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06 Mar 2020
0 Comments By progreenadmin Landscaping

Factors to Consider When Choosing a Landscaping Company

If you want to enhance the look of your home, it’s best to set up a lush green, beautiful landscape.  Landscaping has recently become a popular project among homeowners who want to maintain a healthier lifestyle. Good landscaping not only makes your home stand out from the rest within your neighborhood but also increases your home’s value. And due to these reasons, it makes sense to invest in landscaping. But designing a well-balanced landscape requires extensive skills and experience.

To choose the best design, right plants, and functional irrigation system, you need to hire a landscaping professional. To get a flawlessly structured lawn, you need to find a specialist. But how do you ensure that the landscapers that you choose are capable of providing you with quality services? It’s easy to search landscapers online but not all landscaping companies that you see on the internet are reliable. Without proper research, you’ll end up wasting your money on a garden that not even looks attractive. To avoid this frustrating situation, it’s crucial to make the right hiring decision. Below you’ll some factors that you are supposed to put into consideration before hiring a landscaping company.

Qualification & Experience

It can be a huge mistake to hire a landscaping company without looking at the qualifications and experience. Landscaping is not just about planting trees and trimming shrubs. The professional is also responsible for installing an irrigation system that involves placing automatic sprinklers, setting drip irrigation systems, and proper landscape lighting. The contractor you hire should have a license and 5+ years of experience. If a landscaping company is new in the industry, there are high chances that they provide limited or inferior quality services. The experienced landscapers, on the other hand, have both the skills and facilities that are needed for an effective job.

Equipment & Staff

Another factor to consider is how well equipped is the landscaping company is. It is always good to hire a company that is well equipped and has trained staff. To check how well equipped a company is, you can check the variety of the landscaping services that they offer. A company that offers complete landscaping services usually has a qualified team of professionals and advanced equipment to provide efficient services.

Track Record

Before you hire a landscaping company, it is essential to check their reputation. The track record of the company reveals a lot about the quality of service they offer. Online research is the best way of finding out the reputation of the landscaper. You can visit review sites to read reviews of past customers. If the company has been offering quality services, then you will see a lot of positive reviews on their website, and that is a sign that you can go ahead and hire them.

Your Budget

Before you make a hiring decision, make sure the company will not overcharge you. You should first determine how much you intend to spend on landscaping. Once you have a budget in mind, ask at least three contractors to provide you project quote. Compare the job estimate provided by these companies by evaluating the quality of material used among other factors.

01 Mar 2020
0 Comments By progreenadmin Landscaping

Advantages of Installing a Low Voltage Landscape Lighting System

It’s that time of the year when most homeowners plan to give a face-lift to their landscape. They clean out the flower beds to plant new, beautiful flowers or maybe a few trees and bushes. It takes a lot of effort to maintain a splendid landscape. However, the efforts you’ve put in beautifying your lawn, pathways, flower beds, backyard, and other elements lurk in darkness after the sunset. And this is where installing a landscape lighting system becomes crucial.

A well-designed landscape lighting system can add a new dimension to your home’s exterior when it’s dark out. Strategically placed landscape lights highlight the best architectural features of your house, as well as the trees and flowering plants in the garden. Landscape lights are important but most homeowners find it confusing to pick the right one. So if you don’t already have lighting installed on your property, choosing low voltage landscape lighting can be the right decision.

Low Voltage Landscape Lighting

Low voltage lights make use of a transformer which reduces the 120 volt current to 12 volts. This lighting system helps in saving electricity without giving up the quality. As compared to line voltage lighting which uses 120 volts, low voltage lighting produces 12 volts of electricity. This system is less expensive to install, uses less energy, and is safer. These qualities make low voltage lighting a more practical choice than high voltage lighting. Now let’s explore some more benefits of installing a low voltage landscape lighting system.

  1. Cost-Effective

Installing a low voltage lighting system is not as expensive as the line voltage system. Although this system needs a transformer, the cables required for line voltage lighting are more expensive than those needed for low-voltage lighting. A low-voltage setup uses LED light fixtures which cost more than incandescent lights. However, these lights have a longer life span and consume much less power (2-10 watts) to save electricity costs.  Lower electricity bills and longer life of LED lights make this system cost-effective.

