Outdoor Lighting

Commercial outdoor lighting is exterior fixtures built to light building perimeters, parking areas, and walkways while surviving rain, heat, and sun. It spans a handful of fixture types - wall packs, flood lights, area and pole lights, and canopy lights - each rated for wet or damp locations. Most run on a photocell or dusk-to-dawn control and use LED to replace older metal halide and high-pressure sodium. Lumera Electric carries the full exterior range for contractors and facilities.

Outdoor Lighting

What types of commercial outdoor lighting are there?

Outdoor lighting splits into a handful of fixture types, each for a different surface. Wall packs mount on building walls to light the perimeter. Flood lights aim a beam at a target. Area and pole lights cover parking lots from above. Canopy lights sit under soffits and gas-station canopies. Bollards and path lights handle walkways.

Which outdoor fixture do I use for which job?

Each fixture aims light differently. Use a wall pack to wash a building's exterior wall and entryways. Use a flood light to spotlight a sign, façade, or yard. Use area and pole lights for parking lots and large open spaces. Use canopy lights under a drive-through, garage, or fuel-island ceiling. Match the fixture to the surface.

What does "wet location rated" mean for outdoor fixtures?

Outdoor doesn't automatically mean waterproof — the rating matters. A wet-location fixture withstands direct rain and water, required for open exposure. A damp-location fixture handles moisture but not direct water, for covered soffits and porches. NEMA and IP ratings further define dust and water sealing. Always confirm a fixture is listed for the exposure it faces.

What is dark-sky (full-cutoff) lighting, and is it required?

Dark-sky lighting points light down, not up. A full-cutoff fixture emits no light above horizontal, cutting glare and light pollution. Many municipalities now require full-cutoff or dark-sky-compliant fixtures for outdoor and parking lighting. Look for a fixture rated full-cutoff or DarkSky Approved where local code or a campus standard applies.

How are outdoor lights controlled — photocell or motion?

Most outdoor lighting runs itself. A photocell (dusk-to-dawn sensor) switches the fixture on at dark and off at dawn automatically. A motion sensor adds on-demand light for security, often combined with dusk-to-dawn. Larger sites use contactors and time clocks to switch whole zones. Many fixtures are photocell-ready for a button or threaded control.

Ready for the specific fixture? Wash walls with LED Wall Pack Lights, aim a beam with LED Flood Lights, cover a lot with LED Area & Parking Lot Lights, light a soffit with LED Canopy Lights, and automate any of them with Photocells.