Why the term tells you nothing
Nobody advertises a generic plan. The word no longer distinguishes anybody. What is worth checking is whether there is an actual design behind it, since one of those produces paper and the other produces a number.That is the whole distinction, and it is worth holding onto while you compare quotes. A package starts with a number and works backward. A design starts with your building and arrives at a number. Both can be perfectly honest pieces of business. Only one of them answers to your building, and you should know which one you are buying.
What a design should include
A plan is specific to your building. Scope should be written down feature by feature, because the front of the house means two different things to two people. It says what the standard white is. It says where power comes from. And it accounts for the unlit areas, which is a design decision and should be stated as one.
Order of operations
A price with nothing behind it is not comparable to anything. Two quotes a few hundred dollars apart can describe completely different jobs. When the design comes first, the comparison is honest. When the price comes first, the design gets shaped to fit the number, quietly.A plan you understand gives you something to check the finished job against, which is worth more than any assurance given in a driveway.
Designing for the way you use the property
Expect to be asked things, rather than pitched. Where do you walk after dark. Do you use the back yard in the evening. Is this mostly a holiday purchase or an everyday one. How often are people over. The way you use the property matters as much as the shape of the house, and nobody can guess it.
Where a plan earns its keep
Most properties end up wanting several things. Piecemeal buying produces
https://jsbin.com/poyekeqavo a property with lighting rather than a lit property. One plan, installed over time if necessary, still ends up coherent.
The design is a conversation
The first plan is a draft. You can remove things without needing a reason beyond not wanting it. A company unwilling to revise is showing you the package. The answer should be that revisions are expected.
The plan is a document you keep
Ask for a copy, and hold onto it. It matters when you sell, when you add the second stage, or if anybody ever has to work out what is where. A company that will not give you the drawing is worth a second thought.
Getting a design drawn
The design starts with somebody walking your property. EverCrest Lighting does custom outdoor lighting design and installation covering permanent roofline systems, landscape, accent, patio and security lighting for residential and commercial properties throughout Upstate South Carolina and Western North Carolina, out of Greenville. The consultation is free. Call (864) 252-1732 or email
[email protected].