How NOT to Install Landscape lighting -Beginner mistakes

a ton of profit in landscape lighting there we go now I can see good no yep I'm sorry I'm laughing at you for a three I'm gonna get a cold on you just a dawn on off he's looking at me like there's something going on here so no are you done under there what we want to show you guys is probably what I consider to be one of the most lucrative parts of the landscaping or a niche service that you guys can do and we'll probably have this job done when think this afternoon Frankie yeah we screw up today plain and simple it was our very first time ever trying to install landscape lighting neither Frankie or I have ever done this before and we make some very common beginner mistakes and instead of taking them out I wanted to leave them in all right let's go look at the rest of the vision I know you feel bad but I wouldn't feel bad about it I think that's great honestly I do I think this is phenomenal I I hope whenever we screw up we can share it just in case some of you guys are attempting to do it your own for the very first time you can hopefully see some of the things that we do wrong and go aha maybe I won't do that so you're gonna see everything good bad and in between in today's video so I'll wasting it any more time let's start installing some landscape lighting so let's show them how easy this job is so we've got four lights right here and these are in light lights these are seriously high high quality one of the things I'm gonna recommend you guys do whether you use in light or use somebody else use good lights don't be one of these boxes is where you're gonna put the lights in the only problem I see with that is they should be boom boom boom boom like oh yeah yeah yes now you got it right does that make more sense and then we've got the two big mistakes we make today are in placement and then the actual connection method and we make the corrections in this video but before I felt real comfortable releasing this thing I wanted to see how well this system would weather a harsh Minnesota winter so we actually did this install back in January when I waited about six months before I was willing to release this video to you guys to make sure that my didn't screw more things up than I thought likes call all around the perimeter here I think we roll with that so then we got a transformer right Frankie so one transformer which plugs in and then the wiring these guys from in like my experience with them is they'll send you everything you need we got to understand what you need ahead of time but just just good stuff so that's the transformer yeah and it's literally that as a plug-and-play transformer so you guys are seeing exactly the way these things come right out of the package yep and we'll show them exactly how we do it I'll start out here first I'd do this because it's only the tips gonna drop today get worse it's gonna get in windy and worse oh yeah yeah I do this I'll be back in an hour and I just had to go do that [Music] let's show them what you drink this is good this is good cuz this is a calm this is a mistake that can happen so there's nothing wrong with this cuz we make the mistakes here so hopefully when you you guys kid out to your site you don't you've already got the first force lights in and you get the next ones drilled but doing the wrong spot so he's got them here and they're supposed to be here so they can shine on to the staff but it will it's just wrong so this is one of those areas that I wanted to wait to find out is it wrong is it right how does it actually work and the problem is having those lights on a flat surface shining up means every time you take a step you look down to that step you have a light shining right in your eyes it just doesn't work very good so if you guys are thinking about installing lights on those stair treads I wouldn't recommend it I would put him on the back boards because then it shines the light onto the tread surface itself and works much better alright let's go look at the rest of this he's done honestly I think this is a great chance to look and see which way we like them or don't like them because the guys out there when they're doing their own they're gonna have problems and if somebody may screw this up or this actually could be a way that some people do it so I say that's not all with it and just see how they look both ways is there to just really you want to you want to finish drilling them in the back backboard Michael doing it the way they want anything okay okay and then we'll just replace these boards you know but let's leave them in on those steps over there the way they are because I'd like I would like to see how they look shining up like that worried about it actually I'm glad you made the mistake I know you feel bad but I wouldn't feel bad about it I think that's great honestly I do I think this is phenomenal I hope I hope whenever we screw up we can share it to get at these Frankie plans on crawling under there [Music] not much for the inflation one sighs real bitter you use in Frankie whatever that I don't know if they click the drill bit so they even sent that drill bit oh that's crazy man they really do send everything you need don't they much she popped that cap off you pop that piece off you run the wire into it we put that in and then you screw the cap back on and you're done now if you screw that in we're gonna have a piercing in that line so right so you don't want to screw that in unless you want a light there do you Wow yeah but then that's it that's it and that's how you hook a line up now I got to put the brakes on because this is one of those places where we do screw up it's a very easy thing to do wrong and that's exactly what we did when we attach these lights we put one step in front of the other really what we were doing is we were putting this connect the wire into the base slot and then putting the connector on it and screwing it in and what can happen is that wire can twist a little bit and you'll actually see that in this video and then if you screwed it all the way in that could either cross the red or just screw up your lighting in general so in light actually has the right way to do it what they recommend you doing is actually taking that great connector piece of that great piece and putting it on the wire first and then sliding everything into that bet call it that connector on the bottom and then screwing it on that wait you don't cross around anything and you don't get your wire twisted it's just the right way to do it so literally that wire that's that you got right behind you Frankie yep that we pulled out that just runs where you want light that and then it runs right back does it have to run back in no okay I got it started over there and so my power will be fed from there and I got it ran all the way to here okay so then you just terminate it so you don't have to run it back into a circuit no okay perfect all one one okay so let's look at how you actually hook up the transformer then it's not much you not shouldn't really like be noticing it unless it's nighttime off and so with these boards it looks like Frankie's plans on popping them boards out and fixing them in the spring or if it's like 40 degrees out like it has been in January in Minnesota which is very bizarre this is the transformer right here you guys this is what we're looking at that's the whole thing when you see that plug in and right there you literally plug that into a wall outlet and that's it that's all you do you plug that in and then the wire goes in it goes right in then we gotta I gotta get a regular screwdriver I'm gonna go get one no goes right in there and then you tighten them up it's it and then you plug it into the wall and you've got your lighting your landscape lighting is just a gone on now there is some stuff you need to know about voltage drop there's some stuff you need to know about up lighting and placing lights but the gist of it is Frankie that deck lighting is so simple it's not like lighting in a house right you don't have to know anything but how to plug something in and then how to hook those connectors up I'm actually kind of anxious to see how these look up and at night tonight so this should be fun what the bottom ones are okay this one right here is it yeah all the other ones are on Frankie yep they're all on what they're all odds are you done under there where are you coming out okay so the transformer is installed actually I kind of like them looking up on the look on the steps he got him Frankie but they don't look that bad boy that looks great actually oh it looks at nighttime your car no actually I like them I like them up like that I think that looks pretty slick I know they don't say to do it that way but I think that looks good I'm gonna actually recommend if you guys want some of the latest and greatest information go right to in like com whoa now if you're actually a pro I'm gonna send you the insider.com this is the North American team and they handle the programs for professional installers like you and well not technically so much me I actually worked with these guys to put this video together because I did make a few of the mistakes and they helped me to kind of pick it apart so that I could show you guys the wrong way and the right way to do it so big things goes out to in late for helping put this video together you want more information go check out their website we included our mistakes we got no problem doing that because the lessons we learned we want to share with you guys hope you appreciate that because Frankie didn't really want to include that in there did you Frankie honestly Frankie does not like including his mistakes he wants to look good man he's a craftsman but I actually want you guys to be able to go out into the world and look good cuz I already think Frankie's awesome at everything he does and I don't care if he screws up and hopefully it helps you guys out god bless you guys go get them