Top 26 Outdoor Solar Swimming Pool Lighting Ideas (2024)
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Top 26 Outdoor Solar Swimming Pool Lighting Ideas (2024)
By Michael Zhang || Updated on 18th August 2024
Michael Zhang is a seasoned professional with 15 years of experience in the solar lights industry. Throughout his career, he has been actively involved in product design and developing, gaining valuable expertise and insight into the industry. Known for his dedication and professionalism, Michael has contributed significantly to the growth and success of various solar lights projects. His extensive knowledge and hands-on experience make him a trusted authority in the field, and he continues to innovate and excel in his role.
Pool lighting is often overlooked in outdoor lighting, but outdoor pool lighting plays a vital role in enhancing the beauty and functionality of your pool area. Whether you’re hosting a nighttime party or enjoying a quiet nighttime swim, the right lighting can transform your pool into a stunning centerpiece for your outdoor space.
To light up your pool, start by dividing it into different zones, then combine them with the environment and your personal preferences, choosing decorative fixtures or lighting fixtures according to the needs, but be careful to take into account factors such as the size of the pool, the IP rating and the brightness.
Here I bring you 26 brilliant ways to get creative with your pool lighting. You’ll also find a complete guide to choosing the ideal fixtures for your pool. So, let’s get started!
Table of Contents
Best Swimming Pool Lighting Ideas
Different locations of the pool require different lighting solutions, so around the pool, we are divided into different zones according to different lighting needs (Zone 1-8), we will discuss the appropriate lighting concepts according to the different zones respectively.
Pool Entry Steps Lighting
The entrance steps to the pool are a frequently used area of the pool and it is vital to ensure that this area is adequately illuminated at night for safety reasons, taking particular care not to have slips and falls caused by poor visibility at night.
When installing solar lighting, care needs to be taken to ensure that the light source adequately covers every corner of the steps to avoid shadows or dark areas. At the same time, it is important to choose solar luminaires that are waterproof and weatherproof to ensure their stable operation in all weather conditions.
1.Wooden Staircase
The wooden staircase connects the deck and the pool, adding a natural and cozy atmosphere to the outdoor space. Installing compact solar step lights on each step with a soft warm light not only beautifies the overall style of the staircase, but also provides safety for nighttime use. This fixture complements the wood with a warm and soft light, creating a cozy and pleasant environment. Here, we recommend SFL-17 for you.
2.White Plastic Stairs
A set of white plastic stairs connects the lawn to a separate small pool, and the fresh, minimalist design blends perfectly with the outdoor environment. The vertical dividers on the stairs are perfect for installing some solar fence lights, either with a soft warm light or a bright white light, which will add beauty and practicality to the whole space.
It is especially important to choose solar fence lights with ties, as this will securely fix them to the plastic stairs without damaging the surface, keeping the staircase tidy and beautiful.
3. Stone Steps
These stone steps, which are directly connected to the edge of the pool, display a natural and rustic aesthetic that is both strong and durable, allowing people to walk directly into the pool via the staircase.
As the steps are connected to the pool, the solar light chosen must have excellent water resistance to ensure long term stable operation in wet environments. IP68 rated solar lights are particularly recommended.
Pool Railing Lighting
Brightly illuminated handrails can prevent slips and other potential safety hazards when using a pool at night, especially in wet environments, so decorating and illuminating handrails with solar lights provides added convenience for everyone.
4.Metal Handrails
The difference between this staircase and the previous stone staircase is that it is equipped with two sturdy metal handrails, which obviously increase the safety of use, especially in slippery conditions.
These metal handrails not only provide additional support, but also offer more options for the installation of the solar lights, which you can cleverly tie to the metal handrails.
5.White Plastic Handrail
This type of staircase is placed directly inside the pool, with the handrail positioned closer to the water surface, providing easy access for pool users.
However, due to the handrail’s proximity to the water, special attention must be paid to its waterproofing properties when choosing to place solar lights on the handrail. Make sure to use a waterproof solar light with an IP68 rating that will be able to keep functioning properly in an environment of moisture and occasional splashing.
Pool Surface Lighting
Decorating the surface of your swimming pool with solar lights not only enhances the overall aesthetics, but also significantly increases the safety of swimming at night.
The soft light creates a sparkling effect on the surface of the water, creating a unique atmosphere that makes the pool even more captivating and vibrant at night.
6.Big Pool Surface
This type of pool takes up almost the entire area of the front yard and apart from being a place for swimming, it is also undoubtedly a bright spot in the front yard. Therefore, it is especially important to use solar lights to decorate the pool.
