It’s incredible the way lighting can change outdoor spaces. As is the case with indoor spaces, spending comparatively little on lighting can produce dramatic results. A DIY outdoor lighting project might be just the thing to make you fall in love with your home all over again. But before you begin an outdoor lighting project, it’s important to think about your options. Here are 10 tips for 10 approaches to outdoor lighting.

1. Using Outdoor String Lights

Outdoor string lights are just great. But there are so many different kinds! Some have bare bulbs; some have lanterns. Some are LED; some incandescent. Some are white; some are colored. Make sure you research your options and choose the ones that are right for YOU!

2. Taking DIY Outdoor Lighting to the Next Level

Sure, you can install a standard low voltage lighting fixture and be justified when you say you Did It Yourself, but have you ever considered making your own DIY outdoor lighting fixtures? Mason jars seem to be the ingredient of choice when constructing your own outdoor lights. The internet is full of instructions for making DIY outdoor lighting fixtures, so do your homework and find the perfect project to make your outdoor area more luminous.

3 . Making it Modern

Let’s get weird! Isn’t that what modern outdoor lighting seems to say? I guess it depends on whom you ask. Modern outdoor lighting usually consists of interesting light fixtures with unusual, playful designs, and they can really make your outdoor vibe more interesting and thought-provoking.

4. Showing Off Textures

Sometimes you start with a particular light source in mind. These days, that light source is often LED. If you’re sure you want to use outdoor LED lights, you have a wide variety of outdoor LED light fixture types, from LED rope to LED tape to LED path lights, step lights, puck lights, recessed lights, and string lights. LED outdoor lights are highly efficient and look great. And some, like the one above, run on solar power! That means free!

8. Decking Out the Deck

If you are focused specifically on outdoor deck lighting, make sure you think about caution. Outdoor deck lighting should entail step lights if there are steps and should include lights around the perimeter of the deck. LED tape or rope, colored or white, are often great for running on the underside of deck railings.

9. Using Timers

Do you find energy conservation confusing? You're not alone. According to a recent study, Americans are by-and-large misinformed about what household appliances consume the most electricity. As a result, homeowners who wish to cut down on the energy they use in their home electrical work might find themselves spending time and resources to improve efficiency in areas where they won't see big gains. Read on to learn more about where most of our energy goes and how you can get the biggest payback for your conservation efforts.

The Failings of Cognitive Accessibility

In general, Americans tend to overestimate the amount of power that is devoted to common home devices like computers, television and lighting, while underestimating the amount of energy that is consumed by bigger ticket items like heat, air conditioning and hot water heating. That's because we confuse the amount of time we spend actively using a specific device with how much power it uses.

“Consumers tend to use the frequency with which they think or interact with a given energy source as a proxy for its consumption,” Ohio State University psychology doctoral student Dan Schley, lead author of the study, said to the Washington Post. For example, someone who spends eight hours a day working on a computer might naturally be inclined to think that device is what's driving up the electricity bill.

How to Make Your Actions Count

However, it turns out that the energy consumed by common electronics is dwarfed by what goes into major appliances. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, a whopping 48 percent of energy in the average home goes toward heating and air conditioning. The hot water heater takes the next largest individual chunk, at 17.7 percent. The refrigerator uses 13.7 percent, with all other appliances and electronics accounting for about 21 percent of the total.

The upshot? If you really want to cut back on consumption in your home electrical work, you need to target the biggest guzzlers. That means making interventions like installing smart thermostats, turning down your water heater temperature and beefing up the insulation in your home. The simplest, most effective change that most families can make is to bump the thermostat down a few degrees in the winter and up a few degrees in the summer.

Don't Neglect the Small Stuff

That's not to say you should ignore simple behavioral changes that can save money in other areas of your home electrical work – things like unplugging devices when they aren't in use, installing energy efficient cable boxes, using the power-saving settings on your computer and turning off the lights when you aren't in the room. Just treat these items as the appetizers and desserts of your energy-saving strategy, rather than the main course.

