A backyard croquet court requires different lighting designs depending on the use. For example, an outdoor croquet field lighting layout may rely on high masts floodlighting. Instead, an indoor croquet court usually needs LED ceiling mount versions of a traditional flood light system.
All in all, the croquet pitch is easy to illuminate. But, you have to follow precise procedures and recommendations. That is the main reason why I have written down the primary ideas related to the setup phase. And you can use them right away for your outdoor or indoor lighting design. Beginning with the basics, you are going to read how to get started and the major benefits. Plus, pro tips on solar lights you can install to further save on the electricity bill!
What lights are used in croquet court?
1. Outdoor croquet court lighting
a) Flood light
Flood lights are among the most popular lighting solutions. In fact, you find them pretty much in every sports facility. A flood light comes with a bulb or a LED light source. LED-based flood lights are ultra-low power in comparison with previous models. So, most outdoor croquet court owners converted to LED floodlighting. But you can still find older, less efficient models.
In backyard croquet, flood lights are necessary because they provide you a broad luminous flux. Plus, they are safe and easy to install where you need them to be. A large variety of models let you also choose the type or specific purpose of each light body. In general, the way you arrange the field and the other environments require you to use different types. For example, a security flood light for the emergency exit.
b) Spot light
A spot light is a particular type of projector. Generally speaking, it is a powerful version of a flood light, but it sends out a narrow beam of light. As an effect, a narrower flux comes into play when you need to light up a specific area. Or when you deal with long distances. Especially for an outdoor croquet pitch that is really out in the open with no light poles around.
A series of multiple spot lights can provide enough illuminance to replace the lack of a traditional lighting system. On the positive side, you can install LED spot lights at great heights and remotely control them. Their great life cycle makes these light sources extremely helpful on most occasions. Then again, many already have a pre-drilled, angled mounting bracket for you to install them anywhere you desire.
c) High mast light
High mast lighting uses the same light poles for industrial applications. That is, a galvanized steel light pole like the one you see on the streets. Four single-arm self-supporting towers can light a game of croquet just fine. But a lighting standard can demand you use more.
The three components of high mast lighting are the pole, the fixture, and the foundation. Before the purchase, you must make sure that the ground is buildable. Besides, you need to follow several security rules for safety reasons. High mast suppliers should also offer a good warranty for both the poles and fixtures.
2. Indoor croquet pitch lighting
a) High bay lights
High bay lights are the easiest way to brighten up an indoor croquet court. Thanks to a wide beam angle, the skillful disposition of few high bay lights covers the entire field perfectly. Moreover, the latest models also fit better with the overall decor scheme of the sports venue. And they are available in rectangular or circular shapes.
Adjustable brightness and innovative design make LED high bay lights the most cost-effective solution at the moment. In general, they outperform every other light source and can adapt to tall ceilings and several croquet pitch sizes. Finally, they give you three options to install them on a bracket, leave them hanging, or wire them up in a dedicated structure.
b) Panel lights
You can think of panel lights like variants of high bay lights with the addition of a diffuser. These lights with a diffuser give you soft, uniform lighting. More importantly, they reduce glare, which is better for strikers’ eyes.
As you know, pull is a critical factor even in most indoor croquet turfs. So, you must take every precaution to ensure a comfortable vision on the field. Panel lights let you do just. Plus, they feature a smart light control system and several high-tech functions. You can find them in many varying sizes to fit in any lighting design and even for ceiling voids or suspended ceiling systems.
How to get started with the croquet court lighting layout?
1. Number of light poles
High mast lighting takes care of any ball out of bounds. But you might need 4 or 6 poles, depending on the croquet field size. For the smaller layout, the high masts are at the 4 corners. When you add the other two, you need to calculate the angles. Basically, you have three light poles on each side of the pitch.
Of course, more light poles let you illuminate the croquet lawn better. So, this layout is usually preferable for televised matches or tournaments. Association Croquet can call for any of these designs.