Whether it’s a quiet time at night or a gathering with family and friends, the solar light accent will make the pool the center of attention, further enhancing the beauty and overall value of the front yard.
7.Peaceful Pool Surface
This type of pool is located in the front or backyard lounge area and provides an ideal place to relax and unwind from a busy life. Here, peaceful, quiet and soft lighting can create a calm atmosphere for people to enjoy life after work.
Therefore, when choosing solar lights, you can prioritize those with soft light effects, which not only provide just the right amount of illumination for the pool and the surrounding area, but also enhance the overall sense of comfort, creating a truly tranquil lounge space.
8.Small Pool And Big Pool Surface
This pool is cleverly divided into two parts, with the larger pool ringing the smaller pool in the center, presenting a unique design style. It can be guessed that the large pool is designed for adults, while the small pool is exclusively available for children. As a result, the two have different needs in terms of decorative style.
The small pool can be decorated with more colorful solar lights to add a childish and joyful atmosphere that will attract the attention of children. Large pools, on the other hand, can opt for solar lights with a color-tuning function, which can add a touch of elegance and romance to the night swimming experience by changing to different colors, while also creating the right atmosphere for different occasions. Here, we recommend SFL-18 for you.
9.Wooden Freestanding Pool Surface
This freestanding pool is enclosed in a circle by wood, perfectly creating an ideal place for kids to play and splash around in the summer. Its simple and vintage overall style complements the natural wood material, showing a chic charm.
Placing some solar lights that can emit colorful lights on the surface of the pool not only adds a colorful visual effect to the pool, but also adds fun to the children’s play at night. The colorful lights create a childlike atmosphere and make the entire pool area more charming and lively at night.
Pool Deck Lighting
Pool decks are often a prime location for gathering, relaxing and entertaining, and the right lighting can create a pleasant atmosphere for these activities. With carefully placed solar lights, it is possible to create a welcoming lighting effect on the deck, making the pool area more attractive at night, while ensuring safety from potential falls and collision risks.
10. Solid Color Pool Deck
This solid color pool deck gives the front yard an elegant and secluded atmosphere. To complement this elegant setting, when choosing solar lights, it is recommended to use monochromatic lighting, especially with a warm 3000K light.
The warm light not only enhances the coziness of the front yard, but also blends well with the solid color design of the deck, creating a serene and elegant nighttime landscape.
11.Colorful Pool Deck
This colorful pool deck brings a more lively and lovely atmosphere to the front yard, which is very different from the serious style of the solid color deck. To further enhance this vibrant environment, you can choose some adjustable solar lights that can switch different light colors.
By adjusting the lighting effects according to different needs, you can create the right atmosphere in various occasions, whether it is a party, family gathering or quiet evening time, it can add rich color and fun to the front yard.
12.Dark Vintage Log Pool Deck
This dark vintage log pool deck is consistent with the color of the corridor, showing a natural and harmonious beauty. In order to maintain the consistency of the lighting tone of the entire garden.
It is recommended to choose lamps with warm light tones when choosing solar lights. Warm light can complement the vintage style of dark wood, adding a warm and harmonious atmosphere to the garden while maintaining the overall style of the space.
13.Light Grey Stone Deck
This light grey stone deck brings a simple and atmospheric style to the entire pool area. In order to match the modern design of the deck, when choosing solar lights for decoration, you can consider using some single-color solar lights.
The soft light provided by the single-color lamps can blend with the fresh style of the light grey deck, further enhancing the simple beauty of the overall space. This not only maintains the modern feel of the environment, but also adds moderate lighting to the pool area at night, making the entire area more elegant and harmonious.
14.Concrete Swimming Pool
This dark grey concrete deck gives the entire pool a raw and wild style, showing a natural and rugged beauty. To match this unique style, when choosing solar lights, consider using lamps with warm or white light. Warm light can add a touch of warmth and make the environment more comfortable, while white light provides clear and bright lighting, highlighting the modern feel of the concrete deck.
Pool Edge Lighting
The edge of the pool is often the main area for users to enter and exit the pool. Proper lighting can effectively prevent accidents such as slips and collisions and ensure the safety of users. In addition, the soft light provided by solar lights can create a charming night atmosphere, making the edge of the pool particularly eye-catching at night.
15. Stacked Stones Edge
This pool edge made of stacked stones gives the pool a primitive style, making it closer to the rustic beauty of nature. To further enhance this retro atmosphere, you can choose some retro-style solar lights to embellish it.
