Arena lighting - advice please

ArcticFox

ArcticFox

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www.bryland.co.uk
Hi All

I am thinking about applying for planning permission to install some arena lights.

the arena is positioned at the top of a hill, with no neighbours but the long side run parallel with a main road. The roads department have been consulted and they have said that they have no objections as long as the lights do not impede the road.

The arena is sighted below road level by around 3 metres (guessing) at the top end but levels out as it runs along the road.

I have approached a lighting company who said they would do a lighting plan for me, but after asking 4 times they haven't replied to any further requests (this is since May)

So I am now going to do it myself and was hoping for some advice.

Originally the company said we should go for 6m high columns with 2 asymmetric floodlights on the top (400w metal halide ones) and for our 45mby25m arena we should be able to put two columns along both long sides - they said that the lights would not impede the road.

I'm not convinced! I'm thinking about applying for 3 columns placed along the long side of the arena only but just wondering what everyone else has.

So advice gratefully received from anyone who has lights!
do any of you have the metal halide asymmetrical lights?
does anyone have only one side lit?
what height are yours mounted to?
could you jump a grid with yours? (esp if only down onside)
Could two of you ride in the arena with only one side lit?

anything else you can advise! :D

thanks in advance
 
Hi, I did some lighting myself for a 30m x 30m arena and used 2 big (12" x 10" Sontee Lights (I think that's how you spell it but an electrician would know what I mean). This lighting was recommended to me as I wanted to use them mounted from the back of my barn shining onto one side only of the arena. They cast a soft orange light and I was able to jump fine under them. They take about 3 minutes to warm up and are more neighbour friendly, also the bulbs last much longer than the white ones (mine lasted 8 years+). Re lighting plan I was quoted some extortionate amount like around £6,000!! Good luck :)
 
We have metal halide lights down one long side only of a 50m arena - I think there are 5 of them, with the last one angled over the end of the arena which does not overlap with where the lights are mounted. They are mounted on the adjacent barn ie they are "security lights", not arena lights, and therefore quite high up - say 10m. They work very well and although expensive to put up, are economical to run. You can jump a course of jumps or a grid if they are set the right direction ie with the light behind the approach. Horses need to get used to them a couple of times before attempting to jump as they sometimes can't cope to start with. I did not use an equestrian supplier but a local small electrician's firm that does commercial buildings as well as residential. Anyone who does the lights for warehouses will know what they are doing. I explained what I wanted to do and they specced it up for me. Lighting has really moved on over the last couple of years. Planning is tricky.....Good luck.
 
Good luck with your planning - I couldn't get planning for arena lights in SE corner of England :(

Luckily OH rigged up a big halogen spotlight on the garage and 2 more on the stables - apparently you don't need permission to rig on existing buildings - go figure!

It does mean that one half of the arena is pretty well lit, but far end is a bit murky, and therefore spooky, so can't really jump in the winter evenings as a bit risky but absolutely fine for schooling.
 
Thanks all

Rachmeister, yours sounds similar to what i'm looking for. I really doubt I'd get planning to put them all the way round and really would prefer to put the planning in that I'm more likely to be successful with.

Will look into putting 3 columns, at 6 or 8m high, with 2 floodlights on the top, that should be enough for flatwork and maybe a grid - would be enough for winter working. Hopefully the council will approve of that.

thanks all.
 
You can get really good baffles these days which make for very directional lighting and no/minimal lightspill onto areas you don't want lit (like the road!).

I think you'd be more likely to get planning for all the way round if you had a decent set of lightspill drawings done up, but that needs a lighting company!

In your shoes, I'd go and have a chat to the Duty Planning Officer (assuming Scotland has those?!) at your local planning authority, armed with your letter from the roads department. I'd also consider concessions such as lights not to be used after say 10pm if you're on top of a hill, as they may well be concerned about visual impact on the landscape. If the road is lit, point this out as well, it will help your argument.

Tell them you want to use very directional, baffled lighting, with minimal lightspill (because you do - you want to spend your money lighting the arena not the surrounding countryside/sky) and you're very conscious that you don't want to impact on the visual landscape.

Once you've sounded them out, you'll have a better idea of what they will and won't allow, and what information they will need in order to grant planning. In all honesty you are always better off asking them and getting them onside as the planning officers have all the power!
 
Thanks SC, very very helpful.

We did approach the council to speak to the planning officer, she has been helpful by approaching roads on our behalf, and came back to us to say that roads didn't have any objection as long as the traffic is not disturbed. She said we should put full planning in and has left it to us.


The road isn't lit so it is probably safer to keep the light totally away from that direction, I was thinking about looking into installing columns 8m high, 11m apart (45m length of arena) with 2 floodlights on the top.

I def will mention that we won't use it after 10pm (I'm usually heading to bed by then anyway!) and that we are conscious about the landscape. it might be better to make sure the columns are not higher than the telegraph poles running along the roadside so shouldn't change the landscape much.

any lighting company recommendations?? might have to start shopping around!
 
8m is fairly high! I've just been liaising with lighting specialists on a site that requires lighting for safety reasons (river) and we've been going for 5 and 6m columns. I deal with lightspill issues (bats, mainly), and actually, it's relatively easy these days to prevent lightspill. Nightglow is also a real issue, so you want shields which stop any upwards flow of light. The higher the columns, the fewer you'll need, but the more difficult it is to control lightspill....so it all comes down to the cost/planning/lightspill equation. That said, shielding the light so it does not fall behind the columns onto the road is easier than controlling sideways spill, so you should be ok.

I think the idea re the telegraph poles is a good one actually, as it shows thought and consideration.

The other thing to think about is maintenance - LED is more expensive but has far fewer issues and lightspill is much easier to control (from what I understand of the geeky techy conversations I sit through!).

I've just been sent a directory of lighting stuff (though probably specific to this area rather than yours) but it hasn't made it into the office yet as geeky OH has been reading it (just, why?!).

I'd look for someone who used to work for a big multinational but has now set up on their own, because they will have the expertise without the overheads - the planning department may be able to point you in the right direction.
 
Thanks SC.

I did start with the idea of using 5m columns, then it went to 6, then 8m! advice was to go as high as poss as we were only lighting oneside it would help with shadows, but personally I reckon 6m would be plenty (without the shadows)

will have a look for a small lighting co. I believe you can get folding columns but they are probably an arm and a leg, so will also look into LED - any idea what the terminology I need for it is? (eg to compare to a 400w metal halide - what LED do I need?)

many thanks - you've been fab, :D
 
I think lighting one side with high columns will probably produce more of an issue with the road than all the way round with well shielded lower columns - but I'm not a lighting expert!

I'm not an expert on it, but you need a much much lower wattage of LED in comparison to metal halide - this page seems a good summary: http://www.lunaraccents.com/applications-metal-halide-lights.html

It also upholds what I was saying about the lightspill/nightglow being vastly reduced with LED ;) The other LED benefit is that they are instantly bright, unlike metal halide.

Not sure of the cost comparison of folding vs solid columns - suspect that is more of a streetlight thing than an arena light thing, as safe access at height wouldn't be an issue round an arena, whereas it can be with some street lighting. (The river job I mentioned above specified folding columns, but it was an access/ H&S issue not for any other reason, and I'd be inclined to think you'd be better off spending the money on LEDs if it came down to it....)
 
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