Have your pathway lights ever gone out unexpectedly during a winter dinner party? Or have you noticed how dim your outdoor lights are by summer? The weather, seasons, and time are always putting pressure on your outdoor lights. Even expensive systems can break down when you need them the most if they aren't taken care of regularly. This guide gives you useful, season-specific advice on how to keep your outdoor lights running great all year long. This will save you money and keep your property from getting dark when you least expect it.
Spring Maintenance: Post-Winter Check & Preparation for Summer
As winter fades, it's time to assess any damage and prepare your lighting system for the longer days and increased outdoor activity of spring and summer.
Assessing Winter Damage
First, look for damage in all of your light sources. Check for cracked glasses and loose parts that came loose because of the cold winter weather. Check to see if any of the posts are leaning or unstable. This can happen when frozen ground melts and moves. Also check the wires, since animals or ice could have damaged it over the winter. Give all of the fixtures a gentle test to make sure they are connected well.
Refreshing Your Fixtures
The dirt and grime that sticks to your lights in the winter makes them less bright. It's easy to clean all the lenses; just use water and light soap. If you live in an area where roads are salted, make sure to get rid of all the salt residue because it makes things rust. Getting rid of any dead leaves and other junk around your lights is important. Also, make sure that the small drainage holes at the bottom of the fixtures are not blocked. By letting water leave, these holes stop water damage.
Bulb Maintenance and Upgrades
Winter cold can shorten the lifespan of many bulbs. Any that aren't working right should be replaced. You might want to move from old-style bulbs to LEDs because they last longer and use less electricity. To keep things from breaking and to make sure the lights work right, always use the right type and wattage for each device.
Adjusting Timers and Sensors
As the days get longer in the spring, you should change your light timers. Set them to turn off early in the morning and on later at night to save energy. After winter, check your motion monitors to make sure they're still working right. For spring's more outdoor activities, you might need to change how sensitive they are.
Aligning Lights with Landscape Changes
As spring comes on, new plants grow that can get in the way of your lights. Cut back any plants that are growing over light sources to keep the light shining well. After winter, the scenery may have changed, so you may need to move some lights around. Make sure that path lights and spotlights properly light up your yard features and walkways.
Summer Maintenance: Peak Usage & Storm Protection
In the summer, things like pollen building, bug activity, thunderstorms, and longer days can impact your outdoor lighting. Find out how to keep them in good shape during the hottest months.
Remove Pollen and Insect Buildup
During the summer, clean your light fixtures every two to three weeks. Sticky pollen, dead bugs, and tree sap come together to make a layer that stops light from getting through. Fixtures that are close to fields need to be cleaned more often because they bring in more bugs. To get rid of this summer-specific film that rain won't wash off, use a soft cloth with light soap.
Inspect Wiring After Summer Storms
After thunderstorms, which happen more often in the summer, check all of the links. In the summer, heavy rain and extreme heat can cause cracks in wire insulation, so make sure that weatherproof connectors stay sealed tight. Check for water inside junction boxes in particular. More mist forms in the summer than in other times of the year because of the high humidity.
Reset Timers for Extended Daylight
Set your light timers to work with the longer days of summer. In the middle of summer, you might not need good lighting until after 9 PM, which is a lot later than in the winter. This change lowers the amount of power used during the summer, when demand is highest. Additionally, check the motion sensors, as the sun's higher position in the summer can cause different shadow patterns that could cause them to go off by accident.
Secure Fixtures Affected by Dry Soil
After dry spells and strong rains, tighten any loose fixtures. When it rains in the summer, the hard, dry soil quickly gets wet, which makes ground stakes and posts loose. Also, check the fixtures every time you mow the yard, because light fixtures are often bumped during the summer, which makes their mountings slowly come loose.
Clear Away Summer Pest Nests
Warm weather attracts wasps, spiders, and ants, which can obstruct lighting and create safety hazards. Check for wasp nests inside light fixtures, especially in July and August. Clear away spider webs, which trap bugs and pollen, reducing light output. Use pet-safe ant deterrents around fixture bases to prevent infestation.
Fall Maintenance: Preparation for Winter & Shorter Days
As temperatures drop and daylight hours shrink, fall presents unique challenges for outdoor lighting. Taking proactive maintenance steps will help prevent damage and ensure reliable illumination through winter.
