I've been working on a makeover of my back patio and today I'm moving on to the next phase of the makeover which is lighting.

When it comes to creating an inviting outdoor space, lighting plays a crucial role. Whether you enjoy hosting outdoor gatherings or just relaxing on your patio, the right outdoor lighting can transform your space.

I think many times lighting on a patio beyond a light next to the door isn't even considered, but by adding a variety of lighting sources, you can create a captivating environment that you'll want to hang out in.

The main thing I'm working on in this post is replacing the broken porch light but I'll also share some other ideas I have for outdoor lighting and I'll share links to everything I used at the end.

How to Change an Outdoor Light Fixture

& Ideas For Lighting Your Outdoor Space

The porch light that was here when I bought the house didn't work but it was still put to good use... as a Robin's nest! They built it last year and there were 3 or 4 little baby Robin's that grew up here.

They were so adorable, if you shut the door a little too hard their little heads would pop up and their mouths would open wide waiting for food, it cracked me up 😂

Now that the nest has been vacated, it was finally time to replace that light fixture. This is my dad who was helping me with this project.

Now as I said, this light didn't work and the breakers were not marked so I didn't know which breaker to flip so I could replace the light. But I have a post that will help if you ever have a situation like this: How to Use a Multimeter.

So, once we figured out the breaker situation, we were ready to replace that ugly light.

Steps to Replace a Light Fixture

Step One - Remove power from the fixture

Turn off the breaker. Normally a very easy step unless you don't know which breaker runs the electrical supply to that light. If that is the case, be sure to check out my post above 😃

Step Two - Remove the old fixture

Unscrew the fixture and pull it away from the wall to reveal the wiring.

Remove the wire nuts. In the picture above, the wire nuts are the red plastic things that hold the wires from the light fixture and the wires from the house together.

Untwist any wires that are twisted together (no worries, you can touch the wires because you turned off the power supply 😉) You should be left with two wires coming out of the house; a white wire (the neutral wire) and a black wire (the hot wire), You may also have a bare copper wire (this is the ground wire).

Step three - wire the new fixture

Attach the silver bracket that comes with your new light to the wall. This is what the actual light fixture hangs from.

Your new light will have the same wires as the house, a white wire, a black wire, and a ground wire.

When you connect the wires from your light to the wires on the house you match colors, so black to black and white to white. Twist the exposed ends of the wires that are not covered together and then screw a wire nut onto it to hold them together. Once you've got the wire nut on gently tug on one of the wires to make sure they are connected securely.

The ground wire gets wrapped around the colored screw on the bracket and then the screw is tightened down onto the wire to hold it secure. OR, if you have a ground wire coming out of the house, twist that wire and the copper ground wire on the light fixture together and use a wire nut on them too.

Then just attach your new fixture onto the bracket with the bolts and nuts provided.
You can see we had to do a little trimming on my light so it would fit with the siding and not have a huge gap on the sides.

Once you've got the wiring completed and the fixture attached to the wall, put the shade on, add a light bulb, turn the breaker back on, and test out your new light!

NOTE: There are instances where your wiring coming from the house doesn't look like what I've shown here. Old homes sometimes have more or less than three wires and sometimes the wires are different colors. Pay close attention to how things are hooked up when you take the old light down (take a picture of it) and wire it back the way it was if possible.

I love how it looks!

It will be nice for this old girl too because the light is right above the doggy door she uses.

As promised, I have some more ideas for outdoor lighting.

string lights
fireplace light
solar lights

String Lights

I am adding some string lights for a cozy glow and I'm using all purpose light clips to hang them.

The hooks didn't work out like I thought they would so I ended up pushing the flat part of the hook between the metal pieces on my patio cover.

I used two sets (25 lights per set).

Fireplace Light

Fire light is a cozy option, especially for chilly evenings. I have a metal Chimenea.

I made a little brick hearth for it to sit on 😀

Solar Lights

There are so many options for solar lights. They have solar fence lights, stair lights, rope lights, string lights; solar lights that look like rocks, and of course the typical pathway lights, and those are just a few!

I wrote a whole post about solar lighting here: Spruce Up Your Yard With Solar Lighting.

I added a solar light that looks like a rock and pointed it at my fountain.

This post contains some affiliate links for your convenience (which means if you make a purchase after clicking a link I will earn a small commission which helps keep my blog up and running but won't cost you a penny more)! As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Click here to read my full disclosure policy.

Source List:

Hampton Bay Outdoor Zinc Wall Lantern
Globe String Lights
Light Clips
La Hacienda Chimenea - Similar HERE
Solar Rock Light

I'm happy to have that porch light replaced. You can see the other patio makeover posts here:

Ideas for a Boho Patio

How to Stencil a Concrete Patio

How to Build an Outdoor Couch From Pallets

How to Update an Exterior Door With Paint

DIY Hand-Painted Terracotta Pots

DIY Outdoor Sign

Vintage Lawn Chair Makeovers

I hope you enjoyed this post! If you did, I'd love it if you would share it!

PIN ME!

Comments by Blogger

LindaOctober 10, 2016
I put up my outdoor light by myself straight out of knee surgery, standing on a chair which was sitting on concrete and six feet above the ground. AND, the electrician had put the light switch on upside down. Consequently, I was working with live electricity unbeknownst to me. I wondered why my fingers were tingling!

My new light fixture was not a replacement, just an addition. It changed the look of the back porch. Yours is a very pretty fixture and a great look.
pparsimony
ANNEOctober 10, 2016
Love love love! Especially that industrial light. Looks fab!
Kim@Snug HarborOctober 10, 2016
Thanks for the tutorial - highly helpful.
https://www.vintagesouthernpicks.comOctober 10, 2016
What an improvement over that other light! I love it too. I hope you didn't throw the bird's nest away...you can probably use that in décor somehow. Love the use of the little lights too. Love the chimera...never seen that shape before. Surprised to hear you don't have tornadoes or earthquakes over there.