Lighting a garden entrance and front door: path, door, steps and house number

Short answer: Entrance lighting should let people walk safely from the gate to the house, find the door and house number easily at night and make the home look welcoming at first sight. Light the ground, not the eyes: low, downward-facing fittings along the path, two more prominent fittings placed symmetrically on both sides of the door, and every step clearly visible. The basic rules are 3000 K warm white, a protection rating suitable for outdoor use, a separate circuit, a 30 mA residual current device and control by a time switch or sensor. For this job we recommend ENGN Lento, a light we designed and manufacture ourselves.

This guide focuses on the entrance only; for the whole garden see garden lighting, and for the facade see facade lighting.

What should the light show at the entrance?

1. Garden gate and boundary: finding the gate from the street, seeing the handle and lock.
2. Path: the edge of the path, changes in paving, bends.
3. Steps and ramps: the edge of every step must be visible; most falls happen on steps.
4. Front door: the door, doorbell, lock and the face of the visitor.
5. House number: readable at night for couriers, guests and emergency services.

Not everything needs the same brightness. With a soft path and a slightly brighter door, the eye is naturally drawn to the door.

Glare-free light: downward fittings

The most common mistake is leaving the light source at eye level. Someone approaching the door looks into a bright point, their dark-adapted eyes are dazzled and they see the path less well. Instead:

• Choose fittings whose light source is hidden and which light downwards.
• Use low fittings along the path so the light skims the ground, not faces.
• Do not let light escape into the sky or into neighbours' windows.
• Use 3000 K warm white; cool white makes an entrance look like a car park. For colour temperature see lumens, watts and colour temperature.

ENGN Lento: a light we designed for entrances

Lento is a garden light designed and manufactured by ENGN. Named after the lintel above doors and windows, its rectangular frame adds a clean, architectural line to an entrance.

• Light: a Ø60 mm LED spot recessed into the top of the frame shines downwards; the inside of the frame and the ground in front are lit without glare.
• Power and colour: 10 W, 3000 K warm white, 220–240 V AC.
• Housing: electrostatic powder-coated sheet steel, anthracite (RAL 7016).
• Protection: IP54, protected against dust and splashing water from all directions.
• Lento 60: 600 × 250 × 80 mm, light opening 420 × 190 mm. For path edges and borders.
• Lento 100: 1000 × 250 × 80 mm, light opening 820 × 190 mm. For a more prominent point of light at entrances such as the garden gate and both sides of the front door.
• Mounting: screwed to the ground. Made to order, 2-year warranty.

Both sides of the door: symmetry

The door is the centre of the entrance. The same fitting on both sides, at the same distance from the frame and on the same line, makes the entrance look orderly and inviting.

• Two Lento 100 on the ground: they frame the door and stand like a sculptural object during the day.
• Wall lights: if you use wall lights on one or both sides, the light source should not dazzle, and the mounting height should be the same across the facade.
• If only one side is possible (wall, hinge side), light the lock and doorbell side.
• The same rule applies to a garden gate or gate pillars: the same light on both pillars.

Path and borders

• Line Lento 60 along one or both sides of the path. The spacing depends on the length of the path and the rhythm you want; choosing one spacing and keeping it along the whole path looks tidy.
• Put a fitting at bends, junctions and changes in paving.
• On a short path, one side is often enough.
• Since the inside and front of the frame are lit, turn the front of the fitting towards the path.

Steps and house number

• Steps: recessed step lights in the wall or a low, downward fitting beside the steps. The edge of every step must read clearly; leave no step in shadow.
• House number: it is read best with light falling on it from above or beside. Placing the number on the wall where the light falls is the simplest solution.

Protection rating and mounting

For fittings standing above ground and exposed to rain, IP54 protects against splashing water, which is why Lento can be used in open gardens and entrances. Fittings recessed into the ground and walked on need IP67. See IP ratings explained.

Lento is screwed to a solid base: concrete, stone or paving. In soil, a small concrete base under the fitting is the best solution. Plan the cable to come up underneath the fitting before mounting.

Controls: time switch and sensor

• Path and door lights can switch on at dusk and off at a set time at night, using a time switch or a dusk sensor in the panel.
• At the door and lock, a motion sensor turns the light fully on only when someone arrives late at night.
• A low path light that stays on and a sensor-controlled door light work well together.

Electrics: cable and RCD

• Entrance and garden lights go on their own breaker, separate from the house circuits.
• The circuit is protected by a 30 mA residual current device; never leave an outdoor circuit without it. See RCD types.
• Underground cable is laid in conduit with a warning tape above it; connections are made in waterproof junction boxes.
• The connection must be made by a qualified electrician; local rules apply.

In Bursa, ENGN offers entrance lighting design, product selection and installation for villas and residential sites.

• → ENGN Lento garden light
• → Garden lighting
• → Garden lighting guide
• → Facade lighting
• → Motion sensor lighting
• → Time switches