A search for landscape lighting companies near me returns a page of names that look much alike. What separates them is what each will put in writing and whether anyone walks your yard after dark: proof of insurance, an itemized quote, warranty terms, and a straight answer on who services the system in three years.
Designer or installer?
Start with the basic split. Some companies design a lighting plan for your property. Others install fixtures to a plan somebody else drew, or to a standard package that goes in the same way on every house. Neither is dishonest, but an install-only price and a design-and-install price aren’t the same product, so find out which one you’re being quoted before the numbers arrive.
Then ask who does the design, and what they did before lighting. At Gemmell that’s Phil Gemmell: 15 years in the industry, more than a decade of it designing and building outdoor spaces before he specialized in lighting. If you want outdoor lighting near you designed, installed and later serviced by the same people, settle this question first.
Building new or halfway through a renovation? Our piece on when to bring in a landscape lighting designer covers the timing on a build.
Franchise or independent
Some installers run a territory for a national brand. Others are local businesses with no parent company. You won’t see much difference on install day. It shows up later. A franchise can be tied to its own brand’s fixtures and controls, and if the territory changes hands or closes, finding someone willing to work on that system can take longer than it should.
We’re independent, not a franchise dealer. On the permanent roofline side we service any brand, including Trimlight, JellyFish and Gemstone systems other companies installed. Whoever you’re weighing up, ask two things: will they work on equipment they didn’t install, and what happens to your system if they stop covering your area?
Insurance, in writing
A yes on the phone isn’t proof. Ask for proof of insurance and an itemized written quote before you sign. The job means buried cable across your yard and a transformer connected to your home’s power, and that isn’t work to hand to a crew you can’t check.
We’re insured, and you get a written proposal with the price on it before any work starts, so you can check everything before you commit. You can read more about how Gemmell Outdoor Lighting is insured and run.
If a company gets vague when you ask for this in writing, you’ve learned something before spending a dollar.
Do they come out after dark?
A quote written in daylight is written for a product that only works at night. At dusk you can see how a stone facade catches shadow, where a tree canopy actually spreads over the lawn, and which windows, yours or a neighbor’s, would catch glare from a badly aimed fixture. Daylight photos and a satellite view show none of that.
Phil walks every property himself, at dusk when possible. The design walk is free and comes with no obligation, and walks are usually booked within the week. If a company prices your yard from photos without ever seeing it in low light, ask them why.
The end of the job deserves the same attention. On our final walkthrough, Phil tests every circuit and adjusts anything that isn’t exactly right. Ask the other companies what their final check involves, and whether anyone looks at the system lit before they call it finished.
What the quote should name
A quote you can compare names the fixture grade and count, the transformer, the zones and the warranty terms. A single total with nothing underneath can’t be held up against a second quote, and it leaves you guessing when something changes on site.
Fixture grade is the line most people skim past. We spec solid brass and copper over painted aluminum, because Middle Tennessee humidity and freeze-thaw cycles punish any coating, and every system we design runs 2700 to 3000K. Another company may choose differently. What matters is that the quote says what the fixtures are made of, so you know whether two prices describe the same thing.
Then check the rate. Our own rate is $250 to $350 per installed fixture. For comparison, national cost guides put the market range at roughly $150 to $350 per professionally installed fixture once labor, wire and the transformer share are counted, and at $2,000 to $6,000 for most homes’ projects. A per-fixture price far outside that national band is worth a question, whichever direction it misses in. Our guide to what outdoor lighting costs in Nashville explains the rate, and these worked cost examples for lighting a yard show how the fixture count drives the total.
Who answers the phone in year three?
Low-voltage systems tend to fail in ordinary ways. The faults we see most are failed transformers, corroded connections, cut cable, water ingress and fixtures at end of life. None of that is exotic, and every one of them needs someone who’ll come out, test the system and find the fault.
So ask who services what they install, and on what terms. Our workmanship warranty covers the installation: the wiring, connections, fixture mounting and transformer programming. Whoever you hire, get the term and the exclusions in writing, and ask what a service call looks like once the warranty runs out. Expect a repair to be quoted after the system is tested. That’s how we handle it, because nobody can price a fix before they’ve found the fault.
References help here, if they’re old enough. Ask to speak with a customer whose system has been in the ground a few years, not one installed last month.
We cover homes within about 30 minutes of Franklin, and our service areas page lists the towns. The same questions apply to anyone offering landscape lighting across Greater Nashville, us included.
Common questions
Should I choose a franchise or an independent lighting company?
Either can do good work, so decide on servicing rather than the label. A franchise can be tied to its own brand’s equipment, while an independent company that works on many brands can often maintain whatever is already in your yard, whoever installed it.
Before you sign, ask each company whether it services systems it didn’t install and what happens if it leaves your area.
What should a landscape lighting warranty cover in writing?
A workmanship warranty should name what it covers, typically the wiring, connections, fixture mounting and transformer programming, and state how long it lasts. A verbal promise isn’t a warranty. Get the term and the exclusions on paper before you sign, and confirm who honors the warranty if the crew that installed your system isn’t the one you call later.
Is it a red flag if a company won’t visit after dark?
It’s worth asking why, because a company that quotes only from daylight photos or a satellite view is designing without seeing the thing it’s designing for, even if its fixtures are good. A visit at dusk shows how a facade, a tree canopy or a walkway actually reads once the light drops.
That is the only condition the finished system runs in.
How many quotes should I get for landscape lighting?
Enough to compare scope, not just totals. Two or three written quotes, lined up against the same checklist, usually show whether a low number is missing something a higher one includes. Compare what each quote names first (fixture grade and count, transformer, zones and warranty terms), then compare what each one charges.
