be much happier.

 

[Iceman 21]

Those look like some very nice lights. They are a bit pricier than Home Depot, but if they are quality it is worth it to spend up front. I've completely replaced all of the landscape lights I have 3 times now (about every 5 years) and I replaced the bulbs in each of those once every year or every other year (Back when I had Halogen bulbs). So Home Depot seems cheaper up front, but I spend $300 to $400 every year replacing 12 fixtures and that adds up vs buying a more quality fixture that will last 10 to 15 years perhaps. I will say that I've left the halogen bulbs behind as 9 of the 12 had burned out since last September - I replaced them with LED bulbs from Amazon. Think I'll be much happier.

I have used both, HD and Volt brand light and Volt quality is waaaaaaay better than HD. Their LED bulbs are kinda pricey so Amazon is really the way to go for LED bulbs

 

[PureLuck]

This may sound like a joke but I paid 42 CENTS per light and installed myself. Searching for deck lighting is like looking at wedding related services. Because of the name the price goes up (let's face it, not many trailer park homes with deck lighting, it's a bit more of an upscale consumer as evidenced by your $2,000 quote). Instead search for trailer, or truck marker lights.
They are flush mount, built tough as nails, 12 volt and cheap! The power supply was $20, about 400 feet of wiring was another $50, $20 in heat shrink connectors. All in with 100 deck lights for $132.

I bought a 100 pack of flush mount trailer lights on Ebay for $42
12v Power supply (400 watt)
100 feet of 14 gauge and 300 feet of 16 gauge cable

Place lights up like an airport taxi way now. Pic's show some but not all. I also have two large decks that have these lights all the way around the perimeter railings.

That looks amazing!
Thinking I may do something like this for the front walkway as it is very dark at night.

We decided to actually use line voltage and attach the 4 step lights to the indoor light switch that turns on and off the lights by our slider.

We got a second opinion from another electrician and they charge $150 per hour for two guys.

I am planning to contact the first guy at $65 and have him work on an hourly basis.
Thinking it will not take him more than two hours to complete installing four step lights.
Then we will go the diy route for the remainder of the house

 

[grumpiebk]

That looks amazing!
Thinking I may do something like this for the front walkway as it is very dark at night.

We decided to actually use line voltage and attach the 4 step lights to the indoor light switch that turns on and off the lights by our slider.

We got a second opinion from another electrician and they charge $150 per hour for two guys.

I am planning to contact the first guy at $65 and have him work on an hourly basis.
Thinking it will not take him more than two hours to complete installing four step lights.
Then we will go the diy route for the remainder of the house

Glad you found a cost effective route. Sometimes I feel like contractors jack up prices just based on our home, yard, neighborhood etc.

 

[PureLuck]

Glad you found a cost effective route. Sometimes I feel like contractors jack up prices just based on our home, yard, neighborhood etc.

Totally agree. We moved to this town 2 years ago this August. Our old Town was more rural (but still in Massachusetts so $$$for cost of living)
We paid a painter $2,500 to paint 2300sqft in what is now our rental property. Moved here and paid $6,200 for 3600 sqft of house. Same Benjamin Moore paint quality in both.

Lawn cleanup in old house was $150, same amount of land, here they wanted $325.
So so we do it ourselves.

Best thing is we moved 40 minutes away, not like it's hours or states.

 

[GDN]

You'll have a great set up, glad you thought about the lights while you had the deck torn apart. There are many options, but you might consider a switch with a timer or some access to sunrise/sunset so the lights come on automatically for you and possibly a dimmer function depending on which lights you put in. That would keep your steps lit up for you without having to remember to turn them on and off.

I do love my automation, it's really a hobby. I've got about 30 Insteon switches in the house, they are also all dimmers. You must have an Insteon controller to make them work well however. My landscape lights, front porch, back yard and about 10 lights inside the house come on every night at dusk - all at preset levels just to light the house and the yard front and back. I never come home to a dark house and I never worry about being in the back yard as it gets dark and not having lights on.

There are many standalone timer switches or even the newer ZWave which you can control fairly simply and not cost an arm and leg to automate the whole house. The automation is just a thought while you are doing it, you may be very happy with manual control on your way out to the back, but something to think about.