  1. Energy Efficiency

The light fixtures used in this system are highly energy efficient. As compared to the incandescent halogen bulbs used in the high voltage system, LED lights emit a higher amount of light while using only 20 percent of the energy. This not only helps in saving energy costs but also helps in conserving our valuable energy resources. This system is environment-friendly and allows an improved thermal reduction.

  1. Safe & Easy to Install

The lower voltage lights are much safer to install and use. Unlike 120V lighting options, 12-volt led lighting systems don’t have any risk of getting electrocuted when exposed to snow or rain. It is also relatively easier to install low voltage landscape lights.  Setting up a line voltage landscape lighting system is not only risky but also complicated. Only a professional can install the line voltage lighting system by burying the wires at least 18 feet deep and placing the wire connections via junction boxes. A low-voltage lighting system, on the other hand, can be installed on your own.

13 Feb 2020
0 Comments By progreenadmin General, Landscaping

Five Crucial Things to Consider When Choosing Outdoor Lighting

Your home has to be your pride and joy. It should be an epitome of style and practical functions all in one. That is why it is recommended to add outdoor lighting and garden lights to add to your curb appeal along with highlighting its best features.

Outdoor lighting projects are known to bring warmth and beauty to the property and also make it a safer place to live in. They allow you better visions at night and make the backyard, lawn, or garden areas of your house stand out.

Besides, landscaping lighting plays a great role in deterring crime such as burglaries.  It gives out a message to the ill-intentioned people that your home is well looked after and there is no way an invader would get a chance to a break-in or be able to remain unseen.

So without further ado, let us understand all the important factors one should consider when adding outdoor lighting to the house:

  1. Your Requirements

Before you go out shopping, you need to figure out the amount of lighting you need for decorating your house exterior. And to do that, all you need to do is multiply the square footage of the area you want to light by 1.5 – that will give an estimation of the total wattage needs that is sufficient to light up your entire space.

  1. Size of Fixtures

It is important to first observe your space and take accurate measurements so you don’t choose too small or too large fixtures. Don’t end up ruining the look of your house by placing inappropriate lighting fixtures or the ones that block your house doorway. Even if you have a large space outside your house, you better go for medium-sized fixtures that can provide lighting in specific areas.

  1. Lighting Color

Your outdoor lighting color should not clash with the color scheme of your walls – this rule applies both to interiors and exteriors of the house. The color of the lighting fixture you select should be attractive enough and instead complement the overall look of your landscape and outer architecture.

  1. Energy Efficiency

Halogen lights and incandescent bulbs tend to use a lot of energy and lead to higher utility bills. That is why landscape lighting experts suggest using LEDs for outdoor lighting fixtures. LED lights consume lesser energy in comparison to their counterparts, are almost maintenance-free, and don’t require frequent replacement. And not to forget – they look just amazing in the garden.

  1. Solar Powered

Solar lighting is one of the most talked-about outdoor lightings nowadays. These lighting fixtures are powered by the sun and don’t require any kind of extensive wiring as needed in the case of traditional electric lighting. They are extremely flexible and can be moved around your lawn too. The best part is that solar powered outdoor lighting helps in reducing your energy consumption and is indeed the safest option for your homes if you always have kids and pets playing around.

10 Feb 2020
0 Comments By progreenadmin Landscaping

Six Ways to Improve the Exterior of Your House

Your home is your biggest investment, and you would not like it to appear shabby to others. A poorly maintained exterior can create a bad impression on visitors and can land you in problems like blocked gutters, messy gardens that invite critters, growth of molds on walls and many more.

If you can’t spend a lot to renovate the exteriors, you can at least adopt some simple ways to make it look better and cleaner. Taking small steps towards home improvement can boost its value and curb appeal.

Here are some ways that can help you improve the exteriors of your house without much effort-

 

Add Greenery to Your House-

Plant some flowers and green plants to enhance the look of your house. If you do not own a garden, then use some planters and window boxes. You can hang plants around the edges of the entry points or windows. A single plant arrangement can add a lot to it.

