Do-It-Yourself LED Landscape Lighting Install

Dekor Empress DIY Install

 

Dekor recently introduced their line of Outdoor LED Landscape Lighting products.  Thomas Lumber is proud to offer these great products in both our Atlanta, Georgia showroom and online store.  When we received our first shipment of these products we were excited to get some installed to see what they looked like and how easy they were to install.  We found someone who was having a landscape project completed this week and who was willing to be our guinea pig.  .  Follow along with our install to see how you can easily light your path in less than an hour.

 

First we will start with the packaging, what is in each box, and what tools are needed to complete the install.

 

Tools Needed:

• Wire cutters
• Wire strippers
• Box Cutter Knife
• Rake or gardening trowel

 

Contents in each package of lighting:

• (2) Dekor Empress LED Landscape Lights
• (2) Gel Filled Wire Nuts
• (1) Allan Key Wrench for adjusting lighting

 

Extras Needed to Complete:

• Dekor EZMAX 60-Watt Outdoor Transformer
• 100ft roll of low-voltage outdoor wiring
• Outdoor EZTimer Photocell timer
• Outdoor electrical box (Installed by qualified electrician)

 

Step 1:

Before you start doing anything with you install answer these questions.  Ok, are you an electrician?  Can you use a pair of scissors?  Do you know how to plug in a lamp?  If your answers were No, Yes, and Yes then proceed to Step 2.

 

Step 2:

Next layout everything you are going to need for the install.  Put the lights in the spots you feel they are going to look best for your path.  Don’t place them in the ground yet as we want to verify the connections and the lights are working before we actually place them in the ground.  Also when you take them out of the box, be careful cutting off the bubble wrap.  Taped to the bubble wrap is gel filled nuts and allen wrench you will need for parts of the install.

 

Step 3:

Run your Dekor Low Voltage Wire from the electrical outlet box closest to your walkway.  For me I ran one complete run from the box to the furthest point away on the left side of my walk.  I cut the wire and then ran wire from the bottom of the right side to the top of the steps leaving enough extra to crossover the steps to connect with the left side wire in a later Step.

 

Step 4:

I started with the Empress Landscape Light furthest from the transformer.  I stripped the positive wire of the Dekor Low-Voltage Wiring (I used the side with the wording as the positive) leaving the negative side unstripped.  The reason I stripped it first was because I wanted to make it easy to know the difference of the positive and the negative.  Twist the two positive wires together and twist on the Dekor Gel Filled Wire Nut.  Make sure all of the exposed wire is inside the wire nut to help limit corrosion.

 

Step 5:

Do the same as Step 4 but with the negative side of the wires.  After this your first light is connected.  You can plug your transformer in and test the connection if desired.  If you do test the connection make

 

Step 6:

Repeat Steps 4 and 5 until all the Dekor Empress LED Landscape Lights are connected.  Also make sure the right side wiring is connected to the left side wiring.  We did this when we connected one of our lights combining the left side black low voltage wires positive and negative with the right sides when we connected one of the lights.

 

Step 7:

Connect the low voltage wire to your Dekor EZMAX Outdoor Transfomer.  Plug the transformer into the outlet box to test your connections and verify all the lights are working.  If so then unplug the transformer and connect it to the PhotoCell Timer by simply plugging it into one of the receptacles on the bottom.

Step 8.

Time to hide your wires.  For the install we chose to use a rake to get the mulch away from the steps.  We placed the wires just under the surface of the mulch as close to the steps as possible.  Some might prefer to dig a small trench with a trowel to cover the wiring with dirt.