The right fence lighting idea can make a huge difference to your home. Selective use of lights can create an inviting and welcoming setting for friends and family to enjoy. On the other hand, a continuous barrier of light can have the opposite effect.
This guide covers our top fence lighting ideas for you to consider this year. By the end of this post, you will have the fence lighting ideas you need to create a beautiful and functional lighting system for your home.
Why Do You Need Fence Lighting?
For most homeowners, the fence marks the edges of a property. They are a form of protection and security. A good fence keeps beloved pets and adventurous children within the yard and intruders on the outside. Of course, it’s harder to see your fence after the sun has set.
That’s why fence lighting is so important.
Fence lighting serves practical and aesthetic purposes. Logically, many people want to see the perimeter of their property after the sun has set. After all, you don’t want unwelcome strangers or wild animals sneaking around your yard undetected.
At the same time, you can use fence lights to make a part of your home more welcoming. For example, you might use outdoor lights to illuminate the area close to your patio. Or you might use lights to illuminate a specific part of your fence, like the driveway leading to your home.
As a homeowner, one of the first things you need to do is define your lighting goals. Important things to consider include:
- Function: What do you hope to achieve with the lights?
- Spacing: How far will the lights be spread out?
- Appearance: What kinds of lights will you use to illuminate your fencing?
Before we cover the fence lighting ideas and discuss the appearance and function of fence lights, let’s quickly discuss spacing.
Spacing for Fence Lighting
The are some standard industry fence lighting best practices to follow. To begin with, the standard spacing for fence lighting is every second post. If your property is well illuminated, you might choose to add lights to every third or fourth post.
Illuminating every second fence post will give your yard a nice glow. It will create a nice ambiance. The more lights you add, the more the fence becomes a hostile perimeter (which is why security lighting often forms a light barrier around a property).
To get the right balance for your home, take a walk around your property at night.
As you walk, think about how many lights you need to illuminate the property and the effect you want to create. If the lighting from your deck or the house covers a lot of the yard, you’ll need fewer lights than might otherwise be the case.
It’s a good idea to turn to someone with experience designing outdoor lighting schemes when finalizing your plans. They can share valuable insights based on years of experience in the trade.
With that covered, here are two fence lighting ideas to try.
1. Add Deck Lights to Fence Posts
Adding deck lights to fence posts is logical. Many deck lights are designed for wall and post mountings. CAST offers several deck lighting fixtures that work well for fence lighting.
You can see an example of our CAST Craftsman Series Bronze Deck Lights attached to fence posts in the image below. The lighting fixtures are durable, made of solid bronze, and provide pleasant illumination.
Other lighting fixtures that you might want to consider include our CAST Classic Deck Light and the CAST Classic Savannah Deck Light.
Considering factors such as style, brightness, and maintenance requirements, you can narrow your choices and find the perfect lights for your fence lighting project.
2. Use Ground Lights to Illuminate Your Fence
Attaching lighting fixtures directly onto a fence is the most obvious fence lighting idea to try. There are some alternative lighting ideas worth considering. For example, you can use ground lights to illuminate your fence.
There are various ways to illuminate your fence from the ground. One approach is installing well lights next to your fence. The light shining directly upward can create a nice effect. Our compact CAST Craftsman Series Bronze Ground Lights were designed for uplighting shrubs, trees, and architectural features.
Another way to use ground lights to illuminate your fence is by silhouetting. This is where you install a ground light pointed at an angle toward the fence with an object like a bush or plant in front.
Silhouetting is a lighting technique that can add to the ambiance of your garden. It’s something you might want to experiment with close to the areas you enjoy using. For example, your outdoor decking area. Fixtures like our CAST Classic MR-16 Bullet Lights can be used for silhouetting objects.
In Closing
With the proper lighting, the fence surrounding your property can become an eye-catching fixture. To help you make the most of your fence, we discussed some interesting lighting ideas you might want to try.
Before choosing your outdoor lighting setup, take a walk around your property in the evening. If you’re planning to directly illuminate your fence, it’s good practice to install a lighting fixture on every second post or about every two meters. Use fewer lights if your yard is well illuminated to maintain a relaxed ambiance.
You don’t need to attach lights directly to your fence, though. You can install well lights next to the posts and use uplighting to illuminate your fencing. Alternatively, you could experiment with silhouetting objects against the fence. Silhouetting can add to the ambiance of your home.
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