 

Take Care of Your Lawn-

Keeping your lawn clean and adding some trendy features can create a beautiful look. It is not important to add expensive stuff to your garden at all. Regular cleaning can be enough, which includes mowing the grass, raking off leaves and pulling weeds.

 

Water your plants regularly to prevent brown spots and don’t forget to plant seasonal flowers to make your lawn look bright and colorful.

 

Let there be Light-

Make your house more welcoming by adding lights near the walkway in front of your home. Replace the old lighting fixtures such as sconces and yellow lights that give a dreary look with porch string lights or solar-powered lanterns.

 

You can add landscape lighting to your garden that can benefit during outdoor parties. Make your gardens appear more attractive by adding accent lights near the kiosks.

 

Embrace Symmetry-

Creating symmetrical patterns can improve the focal points that make your home look more put together. Symmetry could be achieved using lights at correct spaces, maybe putting light lamps on either side of your front door.

 

Make your backyard look more symmetrical by adding furniture at the right place and landscape lighting in such a way that can converge to a wider area.

 

Change the Paint and Upgrade your Front Door-

If the paint on the walls of your house is too old and dull, it can make the walls look damper with all the cracks. It is a sign that you should get a fresh coat of paint that is water-proof and durable.

 

An old and fragile door with stains of rust is of no good. Replace it with a new robust door with matching hardware. Change the door knockers and upgrade the house numbers with a font that aligns with the architecture of your home.

 

Clean Up Your Gutters-

Clogged gutters can cause further problems like water leakages and standing of dirty water around your house. Therefore, clear the debris and drains regularly to make them look new and improve their working otherwise the foul odors and stagnant water can bring in a lot of infectious diseases.

15 Jan 2020
0 Comments By progreenadmin Landscaping

Ways To Make Your Home Safer

Keeping family and valuables safe inside the home is the priority of every homeowner. With the increase in burglaries and crime rate, it is becoming even more important to have a safe and secured home. To help you make your home safer, we are here with some of the best tips.

 

  1. Keep doors secured – Doors of the home, especially the front doors, are the first thing that one should consider when talking about security. It has been found that approximately 34% of the burglars walk in through the front door. So, get all your exterior doors inspected, to ensure that the hinges are protected, and frames are strong. Also, if your door locks are not good enough to protect you, then get it replaced at the earliest.

 

  1. Lock the windows –The most common entry points for burglars are doors and windows. So, keep the windows locked, especially at night. Also, consider having windows and doors of tempered glass. And if your windows do not consist of tempered glass then consider updating it as soon as possible. It is because tempered glass does not break easily and thus is highly beneficial.

 

  1. Light up the landscape – Burglars only invade in those houses that are not lit up properly at night. It is because they don’t want to be in the spotlight. So, keep them away from your home with adequate lighting. Moreover, landscape lighting doesn’t only protect you from invaders but also enhance the beauty of your home.

 

  1. Secure the garage – If you have stored plenty of good stuff in your garage, then you need to secure your garage too. Moreover, the garage is becoming a popular entry point to your home among criminals. So, make sure that your garage door is secure and have a sound lock system. Never forget to lock the garage door after using it.

 

  1. Add security cameras – These days, security cameras are a necessity. If there is someone who is keeping an eye on your house or trying to invade, then everything will be recorded in the camera. Moreover, criminals stay away from places where cameras are installed.

 

  1. Eliminate hiding places – Trees and shrubs may enhance the curb appeal of your house, but they also act as a hiding place for burglars. So, trim them down so that no one can hide behind them. To beautify your home, use small and colorful flowers instead of bushes. In case you have trees near windows then remove them, and if you don’t want to do so, then make those windows extra secure.

 

Further, don’t keep things like ladders and stools outside your home. It is highly suggested to don’t place your expensive possessions in the yard, as they can provide an invitation to the thieves.

 

12 Dec 2019
0 Comments By progreenadmin General, Landscaping

Why Landscape Lighting Is Beneficial For New Homes?

Showing off the newly built home is human nature. After all, it is one of the biggest achievements and major investment of their life. To enhance its beauty, they make sure that their home is adorned with the best decoration pieces.

 

However, many homeowners just focus on the interior decor and overlook the exterior of their house. But one should not forget that the exterior of the home is the first thing that the visitors will notice. So, it has to be eye-captivating.