2. Height of croquet field light poles
First of all, you need to determine what lights you are going to install. In fact, the type of lights will decide how high the light poles can be. For example, you should never install halogen lights on light poles shorter than 10 meters. Below 10 meters, they represent a safety hazard. Mostly because they overheat up to 200°C (392°F) and can pop, letting extremely hot pieces cause fires.
On the other hand, there is no height limit on the use of LED lights. Then again, you want them high enough to light the lawn efficiently.
3. The positioning of the croquet court light poles
For the best results, you should opt for one of these two options: side lighting or corner lighting. Side lighting is a viable solution for outside fields between buildings. For example, side lighting from croquet fixtures mounted on nearby street light poles.
Corner lighting suits a more typical playing area. That is, a croquet facility, with its court in plain sight from every position. The boundaries are well lit. Plus, a striker can benefit from several light points converging light on the ball. This layout provides the best lighting condition for every stroke. It makes the wickets visible from every angle.
4. Distance between the indoor croquet field ceiling lights
An indoor croquet court must help the strikers to play strategically. Indeed, players must decide to try to pull off a block or a cannon shot. From a strategic point of view, you get more than an extra stroke when you make a roquet. The need to pass through a hoop to get a live ball is also another example of the need for multiple light sources.
These lights must be at least 5 to 10 ft apart from each other to achieve high lighting uniformity. In practice, everyone must be able to see the croquet lawn at once from any position.
Croquet field lighting design
1. Lux (footcandle) requirement
The first goal of a lighting design is to implement a layout that will make it easy for onlookers to see the ball colors. So, the need for a way to measure brightness comes into play. But luckily, we can use lux or footcandles to achieve just that. A footcandle (1 fc = 10.76 lux) is just another way-that most Americans use-to gauge a lux. The lux is a SI unit of measurement for brightness.
The lux levels change with the level of play. The following list shows the values you have to meet on the croquet field by using a lux meter.
- recreational or general use: 150 lux
- training: 300 lux
- competition: 500 to 700 lux
2. Lighting uniformity standard
Usually, all lux levels come with a suggested lighting uniformity standard. That is, 0.5 to 0.7 for any croquet activity. To get this value, you need to sample each part of the pitch and then divide the minimum reading by the average (or maximum) value.
Why do we need to have higher light uniformity?
Mostly because lighting uniformity:
- eliminates the risk of having bright and dim spots, so the croquet field looks more professional
- makes everyone see any kind of obstacles on the lawn
- improves lawn sports experience
- is better for strikers’ eyes
- helps decide if a ball is between the yard line and boundary or off court
3. CRI standard
Being able to discern the color of the ball does not mean that the colors are bright and vivid. For that to happen, you need to use artificial light sources with a great CRI value. That is, a Color Rendering Index rating.
When you select your croquet field lights, read the product specs. You will find that a CRI value is listed among other details. The CRI standard requests you use lights with a CRI of 70 to 80. In this way, everyone can see the correct and vivid colors of the croquet balls and enjoy the game more.
4. Color temperature recommendation
You do not have to abide by a strict color temperature standard. That is, the color that the artificial lights emit. Nonetheless, it is suggested you use a warm white light. Even a cool white color is also okay. All in all, it is better to use a cool white light source for competition as the cool white light is less tiring.
If you use LED lights, you may end up choosing the color temperature. More precisely, you might even be able to change the color temperature for each game according to the players’ preferences.
5. Flicker-free lighting
Any croquet field owner knows that croquet offers a social sports experience. When a player’s ball pegs out, the game leaves plenty of space and time to socialize. And that includes the use of social media and smartphones. For example, to make videos that players share with their friends and loved ones.
For the croquet field owners, this aspect can mean business. But, if the videos are unwatchable due to tech difficulties, the owners’ expectations go up in smoke. Such a tech problem comes with the use of standard LED lights. If you are interested in letting your players record themselves, choose flicker-free lights. They also work for televised matches.
