Outdoor Lighting Timers: 3 Benefits You Should Know

Nov 16, 2023 10:18:20 AM

Incorporating outdoor lighting at your Memphis, TN home is accompanied by some important benefits. As we’ve talked about in previous articles, landscape lighting can add safety, security, and aesthetic value to your property. 

One way to ensure that you’re getting all of that functionality and value out of your lighting system is to incorporate timers for outdoor lights.

Having outdoor lights on a timer can really enhance the functionality of your system and ensure you’re maximizing everything it has to offer. 

front of house outdoor lighting
In this article, we’ll talk about some of the benefits of outdoor lighting timers that you might not have considered.

#1: Outdoor Lighting Timers Give a “Set it and Forget it” Ease of Use

One of the great benefits of putting your outdoor lights on a timer is the fact that you can truly “set it and forget it.” 

Of course, that is largely contingent on what type of outdoor lighting timer you are using. Some timers still require you to make frequent changes or updates.

At Mid South Night Lights, we use astronomical outdoor lighting timers. Astro timers are a highly sophisticated control system. Once your astro timer is programmed and installed, no further work is required. 

Front Yard Landscape Lighting
That’s because, unlike a digital timer, an astro timer can make adjustments that make it incredibly accurate. For instance, our astro timers know that we are in Western Tennesee and know the timing of sunset to sunrise each day. Unlike photocell timers, astro timers do not need to sense light in order to make adjustments for the location of the sun.

These outdoor lighting timers even change with daylight savings time, meaning that you never have to mess with them, even as the time changes.

This makes it truly a “hassle-free” option for homeowners looking for the ultimate ease of use.

#2: Outdoor Lights on a Timer Enhance Security

In addition to ease of use (meaning that you can get your lighting system set up and then not have to worry about it), when your lights are on a timer, it also makes your property more secure.

That’s because you know your lights are going to come on at the time they were meant to, whether you are home or not. 

As we’ve talked about in previous articles, there’s a huge security component to outdoor lights. Homes that are dark or poorly lit during the nighttime hours can potentially be targets for crimes like burglary, trespassing, or vandalism.

But when a home is well-lit, it is less appealing to criminals who would obviously prefer not to be on display and get caught! For this reason, security lighting can provide a lot of peace of mind.

Outdoor lights also give off the impression that someone is home, even if they’re not. This is also a deterrent to criminals.

outdoor lights on front of home with large paver driveway
Of course, none of those benefits will take place if the lights aren’t on! This is another reason why outdoor lighting timers are such a huge benefit. They can help ensure that your lights are coming on at pre-determined times, even if you aren’t there. 

Whether you’re just out late or you’re away for an entire vacation, you can gain valuable peace of mind that your home is more secure thanks to lights that are coming on as planned.

#3: Outdoor Lights on a Timer Save Energy

Another benefit to consider is that lights on a timer can save energy since lights only come on at times that you want them to come on.

If you’ve ever had a manually controlled system, you have probably experienced accidentally leaving the lights on all day at least once. This is obviously a waste of energy as outdoor lighting is not needed during the day.

Outdoor lights on a timer will help maintain the proper duration during which you want to keep the lights on. But just as importantly, outdoor lighting timers also help ensure lights go OFF when you want them to.

There’s no point in having your lights on during the day. And most of the time, people also set their lights to go off at some point during the night. 

This can be different depending on the day. For instance, perhaps you want your outdoor lights to be on until 10 PM on weekdays. But on weekends, perhaps you extend the time lights go off until 1 AM. 

You can customize whatever timing is best for you.

Front of Home Landscape Lighting

Professionally Installed Outdoor Lights on a Timer 

The key to getting the most out of outdoor lights on a timer is to have the entire system installed by a professional. The type of timer systems that we are talking about in this article are not cheap and simple timers like what you might be able to purchase at the local hardware store.

We are talking about professional timing systems.

Because they are more robust than other timers, the astro timer systems that we use are complex and require quite a bit of complicated programming. You want to make sure that this is done right in order to get the most out of your system.

At the end of the day, getting the most out of outdoor lighting in Memphis, TN comes down to the company that you choose to do the work. There are a lot of landscape lighting companies in Memphis, TN, but you want to make a choice that you feel will get the job done right.

Only then can you truly gain these benefits and the peace of mind that you deserve.

Garage door lighting closeup

Working with Mid South Night Lights for an Outdoor Lighting System with a Professional Timer

At Mid South Night Lights, we know that outdoor lighting is more than just something that “looks nice.” While there’s no doubt it will add tremendous aesthetic appeal, it also brings functional value by allowing you to get more use out of your space.

By putting your outdoor lights on a timer, you can maximize its functionality and overall value.

If that’s something that you are interested in, we are ready to help!

 

Are you ready to create a secure, functional, and beautiful property at any hour of the day? If so, let’s meet and discuss some bright ideas.

Request a Consultation

Landscape Lighting , Security Lighting