Pool Lighting and Safety Issues

When you’re considering adding some pool lighting to our outdoor pool space, the first thing you need to consider is safety. Lighting= electricity. Electricity and water are not a good combination unless they are thoroughly thought out and properly installed and maintained.

Electric motors and in-pool lights have to be grounded and all steel structures bonded. It’s important to do the same thing for all lighting around any body of water as well.

Making sure your lighting system near water is safe starts with the equipment. Us a 12-volt lighting system. You are able to use a 120-volt system, they have to be installed by an electrician; however, a general rule-of-thumb is the less voltage, the less dangerous.

It’s important to take into consideration the quality of equipment you choose. Inexpensive plastic fixtures designed to be installed by the homeowner are not suitable for landscape lighting, especially near any water. That is very dangerous! Those products are susceptible to damage and have inferior service lives. You want to think in terms of quality over quantity. Choose a cast brass or other non-rusting materials. They are created to endure the outdoors.

Any wiring done next to a body of water needs to be done in conduit. Some installers will allow direct burial cables, and it is more affordable, but it is not always the safest. Talk these options over with your electrician.

A good rule to follow: you do not want any part of the lighting system, the fixtures, wiring, or transformers, to become submerged in water at any time. You want the whole system to be as resistant to damage as possible.

Another layer of added protection involves proper grounding of transformers. In some cases you’ll have to use pool and spa transformers- depending on location.

The last factor to consider when adding outdoor lighting to your yard or landscape is location. You want it installed at least six feet from any water so that no human could touch the lighting while part of their body is still touching the water. This is the safest and smartest way to avoid any electricity-related incidents.