Outdoor Path Lighting Distance

Many different lighting techniques come into play when trying to decide on the correct outdoor path lighting distance for your fixtures.

One of the rules many landscape lighting designers use is that your path or walk should have an continuous low level lighting. Continuous path lighting provides many of the basic issues of landscape lighting design by providing security, safety and aesthetics.

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Poor path lighting will create what are called black holes in the path or walk. This will give a person an sense of being insecure as you are making their eyes adapt to different levels of light along your path.

The type of path lighting fixtures and the lamps beam spread you use also play a role in deciding outdoor path lighting distance. Some lighting fixtures will project the light forward, while others may project the light in different directions.

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Achieving Proper Path Light Distance

• Make sure to overlap your beam spread from your path fixtures.
• Choose fixtures that will project the light forward. (If you are only wanting to light a path)
• Have continuous low level lighting along the path or walk

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Different Techniques for Lighting a Path

This example shows good light coverage by placing the lights all on the same side of the path.

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Good lighting coverage using the alternating fixture technique.

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For large paths of 8 foot or large place fixtures across from each other.