These lamps not only complement the rough texture of the stone edge, but also add a touch of classic charm to the pool area. With its unique appearance and warm light effect, the retro-style solar lights perfectly combine the primitive style with modern lighting technology, adding a unique visual effect and charming night view to the pool edge.
16.Grey Cement Pool Edge
This light grey cement pool edge is smooth and simple, perfectly suited to modern design. To match its clean look, choose some modern solar lights to decorate it. The simple shape and bright light effect of these lights will complement the simple beauty of the cement edge and enhance the overall visual effect.
17. Light Grey Cement Soil Edge
This solar deck, made of a mixture of light grey cement soil and small stones, presents a quiet and elegant atmosphere that blends perfectly with the natural environment. In order to maintain this elegant style and further enhance the overall visual effect, some small solar lights can be selected for embellishment.
These lamps are exquisitely designed to not only blend in cleverly with the stone pavement, but also provide soft and even lighting for the deck area at night. The small-size lamps will not break the tranquil beauty of the deck, but add a charming touch to the entire space with their detailed light effects and exquisite appearance.
18.Yellow and Brown Stones Edge
This solar deck made of yellow and brown stones presents a lively color combination while also highlighting the natural charm of the primitive style. The diverse tones of the stones not only add a rich visual layering to the deck, but also inject a vivid atmosphere into the entire space.
The primitive style design makes the deck appear more rustic and natural, blending harmoniously with the surrounding environment. In this context, choosing solar lights that coordinate with the color of the stone can further enhance the vitality and style of the deck, making the light and shadow effects at night complement the beauty of the day.
Pool Fountain Lighting
Solar lights provide beautiful lighting for fountains, which can create charming light and shadow effects in the water flow, making the fountain more attractive and dynamic at night. By carefully placing solar lights, you can not only highlight the unique design of the fountain, but also create a relaxing and pleasant night landscape, adding a quiet and charming beauty to your pool area.
19.Bowl-haped Fountain
This colorful fountain is placed in a small bowl-shaped pool, with colorful lights emitting from the inside of the pool. The reflection of the lights makes the water surface of the pool present a gorgeous colorful effect, creating a dreamy visual effect.
The colorful light and shadow of the fountain interweave on the water surface, forming a unique light and shadow landscape, making the entire area look particularly charming and vivid at night. This colorful effect not only adds a sense of movement to the fountain, but also brings a pleasant atmosphere to the entire space, becoming a highlight in the night landscape.
20.Fountain is Located Inside the Pool
This type of fountain is located inside the pool, adding a dynamic beauty to the water surface. To further enhance the visual effect of the fountain, some solar lights that can float on the water can be placed around the fountain.
These lamps not only provide soft lighting at night, but also complement the water splashes of the fountain to create a charming light and shadow effect. The floating solar lights add interest to the simple water splashes, making the entire pool area more lively and charming.
21.Bottom Fountain
This fountain is also located inside the pool, and its unique feature is that the light spreads upward from the bottom of the water surface, creating a unique light and shadow effect. To match this lighting design, solar lights can be placed at the bottom of the pool. These bottom lights will project light upwards, creating a beautiful halo effect, making the fountain’s water splashes more charming and dynamic at night.
Pool Lawn Lighting
It is of great significance to use solar lights to decorate the lawn around the swimming pool. It not only improves the beauty of the overall environment, but also enhances the functionality of the area. Proper lighting around the lawn can provide enough light for activities at night, ensuring safety and avoiding accidents.
22. Lawn Surrounds the Swimming Pool
This kind of lawn surrounds the swimming pool, showing the concept of returning to nature, giving the whole environment a tranquil and harmonious atmosphere. In order to further enhance this natural style, we can use some lawn lights to embellish the lawn. These lawn lights can not only provide soft lighting for the surrounding green space, but also outline beautiful light and shadow effects at night, highlighting the natural beauty of the lawn.
23.Stone Path Lawn
Unlike a pure lawn, the following design adds a stone path to the lawn for easy walking and passage. In order to enhance the functionality and beauty of the stone path while using solar energy to decorate the lawn, some lamps can be placed on the path for lighting.
These lamps will provide soft and even light for the stone path, making it safer to walk at night, while also adding a warm glow to the lawn area. By lighting up the stone path in the middle, it not only highlights its unique design, but also creates a charming and practical night view for the entire environment.
Pool Wall Lighting
By strategically placing solar lights on the wall, a warm light and shadow effect can be created, enhancing the layering and visual appeal of the space, ensuring that the pool area is both safe and charming at night.
