GA Lighting

DESIGN & INSTALLATION - TECHNICAL ADVICE - CONTACT US

Add the following text and 2 no. images (one of a display of light fittings and one of shop exterior lit up at night)

GA Lighting offer a professional and friendly service when it comes to the choosing of and installation of good quality garden and exterior lighting. Unlike many of our contemporaries who only offer 'faceless' online sales, we have a fantastic fully stocked showroom/gallery in central London where we offer information, advice and give customers a chance to view and handle products before purchasing. We pride ourselves on the unique and comprehensive service that we offer to both trade professionals and private customers alike. Being one of the first UK stockists of Hunza light fittings, and also offering a professional garden lighting design and installation service for the past ten years, we have the utmost confidence in the select products that we stock.

Design & Installation

Basic advice on lighting design and layout is offered free of charge - face to face, by email, fax or over the telephone from our London showroom. More complex lighting designs requiring specific and detailed planning are offered for a fee.

Paul Alder has over 26 years of experience in the landscaping industry and is a qualified horticulturalist. He has won national awards. With lighting rapidly becoming a requirement in most garden designs over the past 10 years he has developed a comprehensive knowledge of how to create dramatic lighting effects in the garden.

Dawn Latham has a background in fine art and design and is able to utilise her skills by providing clients with sketch visuals as part of our lighting advice and design package. She has five years experience of working with exterior lighting and has built up a wide base of technical knowledge.

GA Lighting employ only highly qualified and experienced personnel for any lighting installation projects and consider your safety as paramount. We have nurtured and developed mutually trustworthy working relationships with our selected electricians over the past years. All our electricians hold Part P Registration - qualifying them to install garden lighting safely and professionally. All installations are self-certificated upon completion and are fully guaranteed. Our electricians specialise in the installation of outdoor lighting all day, every day - giving you peace of mind.

Technical Advice

Low Voltage Garden Lighting operates at 12 volts and is designed to be used with an external transformer. A transformer is designed to drop the voltage requirement from 240v to 12v. This voltage change saves energy and is a safe option for exterior electrical use in case of cable cutting or damage occurring, etc. However, if the cable were 240 volts and it became damaged it could quite easily kill someone.

Low voltage garden lighting still requires 240 volts (up until the transformer) and this is fed by armoured cable. This cable should be buried below the ground (to regulation depth). However due to the low voltage cable being 'safe' this can be installed just below the surface of the soil.

Depending on how many lights you are wanting will determine the number and size of the transformers required. Low voltage cable may reduce in voltage if the amount of lights fitted extends over a long distance.

It is important to note that some low voltage fittings can become hot and this will depend on the wattage of the lamp used i.e. 50 watt will be hotter than a 20watt lamp. The material that the fitting is manufactured in can also make a difference to the overall heat created. As wiith any lighting it is advisable to be sensible when changing lamps or moving the fittings, always wear gloves to change lamps or when re-positioning units if they have been on for any length of time.

An approved quality light fitting should always carry an IP rating. This indicates how well it will stand up to external conditions.
The installation of external lighting should be carried-out by a professional who knows the correct procedures and uses equipment that will keep it safe.

Cable Size Calculator

Maximum distances in metres for stated wattage with Voltage Drop of up to 1 vol

Every garden is different and customers and designers often have their own ideas about how a garden should be illuminated.

Installation is usually carried out in three stages:-

1. The initial visit is comprised of walking around the garden with the client or designer to establish an idea of the overall effect desired. This is where we can use our horticultural knowledge to identify shrubs, plants and trees that may well require individual lighting effects. A plan of the garden may be useful at this stage.
2. The next stage or second visit is what we call the 1st fix - the installation or routing of cables from the house into the garden areas. These cables will be run into the areas where lighting is required. The size and number or cores of the cable will depend on how many lights, switches, water features required for the garden.
3. The third visit or 2nd fix will include the mounting up of required transformers, in the required positions, and also the routing of the low voltage cables to the lighting positions on a plan or as previously agreed. If the garden is being landscaped then we would advise liaising with the contractors as to when is a good time to carry out this stage.

-all mains cables are in S.W.A (steel wired armoured) cable
-and protected by RCD (residual current device)
-all boxes and glands are IP rated (waterproof)
-Once all the light fittings are installed, the whole system will be tested to ensure all elements are safe and there are no faults

GA Lighting
020 7385 1020
www.galigting.co.uk