Installation
Beam aim and night-walk sign-off
Need a repeatable process for the commissioning night-walk so the owner signs off on the lighting design and the installer gets paid.
A disciplined night-walk catches glare, dark spots, and over-bright fixtures before the system is handed off. 90 minutes for an average residential property.
Tools you will need
- Long pole or telescoping handle for fixture aim
- Notebook
- The original lighting plan
Steps
- 1
Walk the approach first
Stand at the property line and look toward the house as a visitor would. The eye should be drawn to the architectural features the design highlighted, not to the fixtures themselves. Any fixture visible as a hot spot is aimed wrong.
- 2
Re-aim glare offenders
Tilt the fixture head so the lens points away from the typical viewing angle. For uplights on trees, the lens should aim into the canopy. For path lights, ensure the louver shields downward and forward.
- 3
Balance brightness across zones
An over-bright zone makes a properly-lit adjacent zone look dim. Dial back the brighter zone via lower-wattage lamps or a wider beam angle — not by re-aiming.
- 4
Walk the property from every approach
Driveway, front door, rear patio, dock if waterfront. The composition should read intentional from each, not just from the master view.
- 5
Document the final state
Photograph each zone at the final aim. Save with the project record. If the owner later asks 'why is fixture X aimed differently than last year?' the photos answer it.