Lighting for Outdoors

Ouray County, the appealing little canton breadth we reside in western Colorado, has a Aphotic Skies law. It was anesthetized to bottle our adeptness to adore the stars in all of their ablaze glory. It's a acceptable concept, admitting the law is a bit added acrimonious than we would like. It absolutely bedfast our alfresco lighting options.
As a kid I enjoyed lying out at night and watching the stars, spotting the altered constellations, and apprehensive what lay above the Milky Way. As I grew, so did the ablaze pollution. Now, breadth we lived in Boulder wasn't so ablaze attenuated that we couldn't see the stars -- abounding a meteor battery was enjoyed in our backyard. Our adjacency had few artery lights so we enjoyed dark-ish skies.
The aboriginal time we camped on our land, anon to become our home, we accustomed as it was starting to drizzle. But by the time we crawled into bed the aerial skies were ablaze with stars.....and I saw the Milky Way -- even after my contacts -- for the aboriginal time in I don't apperceive how long. It was magnificent! (And I accomplish abiding I attending for it every bright night to this day.) We vowed to bottle the akin of black appropriate to see the blast that clearly.
When the yurt went up, so did a lamppost, with 25 watt bulb, so we could acquisition the keyhole at night. Little did we apperceive at the time that about that affectionate of lighting accoutrement wouldn't plan because it casts too abundant light; the 25W ball is what adored it.
Fortunately the lights that formed for our county's aphotic sky law were lights we liked. The claim is that ablaze accept to be directed down, not getting accustomed to advance out much. Ideally the bottle would aswell be blurred so that little ablaze would escape outward. It was specific abundant our lighting abundance had specific lighting accessories accessible for Ouray Canton residents.
We chose a bank ablaze with either clear-cut bottle or a cone that directed the ablaze down for the aback barn door, patio door, deck, foreground barn door, and foreground porch. Then we amid 40W bunched beaming bulbs (CFLs). We had abundant ablaze to see, but not so abundant as to appoint on our neighbors (who can't readily even see our house).
As an aside, our electrician was afraid that we'd use CFL bulbs in our alfresco lights. He was determined they wouldn't plan in the winter. Even if we told him we had auspiciously acclimated them outdoors for years, even in the winter, he befuddled his arch and said we'd be apologetic and alteration the bulbs that actual winter. I accept heard others say that CFLs will not plan in algid weather, but that old-wives account is larboard over from the aboriginal canicule of CFLs if they had alluring ballasts which don't plan able-bodied in freezing temperatures. A lot of CFLs accept cyberbanking ballasts today and ablaze even in -20F weather. I'll accept they are dim at first, but they afterglow up adequately quickly.
Our architect admired recessed lighting fixtures. If he'd had his way, that's apparently the alone affectionate of lighting he would accept put into our house. For the porch, deck, and barn he wasn't abiding we could accept the can lights because of the aphotic sky law. The architecture administration gave him a thumb's up aback we finer had a brim about those spaces, attached the bulk of ablaze that was casting out from the cans. We added a few to our purchase.
We had capital to put atom lights up so we could bound ablaze up the backyard in case of burglar -- the four legged affectionate is what we were a lot of absorbed by. The law said no way, even if they weren't on motion sensors and alone manual. Guests and wildlife were accepted to bisect the spaces about the abode after electric lighting assistance.
What got me was they chock-full the law abbreviate of adage humans had to install some affectionate of window accoutrement to anticipate calm lights from animated out and lighting the surrounding area, appropriately adverse ablaze stars from getting enjoyed as much. But, they didn't go there.
Because of the aphotic sky law we haven't installed any mural lighting aback the mural lights would acutely breach the law. I assumption it's a acceptable affair lighting our mural appearance isn't a antecedence for us.
Next question: What about solar lights? We accept been of alloyed apperception through the years. The wattage is low abundant the law would acquiesce for them. But we absolutely do like our aphotic yard, and I acquainted the black was a bit added aegis for our mousers. We assuredly caved if WalMart had a solar ablaze for auction that fit our account and tastes. I placed them forth the aisle from the abode to the yurt so guests wouldn't blunder on the asperous ground. Half of them died afore the summer was out, so we kept the alive ones appearance the analytical "corners", and went aback to adequate the almost-absolute darkness.
The greenhouse does accept a band of solar lights appearance the aisle from the abode to the greenhouse door. In the summer they are absolutely accidental because the beaming abound lights flash out, lighting my way. Almost too much! But in the winter, if the shutters accept covered the windows, the solar lights are great.
Our alfresco lighting arrangement includes bank lights and recessed lighting with CFLs, and solar lights. We feel safe, can acquisition things if we bead them at night, and adore brilliant viewing. What added could we want?