Count back at least three working days from install day. That is the minimum notice Tennessee 811 needs before anyone digs, hand trenches included. The rest of landscape lighting installation preparation falls to you: flag the irrigation and private wiring 811 won’t mark, open the gates, keep the dog in, and know where the transformer will plug in.
What should I settle at the design walk?
Two questions are easier to settle while Phil walks the property at dusk than on install day. Both shape the plan behind a landscape lighting installation, so bring them up early. If the walk isn’t on the calendar yet, book the free design walk first.
Where the transformer will plug in
Every low-voltage system starts at a transformer, and the transformer needs power, usually from an outdoor outlet on the house wall. Show where you’d be happy to see the transformer box mounted, and say so if there’s no outdoor receptacle anywhere near that spot. Outdoor outlets are normally GFCI-protected, and a tripped GFCI is the first thing to check if a whole run ever goes dark. If the answer turns out to be a new circuit or anything that touches your electrical panel, that part is electrical work and sits outside a standard low-voltage install. Our outdoor lighting installation page sets out which parts need an electrician and which don’t.
New sod or planting on the calendar
If sod, a new bed or a round of planting is booked within a few weeks of the lighting, mention it at the walk. Which goes first matters less than deciding it ahead of time. Lighting first means the trench runs through ground with nothing new in it to protect. Planting first means fixtures get set against beds in their finished shape, and that counts for more on a design where hardscape lighting is worked into walls, steps and planted borders. The version to avoid is the improvised one, with a crew trenching around sod that went down the week before.
What will Tennessee 811 mark, and what won’t it?
Tennessee 811 covers lines its member utilities installed or maintain, and not every utility is a member. According to the Tennessee 811 FAQ, the law applies to homeowners and small projects, hand digging included, and requires at least three working days’ notice (72 hours, not counting weekends or holidays). You can give up to ten. The service is free.
Call 811 or 800-351-1111, or file a ticket online. A ticket is valid for 15 calendar days after the legal start date on it, so one placed too early can lapse before the crew arrives.
What it leaves out matters more on a lighting job. Private lines are the property owner’s to locate, either yourself or through a private locator, and Tennessee 811 names irrigation systems, propane lines and secondary electric lines to outbuildings among them. Utilities aren’t required to give depth with their marks either, and the depth of a line can change over time. Tennessee 811 treats the width of a marked line plus two feet on each side as a zone where digging has to be done by hand. So a ticket tells you where the gas main is. It tells you nothing about the drip line under your front bed.
What do I need to flag myself?
Everything on that second list. Walk the yard with a bag of marking flags or a can of landscape paint and mark irrigation, any low-voltage wire you or a previous owner ran, and any propane line or power feed to a shed or pool house.
Start with irrigation: heads and drip line sit shallow, and a spade finds them easily. Low-voltage wire might be an invisible pet fence, old lighting cable or speaker wire out to a patio. A rough line the crew can see beats an exact one nobody marked, and the original irrigation drawing, if you still have it, will narrow things down.
An established yard hides more of this than new construction, and every one you flag is one the crew doesn’t have to find with a shovel.
What about gates and the dog?
Leave side gates unlocked and mention any that latch or lock on their own. If a dog uses the yard, keep it inside or penned elsewhere for the day. An open trench, loose cable and strangers carrying tools make a bad mix for a curious dog and a worse one for a protective dog.
What does the yard look like afterward, and when do I see it lit?
Worked on, for a while. Low-voltage cable goes in a narrow, shallow trench, so expect thin lines of disturbed turf or soil where the runs went in, flattened mulch in the beds and footprints around each fixture. A rake settles most beds. It’s a much smaller disturbance than a utility dig, but you’ll see it.
The last step waits for dark, because aim can’t be judged in daylight. Before the crew leaves, Phil walks the property with you, tests every circuit and adjusts any fixture whose aim or output isn’t right. That walkthrough closes out our three-step process, and it’s your chance to raise anything while everyone is still on site.
Still weighing whether to hire it out? Our post on DIY landscape lighting installation covers where kit installs tend to go wrong, and the guide to working with a landscape lighting designer covers the layout decisions that come first.
Common questions
Will installation damage my lawn or garden beds?
There will be visible disturbance for a while. Low-voltage cable runs in a narrow, shallow trench, so expect thin lines of disturbed turf or soil along each run, flattened mulch in the beds and footprints near the fixtures. A rake settles most beds. Nothing gets dug as wide or as deep as a utility trench.
Do I need to request a utility locate before landscape lighting goes in?
Yes. Tennessee 811’s rules cover homeowners and small projects, hand digging included, and require at least three working days’ notice before digging starts. The service is free: dial 811 or 800-351-1111, or file online. A ticket stays valid for 15 calendar days after its legal start date.
It covers member utilities only, so irrigation, propane and private electric lines to outbuildings still need marking by you or a private locator.
What should I mark in the yard before the crew arrives?
Mark the private lines Tennessee 811 won’t locate: irrigation heads and drip line, invisible pet fence wire, old low-voltage lighting or speaker cable, and any propane line or private power feed to an outbuilding. Marking flags or landscape paint is enough. Rough is fine. With the 811 marks alongside, everything you know about is on the ground before digging starts.
Can lighting go in before new sod or planting?
Yes, and planting first works too. Lighting first spares new plantings from the trench. Planting first lets fixtures be set against finished beds. The trouble comes from trenching through sod laid days earlier without a plan. If both jobs fall close together, mention the planting date when you book so the order is settled in advance.