Solar lights for backyard croquet court
1. Can we use solar lights in a croquet court?
Yes. You can, and you should use solar lights in your croquet court. In brief, the photovoltaic panel or photovoltaic module is an eco-sustainable system. It generates electric current from solar radiation independently. But the solar lights can always be connected to the more traditional electricity grid.
Each solar light or fixture has a battery to store the energy. Plus, the most recent models come with specific light sensors to optimize their use in outdoor locations. When the natural daylight goes out, the lights can turn on automatically. They seamlessly provide enough illuminance for a long game late in the afternoon.
2. How long does the solar flood lights last?
The solar light life span depends on the manufacturer and manufacturing techniques. On average, you can expect the LED light source to last for many years. The battery life span correlates to how many times it recharges itself. In other words, its longevity is inversely proportional to the number of recharges. The more times it drains, the less it will last over time due to wear and tear.
The solar panel system can last for a decade or so. On balance, solar flood lights are finished products, so you rarely have to do any maintenance. But periodic cleaning is highly suggested to keep a high level of efficiency.
3. Pros & Cons of using solar croquet pitch lights
Pros
- zero installation cost
- hassle-free use, no need to dig the ground for wiring
- virtually no need for maintenance
- huge variety of solar croquet pitch lights, and even movable light towers for any need and foldable designs
- saving on your electric bill
- reusable for many purposes throughout the week. For example, as security lights
Cons
- the solar panel cannot charge effectively on cloudy days
- Solar-powered lights do not support high power flood lights (>1000W), so the light sources cannot be very bright. Fortunately, 150lux is doable with solar flood lights.
Benefits of LED replacement of metal halide, HPS, and halogen croquet flood lights
1. Saving maintenance cost
When you replace old metal halide or HPS lamps, you make an investment of future maintenance costs. In detail, the replacement itself does more than just providing you a more efficient light source. You make sure that the croquet court is always available. In other words, you will not have to delay any game due to repairs and repair times. You should retrofit part of your lighting system as soon as possible to fully experience the difference.
2. Saving running cost
The journey from the baulk lines to the winning peg can last for many hours. But more importantly, it can cost you more than you earn if you are using metal halide or HPS lamps. Even if you switched to halogen bulbs, that would not be enough. Especially if you consider that a halogen lamp lasts for a tiny fraction of a more cost-efficient LED flood light.
LED lights are more convenient because they do not overheat. In practice, this means that they need less energy to reach high levels of brightness.
3. Reduce temperature
The light source working temperature does not only affect how long will the source light last but also the strikers’ comfort on the croquet field.
The extraordinarily high-power halogen flood lights may even burn the lawn if the lights are too close to the field. Nobody wants people to sweat when they make a roquet, but they will with the wrong light sources installed.
High power LED lights have an integrated heat sink in the rear to disperse any heat. At the same time, they provide more illuminance than other types of lamps with less energy. So, overheating is never a problem. For this reason, you should replace heat-producing lamps such as HPS or metal halide in an indoor sports facility. Otherwise, you would need to keep the windows open to make the air change constantly.
4. Smartphone control
When you think of LED lamps, you need to picture the latest techs as well. For example, apps and Bluetooth control functions.
You can switch on/off and control the brightness after replacing the LED lights by using a DMX lighting system. A wireless remote control system and associated base station set are designed to locally control the lights. Besides, they also offer a basic system backup.
You can set up several lighting profiles for different croquet activities. For example, one profile for official backyard croquet competitions and one for community events. When you contact expert lighting designers like us, you can get all sorts of custom-made lighting control systems.
Conclusion
The outdoor and indoor croquet field lighting design may require you to achieve better lighting. By now, you have all the necessary info on how to start and set up a suitable lighting design. But you can always count on our tech expertise to provide you more custom-made solutions and honest advice.
After the preliminary preparations, choose wisely between high mast floodlighting or the use of spotlights for outdoor fields. By contrast, search for the most cost-competitive high bay lights and panel lights for indoor venues. Get a lux meter to find out the lux readings on the croquet pitch or hire a professional. If you hire an expert, ask for a report to see if retrofits would benefit you.