 

Further, during daytime the sunshine can make all the charming details of the exterior of the home visible but it is the landscape lighting that can do the magic at nights! They can intensify the outdoor beauty of your new constructed home.

 

Want to know about the advantages of installing landscape lighting in your new home? If so, then go through the following points.

 

#1. Curb appeal – Homeowners put their best efforts to make their home look beautiful and inviting. During the day, the absolutely stunning look of the exterior of your house is completely visible, but to make it notable even at night, landscape lighting can help.

 

With landscape lighting, all of the time, money, and effort you put into designing an elegant aesthetic can be viewed in the day and night time. Not only will this increase the charm of the outdoor living area you have created, but it can also increase the perceived value of your home.

 

#2. Safety – At night, the absence of outdoor lighting can prove to be a bit risky. You may find it difficult to find the path and may fall down. Landscape lighting can help in improving the safety of your home.

 

Moreover, your guests will not face any problem while navigating the outside areas of your home. Path lights help your visitors feel welcomed and guided as they make their way to the home’s entry door, and with step lights, you don’t have to worry about anyone missing a step. Also, adding these lights can present a safer place for your kids to play at night.

 

#3. Security – No matter, where you live, the risk of potential intruders will always exist. And if there is no exterior lighting, then the invaders can take advantage of it as they try to stay in the shadows to remain unseen. So, don’t keep your home in the dark. Add landscape lighting to get the protection after the sun sets.

 

#4. Functionality – If you are fond of spending time in the lawn with your friends and family, then why to limit it to the daylight hours only? Install landscape lighting and do more of what you love.

 

With the right lighting, you can turn your outdoor space into the perfect entertaining area, no matter the time of day. Landscape lighting provides a well-lit area, letting you and your fellows to keep the party going all night long.

After knowing the advantages of landscape lighting, what are you waiting for? Get it installed in your home and enjoy its benefits!

 

02 Jul 2019
0 Comments By progreenadmin General, Landscaping

The Top 3 Reasons to Hire a Landscape Lighting Professional

Are you considering a DIY route for installing landscape lighting? If so, then this can be a huge mistake. When it comes to lighting the exterior of a home, many people can’t decide whether to do it on their own or hire a professional.

Landscaping lighting is a great way to enhance the aesthetic appeal of your home, only if done in the proper way. Sometimes, just to save a few bucks, homeowners perform this task without the assistance of a landscape lighting contractor. However, when they do this, it only makes them regret later. The basic purpose of landscape lighting is to highlight your home’s best features and enhance its overall appearance. To realize this goal, it’s important to strategically plan your outdoor lighting system. Possibly, you have a clear plan in your mind how you want your landscape to look. However, making plans and implementing them are two different things. For proper and efficient execution of your plan, you need a professional hand. It is only with the help of skilled landscape lighting experts that you can bring your ideas to life.

If you’re still unsure about hiring a professional landscape lighting company, here are a few fantastic advantages of seeking the help of a lighting contractor.

  1. Get the Right Lights

When you hire a professional landscape lighting company, they install the best lights. They know which light is best suited for different areas of your yard. There are some lights that are used for illuminating the space for safety while some are meant to highlight the striking features of your home. Since there are several different types of lights, only professionals have the knowledge and access to all sorts of lights. They know how to place lights at different spots to bring out the best in each unique property. Moreover, they have knowledge about the latest technology to help you light your landscape in the best possible way. An experienced company will always recommend you to invest in energy-saving LED lights because these versatile lights have an extremely long lifespan and produce the same amount of light as traditional bulbs. Also, they can help you avoid wasting money on inferior quality light fixtures that corrodes easily under heat and humidity.

  1. Safe Installation

Sure, you can place LED low wattage lighting yourself, but for wiring those fixtures properly, you will need a professional. You should deal with any electrical panel only if you’re a professional electrician. This is because messing up with voltage, wires, and electrical circuit can be extremely dangerous. Only trained installers have the knowledge and experience to properly install your lighting system according to the local building codes. They know the nuances of voltage, transformers, and other codes for performing this job correctly and safely from start till end. Moreover, they have professional grade equipment that is not available to most homeowners. Therefore, don’t risk your safety and let the professionals handle this job to make your property look splendid and feel comfortable.

