Thread: Floodlight Baffles

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Here's an idea I came up with to help hide that annoying side glare from floodlights. I took some 2 gal black plastic plant containers and made an opening in the bottom with a 1 1/2" hole saw chucked into my drill. I also made an opening off to the side of that hole to allow for the cord to come out without binding.



Then I attached the base plate to the bottom of the planter using screws.



And here's the finished product.



The most important thing to remember is to make sure that the bulb is centered and does not touch any part of the container. The bulb should rest just below the edge of the opening. I also used a couple of 5 gal containers and the bulb could be set lower into the container, but still needs to be centered. You could beef this up a bit by using a thin piece of plywood both on the inside as well as the outside and screw into those along with the planter and bulb plate. I didn't bother with these and they're holding up beautifully.

Well done Laurie! You've always been the ingenius one.

Do you have some before and after pictures of the results?

Originally Posted by Texan78

Do you have some before and after pictures of the results?

I'll be taking some pics tonight if that helps.

That's wicked cool, Laurie... a great idea.

Originally Posted by Lauriebeast

I'll be taking some pics tonight if that helps.

Sweet thanks, I have see others make similar things. I just never seen the results or the advantage of using these before.

That works pretty slick doesn't it LaurieBeast? I did that last year with a bunch of containers I had laying around the garage. Good thing I hadn't thrown them yet.

Looks like you have thicker ones. I used thin ones that some perenials came in. I just made an X in the bottom with an utility knife and stuck the stake in from the bottom up. And with the rain here I didn't want a tight fit anyway so any water could drain away.

I am not knocking this at all because I am sure this might come across the wrong way, just wanted to say that first. What is the advantage of using these exactly? What are they suppose to do?

Originally Posted by Texan78

I am not knocking this at all because I am sure this might come across the wrong way, just wanted to say that first. What is the advantage of using these exactly? What are they suppose to do?

What they do is block any view of the bulb itself and focuses the light where you want it. So, as you're walking past a display, you only see the lit display and not the lit bulb.

Jackielantern, if placed with one of the drainage holes that are already in the container closest to the ground, it would easily drain any water.

Ah gotcha, yea that makes sense. I am the same way and like the idea. I don't like guests being able to see the fixture just the light. I made some fake rocks out of chicken wire and great stuff that sit on top of the lights that hide the fixture, but you can still see the light wash...