Outdoor Lighting Christchurch

Good outdoor lighting earns its keep three ways. It lets you use the deck after dark, it stops visitors missing a step, and it makes the side of the house a less inviting place for anyone who should not be there. We design and install garden, deck, path, driveway and security lighting across Christchurch, from Fendalton gardens to new sections in Wigram and Lincoln.

Outside is harder on electrical gear than inside. Cables run underground or along exposed walls, fittings sit through frosts and storms, and water finds any gap. Everything we fit outdoors is rated for where it sits and protected by an RCD. If you also need power outside for a spa, shed or garden tools, see our power point installation page.

Pricing: a free quote and a fixed price agreed before we start. You get a written, itemised quote, and small jobs can be quoted from photos.

Upgrading the lights inside the house? See LED lighting.

Start with what each area is for

We begin with how you use the space rather than a catalogue. A deck you eat on needs soft, low-glare light at table height. Steps need light on the tread, not in your eyes. A driveway needs enough light to spot a bike or a child when you reverse out. Security lighting needs to cover doors, side paths, the garage and the back fence line.

Then the fittings follow. Bollards and step lights for paths, uplights for a tree or a brick wall, wall lights on weatherboards, festoons over an outdoor table, and sensor floodlights where you want a sudden burst of light rather than a glow all night.

• Step and deck lights for safe footing
• Uplights and spotlights for trees and planting
• Path, gate and driveway lighting
• Sensor floodlights for doors and side paths
• Festoon and feature lighting for summer evenings

Fittings that survive a Christchurch year

Christchurch averages around 80 ground frost days a year, and the nor'wester can reach storm force and cause widespread minor property damage. A fitting that is fine on a sheltered porch may not last on an exposed fence post. Every outdoor light carries an IP rating that says how well it keeps out dust and water, and we choose the rating for the exact spot it will live in: under eaves, on an open deck, or down in a garden bed that gets soaked by sprinklers.

Near the coast at New Brighton, Southshore and Sumner, sea spray is the bigger enemy, so we use corrosion-resistant bodies and fixings. On the Port Hills, in Cashmere or Lyttelton, fittings on exposed slopes get firm brackets and sealed glands. Proper weatherproof junctions, not taped joins in the garden, are what stop water creeping in and tripping the power after the first heavy rain.

How It Works

Cables, RCD protection and the paperwork

A new outdoor lighting circuit is fixed wiring work, so WorkSafe says it comes with a Certificate of Compliance. New and altered domestic circuits need RCD protection under the current wiring rules, and outdoors is where that protection matters most: the RCD cuts the supply if current leaks to earth through water or a damaged cable.

Cables to garden lights run in conduit underground or clipped along structures in protected routes. We draw you a sketch of where they go, so a new fence post or vegetable bed does not find them first. If your outside lights already trip the power, it is usually water in a fitting or a nicked underground cable, which is a job for our electrical repairs team.

Sensors, timers and smart control

Consumer NZ lists sensor-controlled security lights among the simplest home security measures. They come on when someone walks up the path, switch off again afterwards, use little power and draw attention to movement. For cameras that record what the light reveals, see our security camera installation page.

For garden and feature lighting, a timer or dusk-to-dawn photocell means nobody has to remember the switch, which suits long winter evenings. Smart controllers group lights into scenes such as dinner on the deck or arriving home, all set from your phone. Gen Less notes that LEDs use far less electricity than older bulbs, which adds up for lights that run for hours each night.

• Movement sensors on floodlights
• Photocells for path and driveway lights
• Timers for garden and feature lights
• App control and scenes for the deck

Neighbours and the night sky

A floodlight aimed over the fence causes more neighbour friction than almost anything else we put up. We point lights down and inward, use shielded fittings near boundaries, and set sensor ranges so the cat next door does not trigger them all night. Warmer colour temperatures also look better among plants and are easier on the eye.

In newer subdivisions such as Northwood, Halswell or Pegasus, check whether your covenant or residents' association rules say anything about exterior lighting before work starts. We can supply fitting details for an approval request.

Why Choose Cheeky's Electrical for Outdoor Lighting

Outdoor Lighting FAQs

Outdoor Lighting Across Christchurch

We cover every region: Central Christchurch, North Christchurch, East and Coastal Christchurch, South Christchurch and Port Hills, West Christchurch, Selwyn and Waimakariri.

Related Electrical Services

• LED Lighting
• Emergency Electrician
• Electrical Repairs

See the electrician prices guide or every service we offer.