COURTESY LANDSCAPE LIGHTING ASSISTANCE Please read the below information BEFORE calling us as we are NOT Licensed Electricians (which immediately prohibits us by law to provide this kind of information). We are also NOT Installers and we are NOT at your job's actual location so it is impossible to give you realistic and accurate information. We apologize, but in all honesty, any company that offers you this sort of information over the phone without being on the actual job and knowing every single detail of your job and have actually installed the product, is giving you wrong information in order to get you to buy their product. We, however, prefer to take the honest route. Please also understand that by not hiring personel that can offer this advice, it helps us to obviously keep the costs down of our transformers, which in the long run will save you time and money. Another thing to remember is that most licensed electrical contractors will come out to your property and give you a free estimate or may charge you a small fee by helping you determine what type of transformer and cable you need to purchase from our website. Simply have them come over to your property, show them what type of lighting you want done, and then show them our website where they will be able to help you determine what you need to purchase. We have found that most electrical contractors are very fair and professional, both cost-wise and quality-wise, and who knows, you may hit it off and actually hire them to do the entire job for you! (of course, after you buy the lighting from us!) In the meantime, please refer to the courtesy information we provided below. What is a Multi-Tap Transformer? We carry a series of transformers that offers a "tap" range of 12-22 volt taps. The difference between our Multi-Tap Transformers and your typical 12 Volt Only Transformer, are the additional Volt Taps offered. The reason for the extra volt taps is to help eliminate voltage drop (see below explanation of voltage drop) by allowing you to access higher volts from the same transformer which should help regulate the light output/voltage to the lights on a run that experience voltage drop or in other words, show a weaker light output. Generally, the fixtures that will show the weaker light output (experiencing voltage drop) are the fixtures closer to the end of a run. Should you experience this voltage drop problem, all you need to do is simply switch taps. The way to switch to access the higher volt taps is easy! Easily remove the cable connected to the 12v Access Port's Voltage Tap, and connect it to the next highest Access Port's Voltage Tap in-line until you find the right access port/voltage that will correct your voltage drop problem. As an example, if you go from the 12V access port to the 13V access port, and you are still experiencing the problem, then you will simply need to try the next highest access port in line which would be the 14 Volt Access Port, and continue accessing the available access ports on your multi-tap transformer until you have reduced or corrected the problem. Please remember that before you purchase your multi-tap transformer, make sure you purchase the correct unit as we do NOT accept returns on transformers unless defective and under warranty. We have provided a chart below to help you avoid purchasing the wrong transformer for your application, but we agian ask that you read the disclosure at the bottom of the page and do NOT purchase your transformer solely based on the below chart, based on the fact that every application will vary, we can NOT endorse, guarantee or are responsible for the below chart and what you purchase. It is ONLY provided as a courtesy to help get you started. You should confirm all this information with an On-Site Licensed Electrical Contractor. What is Voltage Drop? As electrical energy passes along a wire, it loses a little "electrical pressure" or voltage the further that it travels, meaning your voltage output will decrease as the distance increases from the transformer. This is called Voltage Drop. Lamp life, light output, and color temperature are affected by voltage as it is measured at the fixture. The values for a given lamp are based on a voltage measured at the lamp of 12 volts (11.8 volts for some models). Operating the bulb at any other voltage will change those values. The factors that affect voltage drop are the load (wattage), the length of the wiring run, the voltage at the transformer, and the size of the landscape cable. Use the chart below to assist you in determining the maxiumum run from your transformer at a specific load (wattage), with a specific cable type, and at a specific voltage that you can use without experiencing any noticeable voltage drop. However, it is recommended to test the voltage at every light. The optimum range is 10.6 to 11.6 volts per fixture. We also highly recommend purchasing an inexpensive voltage tester. We have seen units sold from anywhere from $5 - $10. What is the Optimum Voltage for a landscape lighting system? Every volt is important on a low voltage system. The optimum voltage is debatable, but we prefer 11.6 volts. At this point you only lose a small percentage of light output but gain 200% in lamp life. Obviously, you will not have any concerns of voltage drop when working with a 120 Volt System. However, 120 Volt Systems are not as common or as popular for landscape lighting and they are not nearly as safe or efficient. They also do NOT offer you the same variety on bulbs, therefore limiting your ability to do certain spot lighting, flood lighting, color, or to try to achieve a specific aesthetic theme. This is why using 12 Volt for your landscape lighting is the superior choice. How do you access Multi-Volt Tap Transformer Ports? The maximum circuit a transformer can have is 300 Watts per UL Standards. Therefore, a 300 Watt Transformer will only have 1 each 300 Watt Circuit; a 600 Watt Transformer will have 2 each 300 Watt Circuits, a 900 Watt Transformer will have 3 each 300 Watt Circuits, etc. So being that a 900 Watt Transformer will have 3 each 300 Watt Circuits, it will then have 3 each 300 Watt "Common" Access Ports but still only one set of Multi-Volt Tap access ports (ie. 12-22v taps depending on the transformer). The reason for 1 set of Multi-Volt Tap Access Ports is because they can be shared with each common. Each port is large enough to accomodate up to 6 wires. As an Example: Using the same 900 Watt Transformer above, and say you have up to 900 watts of fixtures: 1) You would first have to split your layout into at least 3 separte runs, each run must be under 300 watts. 