24.Transparent Glass Wall
This kind of pool is surrounded by transparent glass, turning the originally open pool into an area open at fixed times, thus effectively avoiding the risk of children entering the pool by mistake. In order to add beauty to this glass fence and safety at night, we can use some solar lights for decoration.
When choosing lamps, it is necessary to pay attention to the fact that glass cannot be punched, so it is recommended to use solar lights with adhesive, suction cup or magnetic suction function. These lamps can be firmly attached to the glass surface without drilling holes, and can easily achieve decoration and lighting effects.
25.Colorful Stones Wall
This pool resembles an outdoor open pool with surrounding walls made of colorful stones that add nature and richness to the environment. To provide flexible lighting for these walls, we can choose from a number of camping lights that can be placed anywhere and moved freely. These fixtures make it easy to light up the walls and highlight the unique textures and colors of the stones, while making it easy to remove the camping lights when lighting is not needed.
26.Surrounding Walls
This pool is located in an outdoor corner, and the surrounding walls cleverly become the privacy wall of the pool, providing an intimate and comfortable swimming environment.
To enhance the functionality and visual appeal of these walls, we can use conventional solar wall sconces for lighting. These wall sconces not only provide even light to the walls, but also add a cozy atmosphere to the entire pool area at night.
Considerations For Choosing Swimming Pool Lights
Pools, unlike other locations outdoors, have the most water, which is why lighting pool lighting has some specific requirements you must understand. Here are the factors to consider when choosing pool lights.
Light Color
The color of the pool and the surrounding landscape play a vital role in choosing the right lights, warm solar light fixtures are recommended if you want to make the pool quiet and serene as a whole, RGB solar light fixtures are recommended if you want to make the pool alive and vibrant, and color-changing lights are an excellent choice if you want to make the pool a scene suitable for any social event.
For information, you can read: What Is The Kelvin? | Outdoor Lighting
Brightness
All parts of the pool do not need the same level of brightness. For example, task lighting for the steps of the pool requires the brightest light. Lights with a color temperature of 5000 – 6000 Kelvin and greater than 100lumen are ideal for this area. However, the brightness of the light also depends on the size of the steps. For lighting the surface of the pool, the main focus is on highlighting the color atmosphere, so there is no requirement for brightness.
For more information you can read: Does Lumen Really Work? | Solar Lights
IP Rating
The IP rating is an important factor in selecting pool lighting. The IP rating stands for Ingress Progress, which is the degree of protection against the ingress of solids or liquids. Therefore, the higher the IP rating, the better the safety against water and dust. Pool lights must be waterproof. However, not all pool areas have exact IP rating requirements. The table below shows the ideal IP ratings for different areas of the pool.
| # | Pool Zone | Recommended IP Rating | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pool Entry Step | IP65 | Steps are close to the water, so IP65 is sufficient |
| 2 | Pool Surface | IP67 | The solar garden lights is above the water and therefore needs a stronger waterproof rating, usually IP67 |
| 3 | Pool Edge | IP65 | The outdoor solar lighting is placed on the edge of the pool and is not immersed in water, so IP65 is sufficient. |
| 4 | Pool Railing | IP65 | The outside solar lights is placed on the handrail, some distance from the water, so IP65 is sufficient. |
| 5 | Pool Wall | IP54 | The solar garden lights is placed on the wall of the pool, far from the water, so a conventional IP54 is sufficient. |
| 6 | Pool Fountain | IP68 | The garden solar lights needs to be placed directly into the water, therefore IP68 is required. |
| 7 | Pool Lawn | IP54 | The solar led lights is placed on the lawn around the pool, far from the water, so a conventional IP54 is sufficient. |
| 8 | Pool Deck | IP54 | The garden solar light is placed on the deck around the pool, far from the water, so a conventional IP54 is sufficient. |
Therefore, analyze the IP rating before choosing the right fixture. To learn more about IP ratings, see –What’s IP Rating?
FAQs
Conclusion
While exploring 26 outdoor solar pool lighting ideas for 2024, we found that solar light fixtures not only enhance the aesthetics of the pool area, but also increase functionality and safety.
You’ve gotten ideas on how to decorate your pool with solar lights from the above discussion in this article. From flexible floating lights to sturdy wall sconces, these innovative lighting solutions fulfill a variety of design needs and personal preferences.
We offer quality solar lights with a variety of IP ratings and customization options, so contact us today if you’re planning to light up your pool!
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