  1. Save Time & Money

The installation of landscape lights is not as easy as it might seem. This project will take a lot of time and a considerable amount of physical labor. If you choose a DIY route, first you need to do research on how to install lights, what type of lights are best for you, and where to place these lights. After this, you will start your search for the best lights at an affordable rate. You will look online and visit stores to purchase everything you need for the project. While doing all this, you don’t realize that you’re wasting a lot of your precious time. Moreover, even after putting in so much effort, there is no guarantee that you can successfully handle this project. And if installed incorrectly, not only your time but also your money will go wasted. Therefore, to save time, as well as money, it’s best to hire a professional installer.

16 Apr 2019
0 Comments By progreenadmin Landscaping

Benefits of Hiring a Landscape Lighting Professional

A landscape lighting professional is a person who specializes in outdoor lighting. After having spent all that money in buying and designing your home, it is only natural that you would want it to look nice at night as well. For the best possible outcomes, you must hire a professional or a company that is an expert in this line of work.

Outdoor lighting professionals have an important role to play in both small and big projects. They help you bring your ideas to life and advice you whenever necessary. They have years of experience in this area of expertise and hiring them would prove to be a wise and sensible decision. Here are a few benefits of hiring a landscape lighting professional for you project.

 

  1. Judicious use of money

It may sound unusual that hiring a professional would save you money. But as an amateur, you might find it difficult to pick the right kind of products. Online and big-box retail store retail have a lot of products which might or might not be of high quality. You might end up replacing these items more than often, which costs even more. A professional would be able to select the right kind of product for your project.

An expert can help you avoid such mistakes, saving money in the long run. Also, a professionally lit home boosts curb appearance and adds the value to your asset.

 

  1. Professional assessment

A team of outdoor lighting designers would give you a professional assessment based on your desires, want and utility. They have all the necessary technical know-how, which makes their opinion valuable. They would do all the planning keeping in mind your wishes and come up with an idea that suits you best. They will also be responsible to get the fixtures installed at your home. Hiring a professional makes life easier.

 

  1. Liaison

A lighting professional would work on your project from the beginning, coordinating with your architect, builder or contractor. Working with them you help you avoid the common mistakes that might impact the overall lighting.

Experienced designers would know nitty-gritty details of the project that may get overlooked otherwise. They would know what to install at the various stages of construction. This will also help you save money and headache later.

 

  1. Availability of resources

Being in the market, a professional lighting designer would have access to various different kinds of products that you might not be able find in your local markets. He would also have the knowledge of the latest trends. He could get you high quality products such as architectural specifier-grade fixtures, bulbs and components, which are not accessible to the general public. Use of such products would not only make your home unique but would also reflect class.

 

  1. Wow factor

Often you dream of your house being extraordinary. It is mostly seen that when people, with no prior experience in outdoor lighting, take up the responsibility of lighting their house, are not really satisfied with the outcome. A professional would know how to give your home the wow factor you wish for. They are often able to see the big picture while the clients are unable to do so.

 

  1. Knowledge and experience

Landscape lighting designers are professionals with ample knowledge and experience. They understand the art and science of light, techniques that would work the best in the given situations. They not only solve all your lighting needs but would also add functionality, grace and uniqueness to your home.

 

A professional landscape lighting design adds aesthetics to your home and therefore increases its value. Hiring a professional for this job ensures the success of the project, with less time and energy wasted.

 

15 Apr 2019
0 Comments By progreenadmin General, Landscaping

Tips to Hire the Perfect Landscape Lighting Designer

Everyone wishes to live their house of dreams, but not many of them are able to fulfil it. You can do so by hiring the right professional lighting designer for your project. A landscape lighting professional is someone who specializes in the art of outdoor lighting. He makes sure that your house looks unique and the most stylish in your neighborhood. Here are few tips to find the right designer for you.

  1. Customer feedback

This is the most reliable source of information. A good landscape designer would have a large customer base, who would vouch for him. You must also ask for suggestions and opinions from your friends, family and colleagues. They can share their experience with you, based on which you can make a choice. You could even ask for the contact details of their previous clients and get information about the designer.