2) With the First run, you would input 1 wire into the first Common Access Port and the second wire into whichever Multi-Volt Tap Access Port you need for this run. If this run is going to be split off to different locations, then we suggest using our Outdoor Splice Containment Hub (click for details). This hub will allow you to take the 1 wire you input into the common and split it off into different locations. Keep in mind, this same entire run must stay under 300 watts. 3) With the Second run, you would input 1 wire into the second Common Access Port and the second wire into the same Multi-Volt Tap Access Port as the first run or a different Multi-Volt Tap Access Port (depending on what volt tap you may need for that run). 4) With the Third run, you would input 1 wire into the third Common Access Port and the second wire into the same Multi-Volt Tap Access Port as the first or second run or a different Multi-Volt Tap Access Port (depending on what volt tap you may need for that run). REMINDER: You can always share the Multi-Volt Tap Access Ports as per the above example. The only thing that can NOT be shared are the "Common" Access Ports. What kind of Cable should I use? That's easy! The below chart, or preferably, a licensed electrical contractor will help you make that decision. Do your Landscape Lights come with the same connectors that are found on the fixtures at the home centers? Absolutely Not! We do NOT offer any type of Do It Yourself "connectors" on our units. Our units simply have the bare leads coming out of them. Those quick "connectors" are commonly found on lower end fixtures that home centers and other websites are selling. These "quick connectors" are designed for the do-it-yourself market and never last long without causing a bad connection and can't accommodate large size cables. Our fixtures are commercial grade. Most good landscape contractors will not use the quick "connectors" for fear of having a bad connection from moisture that will always enter. They are also easily disconnected from any type of contact, i.e. gardener, pets, etc. A good contractor will simply use wire nuts in conjunction with silicon or our 3M splice kits if you really want the job done correct. Before reviewing the below guide, we suggest first reading the above explanation on Multi-Tap Transformers and Voltage Drop which will help you understand why a multi-tap transformer may or may not be necessary for your application. Below Chart is for 12-22 Volt Multi Tap Transformers The numbers below in blue are the maximum amount of feet recommended per single run without losing noticeable voltage drop. For example: If you are running a 12 gauge cable on the 22 Volt Tap with a 225 Watt load, the maximum length your run should be is 187 feet. With any longer of a run, you may experience a noticeable voltage drop. Cable Type 100 - 149 Watts 150 - 199 Watts 200 - 249 Watts 250 - 300 Watts 12 Volt Tap 12 gauge 15 foot max run 10 foot max run 8 foot max run N/A 10 gauge 24 foot max run 16 foot max run 12 foot max run 10 foot max run 13 Volt Tap 12 gauge 51 foot max run 34 foot max run 25 foot max run N/A 10 gauge 81 foot max run 54 foot max run 41 foot max run 32 foot max run 14 Volt Tap 12 gauge 87 foot max run 58 foot max run 43 foot max run N/A 10 gauge 138 foot max run 92 foot max run 69 foot max run 55 foot max run 15 Volt Tap 12 gauge 123 foot max run 82 foot max run 61 foot max run N/A 10 gauge 195 foot max run 130 foot max run 98 foot max run 78 foot max run 16 Volt Tap 12 gauge 159 foot max run 106 foot max run 79 foot max run N/A 10 gauge 252 foot max run 168 foot max run 127 foot max run 101 foot max run 17 Volt Tap 12 gauge 194 foot max run 130 foot max run 97 foot max run N/A 10 gauge 309 foot max run 206 foot max run 155 foot max run 124 foot max run 18 Volt Tap 12 gauge 230 foot max run 154 foot max run 115 foot max run N/A 10 gauge 366 foot max run 244 foot max run 184 foot max run 147 foot max run 19 Volt Tap 12 gauge 266 foot max run 178 foot max run 133 foot max run N/A 10 gauge 423 foot max run 282 foot max run 212 foot max run 170 foot max run 20 Volt Tap 12 gauge 302 foot max run 201 foot max run 151 foot max run N/A 10 gauge 480 foot max run 320 foot max run 240 foot max run 192 foot max run 21 Volt Tap 12 gauge 338 foot max run 225 foot max run 169 foot max run N/A 10 gauge 537 foot max run 358 foot max run 268 foot max run 215 foot max run 22 Volt Tap 12 gauge 374 foot max run 249 foot max run 187 foot max run N/A 10 gauge 595 foot max run 396 foot max run 297 foot max run 238 foot max run N/A = This Cable Not Recommended for this length of run IMPORTANT NOTE All of the above information is provided to you simply as a courtesy. We are not licensed contractors and are NOT on your job site, therefore we do NOT endorse, recommend or guarantee any of the above information in any manner. Therefore, we are NOT responsible for the type of cable and transformer(s) you purchase or use. We highly recommend reviewing our Return Policy on Transformers and consulting with a licensed electrical contractor before purchasing your lighting. We can NOT be held liable for any use or misuse of the information above. Click Here for our Landscape Lighting Accessories, ie. Transformers, Cable, etc. If you still feel the need to contact us regarding any technical support for your landscape lighting, please click here first. « Click Here to Go Back

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