Remove Fallen Leaves From Light Fixtures
Fall's biggest lighting challenge is leaf accumulation. Unlike summer debris, fallen leaves build up rapidly and hold moisture against fixtures, causing unique fall corrosion problems. Clear leaves weekly from ground fixtures and path lights where they pile deepest. In autumn, leaves often clog drainage holes at fixture bases, creating water pools that freeze later. Check these drain holes specifically during fall cleanup.
Weatherproof Connections Before Fall Rains
Fall brings steady, soaking rains different from summer's brief downpours. These prolonged wet conditions find weaknesses in your lighting system. Check all junction boxes and connection points for cracked seals that may have developed during summer heat. Fall is the ideal time to apply fresh waterproof sealant and dielectric grease before winter's freeze-thaw cycles begin.
Replace Bulbs Before Daylight Saving Time Ends
Fall's shorter days mean your lights operate many more hours than during summer. Bulbs that worked fine with limited summer use often fail when suddenly running several additional hours each evening. Replace any bulbs showing signs of weakening before the time change when sudden increased usage often causes multiple failures at once.
Adjust Timers For Rapidly Shortening Days
Fall requires the most frequent timer adjustments of any season. September through November typically needs monthly adjustments as daylight shortens rapidly. Unlike summer's gradual changes, fall loses daylight quickly - often 1-2 minutes daily. Program timers to activate 15-20 minutes earlier each week during peak fall transition for proper illumination as daylight diminishes noticeably each week.
Secure Fixtures Against Fall Storm Season
Fall winds often exceed summer storm strengths in many regions. Check mounting hardware on wall fixtures that have expanded and contracted during summer heat. Fall's unique freeze-thaw soil conditions create movement around post bases. Add supporting material around any leaning fixtures before the ground freezes, as repairs become much more difficult once winter arrives.
Winter Maintenance: Harsh Weather & Increased Darkness
Winter brings specific challenges to outdoor lighting with cold temperatures, snow, and long nights. Here's how to maintain your lights during the harshest season.
Clear Snow From Light Fixtures
After snowfall, gently remove snow from your light fixtures using a soft brush or broom. Heavy snow can block light and damage fixtures over time. Never use metal tools that might crack cold plastic lenses. Remember to clear snow from ground lights that often get buried when clearing walkways. This keeps your paths safely lit during winter's darkest months.
Check Wiring After Winter Storms
Ice and snow can damage exposed wiring in ways unique to winter. After storms, look for wires that have been pulled from their mounting points by ice or pushed up by frost. Also check fixtures on buildings where ice dams form in gutters, as this winter-specific problem can direct water into light fixtures. Clear any ice blocking drainage around mounted lights.
Monitor Bulbs During Cold Snaps
Very cold temperatures affect how bulbs perform. Some bulbs dim significantly when temperatures drop below freezing, while others might fail completely. Check your lights after particularly cold nights, as winter often causes multiple bulbs to fail at the same time. Replace any failed bulbs promptly since good lighting is especially important during winter's early darkness.
Adjust Light Settings For Snow Conditions
Snow changes how light sensors and motion detectors work. The white surface reflects light, sometimes tricking sensors into thinking it's still daylight. Motion detectors may need higher sensitivity in winter because people move differently in snow and wear bulkier clothing. Check your sensors on snowy evenings to make sure they're activating properly in these winter-specific conditions.
Protect Fixtures From De-icing Products
Winter road salt and ice melt products can damage light fixtures. These chemicals cause corrosion on metal parts and cloud plastic lenses - a problem only seen in winter. When applying ice melt, keep it at least a foot away from any lighting fixtures. For lights near roads where salt spray is unavoidable, wipe them clean more frequently during winter months.
Maintain Your Lights Through Every Season!
The cold of winter, the thaws of spring, the heat of summer, and the fall leaves all affect your lighting differently. By doing these steps for each season, you can stop most lighting problems before they happen. Cleaning, replacing bulbs on time, adjusting timers correctly, and making sure lights are secure will keep your outdoor areas safe all year. These simple maintenance steps will save you money, extend the life of your lighting system, and keep your outdoor spaces safely illuminated all year long.