Deck Lighting

Choosing the Right Deck Lighting

When the planning, design and installation of a deck is complete, the finishing touch is deck lighting. Deck lighting can be formal, casual, functional or esthetic. The style of the deck often helps make the right choice for deck lighting. For large decks intended for daily use, a combination of functional and esthetic lighting may provide the best illumination. Place diffused lighting at low levels around the deck area to give a more seductive look to the deck. If the deck is used for barbecues and other outdoor activities, brighter lighting effectively adds visual enjoyment of the outdoor deck.

Different Lights for Outdoor Nights

Try installing deck lighting directly into the deck floor around edges of the deck. Simple pole lighting with an attractive style at strategic points avoids garish "flood" lighting. Another consideration is to situate stake lights at 4-foot high levels between shrubbery so that enough light is emitted for dining purposes. Use decorative stakes or 3 to 4-foot posts to hang small gas-lamp style lights. Another way to light a deck is to use antique candelabra. These can be electrified for outdoor use. Or, check antique shops or religious supply stores for extra-long taper candles and candle holders. Antique shops are a great place to find unusual pieces of glass, porcelain and china candle holders to use as a table centerpiece. Extra-long tapers in grandiose holders can be staged casually as part of the seating arrangement on decks. Place them far enough from the seating to avoid tipping when lit. Don't forget deck lighting needn't be incandescent. For upscale modern deck designs, a bit of neon lighting might just tip the contemporary style in a more eclectic favor. Neon lighting for decks is best when situated at low levels around the deck perimeter. Make sure that all lighting used for the deck has UL approval for outdoor use.

Theme Lighting

Individuals with a keen eye for the unusual may want to try theme lighting for their outdoor deck. Choose lighting with a more defined style: nautical, cottage, whimsical, French provincial or old New England to name a few. Scour old antique shops by the seasides for ideas for nautical lighting. Even a rusty anchor can be primed and used for the frame of a hanging chandelier over a seating area or picnic table. Hurricane globes add soft shadows to hanging or table lights and candles. Or, place quaint little stained glass lamp shades over low deck lighting to make a colorful glow to the evening. Black or white wrought iron lanterns are easily installed over outdoor lighting fixtures or use them with a cylindrical-shaped candle to set a romantic atmosphere.

Light Up Trees and Shrubbery

String lighting in twinkling white provide enough muted light on a deck without appearing gaudy. Choose string lights with clear incandescent bulbs for brighter light. String this type of lighting along edges of deck fencing, subtly in nearby shrubbery, or for a more dramatic look, in tall potted plants.