In short: outdoor lighting in Perth has to survive sun, rain and, near the coast, salt air. Get fittings with the right IP rating (IP44 under cover, IP65 or better exposed), use marine-grade stainless within a few kilometres of the beach, and put sensor lights where they cover the actual approach to the house, not just the front door. Anything wired into the house supply is licensed electrician work. Low-voltage plug-in garden kits are fine to do yourself.
Outdoor and security lighting installation is a job that gets done badly a lot, usually by a fitting from the hardware store screwed to a wall in the wrong spot. Here's what makes the difference.
Security lighting: where it goes matters more than how bright it is
A sensor light is only useful if it covers the way someone actually approaches the house. Before you pick fittings, walk the block at night and look at:
- The side gate and the path along the side of the house. This is the route most break-ins use, not the front door.
- The back patio and the rear sliding doors.
- The driveway and the bins area, because that's where you're fumbling with keys in the dark.
- Dark corners where a fence meets the house.
A sensor light on the front porch, which is where most people put the only one, covers the spot least likely to have a problem.
Good sensor lights let you set the range, the sensitivity and how long they stay on. Set them so the neighbour's cat doesn't trigger them all night. Wiring them into the house supply means no batteries to change and no solar panel that stops working in winter.
Patio, garden and feature lighting
This is where outdoor lighting earns its keep for how the house feels, not just security. The common jobs:
- Weatherproof downlights or wall lights on the patio or alfresco, on a dimmer, on their own switch.
- Step and path lights so nobody goes over on the way to the pool or the shed.
- Garden spotlights on trees or a feature wall.
- Power points on the patio, so the outdoor kitchen and the Christmas lights aren't running off an extension lead through a window.
Low-voltage (12 V) garden kits that plug into an outdoor power point are fine to do yourself. Anything connected to the fixed 240 V wiring, including an outdoor power point, a wall light or a switch, must be done by a licensed electrical contractor in WA.
What IP rating means and why Perth homes need to care
IP stands for ingress protection, and the two digits tell you how sealed a fitting is against dust and water:
- IP44 is fine under a covered patio where rain doesn't reach it.
- IP65 or higher is what you want on an exposed wall, a fence or in a garden bed, because it takes direct rain and hosing.
- Anything near a pool or spa has its own rules about distance from the water, and we'll sort that on site.
The Perth-specific issue is salt. In Scarborough, Trigg, City Beach, Hillarys and Mullaloo, salt air corrodes standard fittings in a couple of years. Cheap "stainless" fittings rust first at the screws. Marine-grade (316) stainless or good quality powder-coated aluminium lasts. It costs more up front and far less over ten years.
What outdoor lighting installation costs in Perth
Price depends on the number of fittings, how far the cable has to run from the nearest circuit, whether it's a rendered wall or brick, and whether a new circuit is needed at the switchboard.
- Supply and install a sensor light: from $385 inc GST.
- Weatherproof outdoor power point: $330 inc GST.
- Patio or alfresco downlights: same per-light rates as indoor, $132 inc GST each for the first four new fittings and $115.50 inc GST after that, plus the switch and dimmer.
We give a fixed price before we start. If the switchboard has no spare capacity for a new outdoor circuit, we'll tell you that at the quote, not on the day.
Strata and common areas
For strata buildings, car parks and common walkways, the lighting rules are stricter and there's usually a body corporate involved. That work sits under our Commercial Electrician Perth service.
Nexus Electrical Co | Lighting Installation Perth
Nexus Electrical Co is a licensed and insured electrician Perth homeowners have trusted for 6000+ jobs, based in Balcatta and covering the coastal and northern suburbs. Outdoor and security lighting is part of our Residential Electrician Perth service. Fixed price before we start, lifetime workmanship warranty, 100+ Google 5-star reviews. Call (08) 9245 1362.
