If you are running a landscaping business an integral part of adding the finishing touches to your work will often be the installation of outdoor lighting and power outlets.
It is great to see a garden lit up or a water feature as a focal point but you will want to ensure the electrical aspect of your work is carried out as safely as possible.
Here are some useful safety tips to consider when you are working on an electrical installation outdoors, including a reminder about rules and regulations for mains voltage, cable installation insights, plus suggestions for mixing up your lighting options.
Sticking to the code
The fundamentals of carrying out electrical work safely involve knowing your limitations and when to get someone more qualified to help with the electrics and ensuring that you stay on the right side of building codes and regulations.
Fitting plug sockets, outdoor lighting, and providing power for a water pump all require mains voltage and every one of these cables, wires, and sockets need to be protected by a Residual Current Device (RCD) which is designed to shut the power off instantly when something like a power leak to earth occurs.
Someone like RS Components can provide you with all the sockets and circuit breakers you need to meet your outdoor power requirements and maintain the integrity of that power source.
Make a plan
If you are working on a design plan to give a garden a makeover those plans also need to incorporate details of how you are going to keep all the cables and wiring needed as safe as possible.
You never want to see electrical cables trailed around the garden. It is not just unsightly but you are raising the prospect of a trip or fall and inviting a disaster like running over a cable with a lawnmower or hedge cutter at some point.
You will need to use a steel wired armored cable if you are going to be burying cables underground together with some warning tape that identifies its presence when anyone is digging the ground in the future.
You could also consider laying electricians plastic conduit pipe and then pull the cabling through to the other end, but whatever way you go about it, think safety and have a plan that meets the required standards for an electrical installation.
Low voltage options
Installing power cables will add to the cost of any landscaping work and a safer and less expensive option to consider would be to see where you might be able to get away with using a low voltage alternative.
There are plenty of low voltage lighting options that don’t require any cables to be laid so you can light up the garden in places with the minimum of fuss and greatly reduce the risk of shock or any other electrical hazard.
A successful outdoor lighting and power project requires planning and using the right fixtures and wiring in the right places. Get that right and the electrical aspect of your landscaping project should be as successful as the rest of your work.