If you need help identifying the largest loads on your home electrical work, arrange for a visit from an expert electrician today.

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With the rising temperatures comes the inevitable rise in energy bills. To keep your home as energy efficient as possible, we’ll be going room by room explaining just how you can save money while keeping your home cool.

Starting with the living room, there are a few simple steps you can take to bring energy savings and make it as energy efficient as possible.

What is Energy Star? Energy Star is a program that offers energy efficient consumer products. Energy efficient appliances with the Energy Star logo typically use around 25% less power than conventional models.

Energy Star products are the way to go if you wish to use less power while also saving big on your energy bill.

As we mentioned in our guide for different types of lightbulbs, there are many options available today which offer different brightness (known as lumens) and use less energy.

By far the best options for lighting your living room are LED light bulbs. These types of light bulbs are energy saving and emit LED lights, which reduce energy consumption considerably.

LEDs might have a higher upfront cost, but they offer an energy saving edge, reducing energy consumption up to 80%.

Power strips are a clean alternative to overfilling your outlets. By conveniently switching off multiple appliances at once, you have complete control over how what appliances get energy.

Traditional power strips are simple: you connect the devices and turn off a switch when not using them. Newer versions called advanced power strips feature a variety of other features that might benefit you.

Advanced power strips are designed for areas where many electronics are plugged in, such as entertainment centers or home offices and provide greater control over energy usage through built-in features.

There are multiple types available right now including:

Some power strips also feature a surge protector which not only give you complete control over your appliances but also protects them from damage during thunderstorms or power surges.

While power strips might be of great help to any home, the main culprit for those extra costs are energy vampire appliances, or appliances that use energy while on stand-by.

Appliances like these could end up costing more than $200 per year for the average home.

Vampire energy loss, also known as vampire load, vampire power, or vampire draw is a simple term to explain the use of electricity by appliances that are in standby or switched off.

While most appliances might indicate that they are turned off, they might still be drawing power. The end result is unneeded power being wasted as appliances lay unused.

Video game consoles such as the Playstation 4 and Xbox One are notable for their high energy demand and could result in up to $40 in costs during standby.

Computers, including laptops, are also some of the biggest energy vampires, costing up to $30 if left plugged in while not in use. Laptops might need less power, but leaving them plugged in could result in yearly costs up to $15 when not in use.

To easily reduce these costs, safely group as many of these appliances into a power strip. By easily switching off the power strip when not in use, you will be much more in control of how much energy they use.

Televisions are the kings of power consumption, with 5 hours of daily use costing up to $160 per year while in standby mode as well as with daily use.

Plasma TVs are notorious for their usage of energy. Instead, opt for LCD screens which will reduce the amount of energy you draw. Also, change your TV’s settings to dial back on energy consumption.

Most TVs have a store demo option selected for the picture which ups the brightness and results in a high energy usage. This translates to higher energy bills and more heat. By using the power-saver mode, you decrease the amount of energy used.

If you have multiple appliances connected to the TV, turn them off when not in use. TV manufacturers of today have reduced the usage of standby power, but connected appliances might draw more energy.

These could include DVRs, Blu-ray or DVD players, as well as streaming devices such as Roku, Apple TV, and more. While useful, they might be putting a dent into your energy bill and end up costing more with time.

Window shades, blinds, and curtains are more than just useful for decorating your living room. Dark curtains block sunlight from entering and can be closed during the day to reduce the amount of sunlight that enters, thereby reducing cooling costs.

Blinds are as useful and can reduce heat gain by up to 45% but offer the benefit of being able to be adjusted manually.

Making your living room as energy efficient as possible might seem like a daunting task. By following the above tips and ensuring that you use only the most important appliances, you will be well on your way to ensuring your home is ready for summer.

From LED Lighting installation, to ceiling fan room installation, Bryant Electric Service can help your living room be the highlight of your home.