Recessed Ground Lights

Walkover or drive-over: matching the fitting to the load

The first question with any recessed ground light is what passes over it. Walkover fittings suit paths, patios, decking and planted beds where foot traffic is the heaviest load they will take. Drive-over designs are built to carry vehicle weight, so they are the right choice across a driveway, a turning area or anywhere a car or van crosses the surface.

Our range labels each fitting clearly. Titles such as the IP67 Hexagon Recessed Driveover Ground Light and the Grade 304 Stainless Steel Drive-Over Ground Light are made for trafficked ground, while round and square walkover designs are meant for softer-use areas. If a surface takes both feet and tyres at any point, treat it as trafficked ground and choose a drive-over fitting. Putting a walkover fitting under a car will shorten its life, so it is worth confirming the load rating before you set anything into concrete or paving.

Reading the IP rating

Ground lights sit where water collects, so the ingress protection (IP) rating matters more here than almost anywhere else outdoors. IP67 is the most common rating in our range and covers temporary immersion, with IP65 and IP66 designs also stocked and IP68 options for the wettest spots. The second digit is the one to watch: a sunken fitting on a path that floods in heavy rain needs that higher water rating, where a unit set into a raised deck edge can sit a step lower.

You will see IP67 across many of the tiltable uplight designs and on our brass ground lights, with the mini ground lights and deck light kits typically rated IP65. We list the rating in most product titles so you can filter by it before you buy.

Where each fitting belongs

Different jobs call for different shapes and sizes. The small mini ground lights and deck light kits, often only a watt or two, work as low-level markers along a deck perimeter, a step run or a border edge, and several come in blue as well as warm white. Larger uplight units, from around 11W up to 21W, give a stronger beam for grazing a wall, a tree trunk or a planted bed.

• Drives and hard standing: drive-over fittings in stainless steel, set flush so tyres pass over cleanly.
• Paths and patios: round or square walkover lights to edge a route without dazzle at eye level.
• Decking and steps: mini deck lights and kits for quiet, even marking of changes in level.
• Borders and features: tiltable designs to aim light up a wall or into planting.

Finishes, materials and beam control

Because these fittings live in the ground, the material does the long-term work. We stock stainless steel, including Grade 304, alongside brass and resin bodies, in silver, grey, black and white finishes that settle into paving and decking without standing out. Steel and stainless steel suit exposed, wet positions, while the resin and brass options give you choices for colour and budget.

Most lights use integrated LED in warm white at 3000K, which keeps planting and paving looking natural, with some 4000K cool white and 6000K options where you want a crisper, brighter light. A number of fittings take a GU10 lamp if you would rather swap the bulb yourself. Fixed units throw a set beam straight up, which is ideal for walkover marking. Tiltable designs let you angle the beam off vertical, and a wide beam spreads light over a broader area for washing a surface rather than spotting a single point. There are blue LED deck lights in the range too, for a cooler accent along a deck or step run.

Planning the installation

Recessed ground lights need a void below the surface for the fitting body and the cable, so plan the position before laying paving, pouring concrete or building up decking. Allow for drainage around the unit so water does not sit against the housing, and keep the cable run accessible where you can. Mains outdoor wiring should be installed by a qualified electrician to the current regulations. Setting the fittings slightly proud or perfectly flush is a judgement call: flush looks cleanest underfoot, while a hair proud can help shed water on a flat patio.