Pricing
What outdoor lighting costs
No fake instant quote, and no per-foot number we have not stood behind on a real roof. Here is what actually moves the price, and the four questions that make any two quotes comparable.
Quick Answer
What determines the cost of permanent outdoor lighting?
The cost of permanent outdoor LED lighting is driven mainly by linear feet of roofline, the height and access of the property, roof complexity, and the fixture line specified. Roofline length sets the baseline; height and access set the labour; dormers, returns and stepped elevations add corners that add time. Seasonal Christmas lighting is priced per season and the figure worth comparing is the all-in one — installation, in-season maintenance, takedown and storage together. Buzz Lighting measures on site and issues a written fixed-price quote naming the fixture manufacturer and their published specifications, so it can be compared like-for-like against any other GTA installer.
Why you will not find a price on this page yet
Buzz Lighting is a new company and our rate card is not finalised. We could put a confident-looking number here. Plenty of sites in this market do, and then the number turns out to have been a starting point for a bungalow with no corners.
What you get instead is a free on-site measure and a fixed written price for your actual house, usually within a day or two. When our published rates are settled they will appear here, in full, with what they include.
The variables
What actually moves the number
Read this before you collect quotes. It is the difference between comparing prices and comparing three different jobs.
Linear feet of roofline
The single biggest factor, and the one every quote should state explicitly. A wide Brampton two-storey and a narrow Toronto semi can differ by a factor of three before anything else is considered.
Height and access
A bungalow eave you can reach off a six-foot ladder and a third-storey gable over a sloped side yard are not the same job. Access is labour, and labour is most of an install.
Roof complexity
Dormers, returns, peaks and stepped elevations each add corners. Corners are where install time goes and where a cheap job starts to look cheap.
Fixture line specified
There is a real spread in product quality in this category. The line specified for your home changes the price, the warranty and how it looks in year eight, and it should be named on the quote.
Controller and power
Where the transformer and controller go, and how far they are from an outlet, is a small line item that occasionally turns into a bigger one on older homes.
Seasonal: install plus takedown plus storage
For Christmas lighting, the honest comparison is the all-in seasonal figure. A low install price that bills takedown and storage separately is not the cheaper quote.
Comparing quotes
Four questions for every quote
Including ours. If a quote cannot answer all four in writing, it is not comparable to the others on your kitchen table.
How many linear feet of roofline is this price for?
Who manufactures the fixture, which product line, and what is their published rated life and warranty?
What is the workmanship warranty, separately from the fixture warranty, in writing?
For seasonal work — does this figure include takedown and storage, or are those billed later?
Why is there no price list on this page?
Because a per-foot number that has not been checked against the fixture line, the labour rate and the access conditions is a made-up number, and publishing one would be a price representation we cannot stand behind. Buzz Lighting is new. When our rates are settled, they go here in full.
Is permanent lighting cheaper than seasonal in the long run?
It can be, and that is a calculation rather than a slogan. Take what you currently pay per season for install, takedown and storage, multiply it by how many more years you expect to be in the house, and compare that against a one-time permanent installation. If you are two or three years from moving, seasonal usually wins. If you are staying, it usually does not.
Do you ask for a deposit before quoting?
No. The measure and the written quote are free. A deposit only ever applies once you have accepted a quote and we are ordering material for your job.
What should I ask other installers?
Four things. How many linear feet is this quote for. Who manufactures the fixture and what is their published rated life. What exactly is the warranty on the fixture and what is the warranty on the workmanship, in writing. And for seasonal work: does this figure include takedown and storage. Any quote that cannot answer all four is not comparable to any other quote.