Outdoor Lighting Repair: What To Do Before Calling a Technician

It’s natural for your outdoor lighting system to break due to wear and tear or damage. But, before calling over a technician to come over and fix the problem for you, look through this list of common outdoor lighting problems and see if the issue is something that you can fix.

Common Outdoor Lighting Problems

Landscape lights won’t stay up

If your landscape lights or any other fixture staked on the ground won’t stay upright, your light fixture’s stake is probably too short for it. This is usually due to ground stakes being too short to support the light fixture. In general, you want a longer ground stake for a wider or taller light fixture.

Luckily, you can easily fix this by replacing the ground stake of your fixture. Just go online or to the store and find one with enough length that will fit your fixture.

The light bulb needs replacement

All light bulbs will need replacing eventually. Halogen and incandescent bulbs wear out the light-producing filament inside them by burning them out. A burnt-out bulb will no longer have the filament between the two wires in it and will have a rattling sound inside when you shake it.

As for LEDs, although they might not burn out like traditional bulbs, they still wear out. If an LED bulb starts to dim, it is time to replace it with a new one.

The lights won't turn on

If no lights will turn on even if your transformer is plugged in, you probably have a problem with your outdoor lights’ electrical wiring. First, check that the outlet your transformer is using has power. You can use your phone charger to see if it has power. If the outlet has power, you have a problem with the wiring of your outdoor lighting. Otherwise, the issue has something to do with your house’s electrical system.

If the outlet has no power

1. Check the breaker panel of your home and make sure that no switches are tripped. If you find one, this is probably for the outlet you tested and you only have to set it back on to fix it.
2. If the outlet still has no power, you will have to find all the GFCI outlets in your home and reset them. Resetting them is as easy as pressing the small reset button on them.
3. If it still has no power after these steps, it is best to call in an electrician to assess and fix the problem.

If the outlet has power

1. If you have a timer, make sure that it is set to the correct time, and use the manual override to test your lights. If you are having trouble with your timer, ask an outdoor lighting contractor to come over and help.
2. Carefully open the metal panel of your transformer. Inside, you will find three switches – an orange, a red, and a white toggle switch. These switches should be in the ON position.
3. If it still has no power following the previous steps and finds no issues with your transformer, the issue of your outdoor lighting system might be due to a disconnected connection

Contact Us!

If you haven’t found a solution to your system’s issue, it is best to have it assessed by a professional. Doing it yourself can be dangerous since it involves electricity and any mistake on your part can be fatal. Contact us today for your outdoor lighting repair and maintenance needs.

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