How to Install Outdoor Landscape Lighting | Ask This Old House

In this video, master electrician, Heath Eastman demonstrates how to install landscape lighting along a garden path.

Adding landscape lighting to a walkway or path can improve the look and experience of the area. Once Heath figures out what kind of landscape lighting he wants, the location, and where the power source is located, he can then make the connections.

Heath uses a low voltage wire and decides to replace the plastic connectors with brass connectors to make the connections last longer. He also installs a transformer so the homeowner can control when the lights power on and off.

Time: 5 - 10 hours
Cost: $5 - $200 per light
Skill Level: Difficult

Tools:

Shopping List:

Step 1: Find your nearest power source
This will be your starting point.
Place lights in desired locations.
Step 2: Run a low voltage cable
Run a low voltage cable in the trench but do not bury. A low voltage cable is used as it is only 12v and if it accidentally gets cut, nobody will get hurt.
Step 3: Start making connections
Heath recommends a higher quality brass connector because the plastic ones that come free with the landscape wire are more susceptible to damage and corrosion.
Cut and strip the wire.
Make the connection with the brass barrel connectors with an allen key. Before securing the second side slip the shrink sleeves over the barrels,
Apply light heat to the sleeves
Step 4: Install the transformer at the receptacle
Take the low voltage cable and put one wire in the hot terminal and one wire in the common terminal of the transformer. The transformer converts the power to low voltage and can control when the lights power on and off.
Heath picked out a system that has a photocell that plugs into it. That way the lights come on at dusk and off at dawn. If you don’t want the lights on all night you can add a timer to the system.
Test the system.
Step 5: Dig a pathway for the cable
Use a flat shovel to dig a 6” trench along the pathway for the cable. This way it will be much easier to find if it ever needs to be dug up and keeping it on the edge should protect it from getting cut while gardening.
Bury the cable to the bottom of the 6” mark. Hands will work fine but if a tool is desired make sure it is blunt enough to not pierce or damage the wire.

Resources:

About Ask This Old House TV:
From the makers of This Old House, America’s first and most trusted home improvement show, Ask This Old House answers the steady stream of home improvement questions asked by viewers across the United States. Covering topics from landscaping to electrical to HVAC and plumbing to painting and more. Ask This Old House features the experts from This Old House, including general contractor Tom Silva, plumbing and heating expert Richard Trethewey, landscape contractor Jenn Nawada, master carpenter Norm Abram, and host Kevin O’Connor. Ask This Old House helps you protect and preserve your greatest investment—your home.

Follow This Old House and Ask This Old House:

How to Install Outdoor Landscape Lighting | Ask This Old House

[waynedietrich]

This was good but would be nice to show more about the actual wiring from light to light. It seems he laid 1 main wire that travels from transformer, but where did that 1 wire run to, and how are a series of lights connected.
Does the wire from the transformer just run to the first light input, and then an output wire from the 1st light runs to the 2nd light, and so on ???
Please explain this.

[Batsonoutdoordesigns]

I do installations professionally and one important future proof trick you forgot is using landscaping u-staples to secure the wire in place. Over time, weather makes solid expand and contract and if you just put it directly in the ground that wire will make its way up, especially if you put it in above weed barrier where it wouldn’t be secure.
Heat shrinking tubes are decent, but I have never had an installation get water in the system using dielectric grease fittings. Make sure to get appropriate sizes based on home many splices are in one connection. If running long distances, make sure you get proper gauges of wires and run separate home run lines.

[malekodesouza]

What about long runs with multiple lights on one wire? How do you connect those?

[hamzahassan]

This is long awaited. They did make a landscape lighting video before but it was really old video. Also I have never seen a 5 dollar path light or spotlight fixture (Except for the plastic ones)

[Sapnek]

He reminds me of roger!!! I miss roger... hope he's doing good...

[lgl]

Leaving Slack in the wire is wise! The next Homeowner will thank you!

[QuaabQueb]

Very interesting connection method. This seems way more reliable than those "easy" connectors that you press together to pierce the wire which inevitably lets moisture in and corrode the connection. The heat shrink tubing with adhesive inside indeed the best thing to use. You should also use some dialectic grease inside the brass barrel connector to further mitigate water ingress and corrosion.
I personally ripped all mine out and soldered everything together then heat shrink.

[johnsonni]

thanks, this really helps a lot. I just had my landscape light in my backyard, the technician made terrible connections, once raining start, no light

[GreenArt]

I learn a lot of things from this vedio, thanks

[Sean-gwwx]

Nice video. I think the fixtures are by Illumicare. They have really nice products. Hard to get and not cheap unless you're a contractor.

[DaEngMelOicN]

Wow you made that a lot more simple than I thought it was going to be ty! Will be attempting this next spring

[jreymus]

I love this! Thank you THIS OLD HOUSE! I wish I could meet you all.

[nickduggan]

Direct burial Wirenuts will make the job go much faster

[PTYourVoice]

What brand is that and where can i get those?

[James]

Error at 1:46 this is AC low voltage so hot and neutral not positive like DC.

[searobgo]

You said there's a glue inside the heat shrink. The heat shrink itself or some additional element that creates additional sealing properties ?

[chg]

Did u have to pull up the walkway to bury the wires for the other side?

[kamalwalia]

hi what brand of lights are you using they look amazing

[dostonjones]

Why is there a step in the middle of the paver walkway in the first place?

[shaydtriton]

At 2:52 I'm amazed he's not using his lineman pliers