After dark, your home should still look like yours.
We design and install low-voltage LED lighting for houses, trees, walkways and patios across Metro Boston. It starts with a free evening demo on your own property, so you decide with your own eyes.
Newton, Brookline, Wellesley, Lexington and the rest of Metro Boston.
The evening demo
Photos of other people's houses can't tell you how your own will look. So we show you, before you spend anything.
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We visit at dusk
A designer walks the property with you and listens to how you use the yard. Where you park, where you sit, what you want the street to see.
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We set temporary fixtures
Real brass path lights and spotlights, placed where the permanent ones would go, powered from a portable transformer.
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You decide in the dark
Walk it. Move a light. Turn one off. Keep what you love. A written quote for exactly that layout arrives the next day.
What we light
Six techniques cover almost every property. Most homes use three or four of them.
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Walkways and steps
Low path lights, eight to ten feet apart, aimed down so you see the ground and not the bulb. Steps get a light at every riser.
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Trees
One uplight at the base shows the trunk and the shape of the canopy. Maples, oaks and birches all look different, and we aim for each.
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Moonlighting
A fixture high in the branches throws soft, dappled light down onto lawn and patio, like a full moon that shows up every night.
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The house itself
Narrow wash lights graze clapboard, brick and stone so the façade reads from the street and the front door is obvious to guests.
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Patios and decks
Step lights, rail lights and low washes on the surrounding beds, so dinner outside lasts well past sunset without a floodlight.
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Pools and water
Submersible and perimeter lighting for pools, ponds and fountains, all on a 12-volt system that is safe to touch.
How we build it
A lighting system should outlast the plants around it. These are the parts we don't compromise on.
- Fixtures
- Solid brass and copper. They darken to a patina over time instead of corroding. Manufacturer lifetime warranty on the fixture body.
- Light
- Integrated LEDs, warm white at 2700K, rated for more than 40,000 hours. Roughly 25 years at four hours a night.
- Power
- A 12-volt transformer with an astronomical timer. On at sunset every day of the year, off when you say.
- Wire
- Direct-burial cable laid by hand six inches down along beds and lawn edges. No trenching machine, and the lawn looks normal again in a week.
- New England
- Rated for freeze-thaw, snow blowers and road salt. Every connection is sealed in a gel-filled, waterproof connector.
- Control
- Optional app control to dim zones, set scenes and change schedules from your phone. Not required, and easy to add later.
- Our work
- Two-year workmanship warranty on the installation, and a free check-up visit after the first winter.
What it costs
Every property is different, but nobody should have to book a visit just to learn the ballpark.
| Evening design demo | Free |
|---|---|
| Path light, installed | from $225 |
| Uplight or wash light, installed | from $275 |
| Transformer, timer and wiring | from $650 |
| Typical first project, 10 to 16 fixtures | $3,500 to $6,500 |
Your written quote after the demo is the price. It includes fixtures, wire, transformer, labor and the first-winter check-up.
Where we work
Metro Boston, mostly inside Route 128 and the near western suburbs. Newton, Brookline, Wellesley, Needham, Lexington, Belmont, Arlington, Winchester, Milton, Dedham, Weston and Concord are all regular stops. If you're a little outside that, ask. We often say yes.
Questions people ask at the demo
Will the lights be too bright?
No. Good landscape lighting is mostly shadow. We use warm 2700K LEDs at low output, aimed at the house, trees and ground, never at eyes or neighbors' windows.
What happens in winter?
The fixtures stay in year-round. They are solid brass and rated for freeze-thaw, snow and road salt. Many clients like the lighting most on snowy nights.
Will it raise my electric bill?
Barely. A typical twelve-fixture LED system draws about as much as one 60-watt bulb and runs a few hours a night on a timer.
Do I need an electrician?
Usually not. A low-voltage system plugs into an existing outdoor outlet. If your home needs a new outlet, we coordinate a licensed electrician as part of the job.
How long does installation take?
Most homes take one or two days. Wire is buried by hand along beds and lawn edges, and the lawn looks normal again within about a week.
Can we add to it later?
Yes. We size the transformer and main wire runs with headroom, so a patio or a second tree can join the system without starting over.
Book a free evening demo
Tell us a little about the property and we'll reply within one business day to set a time around sunset. No cost, no obligation.
Prefer email? contact@zanthos.lighting