You might also want to make an online search about the best outdoor lighting designer in your area.

 

  1. Qualifications and experience

It is mandatory that you get answers to a few questions before you hire a company or contractor. You must ask for their qualifications and certifications. They must be affiliated to some association or organization. Ask about the previous projects they have handled and the difficulties they had to overcome to deliver it. This is would tell you about the scale of work they have done.

 

  1. Obtain quotes

Before finalizing your outdoor illumination designer, you must at least visit two to three designers and obtain quotes from them. Discuss your idea of the project and ask them for suggestions and alternatives. Negotiate with them and try to strike a suitable deal.

 

  1. Understand if the lighting is their only expertise

It is necessary to have knowledge about the various other aspects to construction, but you don’t want a jack of all trades. You must make sure that the team that you hire must specialize only in outdoor lighting. You want an expert who does this every single day. This would ensure you that he is not only up to date with latest trends but is also rich in experience in this line of work. This would also mean that he has enough experience in dealing with the problems that might arise during the project.

 

  1. Team work

It is essential that you form a solid team with your landscape designer. For you to communicate your desires to them, a strong bond must be formed. You must be able to feel comfortable talking to them. The professional that you hire should value your ideas and try to include as much as he can into the plan. Also, his sense of style must match with your taste.

 

In addition to the above points, a good landscape designer would give you product warranty and service guarantees. If not, you must ask them for it. An outdoor illumination designer would help and accomplish your life long dream of having that oh- so- amazing home.

18 Jan 2019
0 Comments By progreenadmin Landscaping

4 Amazing Tips to Hire the Best Landscape Lighting Designer in Your City

Outdoor lighting is the trend of today. Not only does it adds an element of uniqueness and beauty to your property, but also improves its safety and security. If installed properly, landscape lights can highlight the architectural features of your home and create an all-together distinct identity of your premises from the rest of your neighborhood.

Landscape lighting is an art. Underlit trees and few accent lights aiming at the facade of your home- creating a perfect lighting scheme is all that is required. You have to place every single light in a strategic way that enhances the aesthetics of your house and at the same time doesn’t burn on energy and your pocket.

However, all this demands specialized skills which can be found in professional landscape lighting designers. The knowledge they possess and the craftsmanship that they can provide would be something you would never be able to achieve on your own. Here is how you can hire one for your next lighting project-

Ask for recommendations

Skilled landscape designers are able to create a satisfied and loyal customer base with the quality of work they provide. These happy clients keep recommending them further to new clients unintentionally, expanding their growth and building up a solid reputation for them. So, when you plan to give a beautiful makeover to your property, speak to your friends, family, or colleagues and ask if they have dealt with such a designer before. If yes, then listen to their experience and decide if the prospective designer would be suitable for your project or not. You can also search online for the designers in your city and go through their websites, reviews and ratings.

Check experience and reputation

After listing down all the landscape lighting designers in your area, give them a quick call to gather more information about them. You should ask for how long they have been carrying out their business operations in a similar line. A well-established designer is more likely to be acquainted with the nuances of landscape lighting than an amateur who has just entered the industry. A designer who has been serving the market from long becomes a pro in understanding the customers and gains an edge of higher experience in comparison to its counterparts.

Look out for a work portfolio

While searching out for designers, don’t fall prey to their exaggerated plans to turn your house into a dream place. There might be a possibility that the images shown on their website is not of their own projects, but was put up only to entice people. Another situation can be unfeasible lighting plans laid down by the designer. One has to agree on the brutal reality that a lot of many times the ideas that look great on paper fail to look the same after they are executed in actuality. So, to keep all these issues at bay, it is crucial to ask the designer to present authentic images of lighting jobs that have been undertaken in the past. You can also ask for referrals and contact previous clients to have a clear picture in mind.

 

Take cost estimations

It is important to take detailed cost estimation from your designer for your project. Ask what all will be done, when will it be completed, what kind of materials will be used and what will be the procedure of payments. Compare the estimations received from one designer to another to land up with the best option. Ask all possible queries arising in your head to avoid any sort of ambiguity later.