Landscape lighting design and installation for homes across Northern Virginia, Washington, DC and Montgomery County, MD, led by Patrick Harders, LC. Your complete design, free: photo renderings, scaled drawings, fixture selection and a complete plan from a professional lighting designer.
Landscape lighting design and installation for homes across Northern Virginia, Washington, DC and Montgomery County, MD, led by Patrick Harders, LC. Your complete design, free: photo renderings, scaled drawings, fixture selection and a complete plan from a professional lighting designer.
Award-Winning Landscape Lighting Design & Installation in Northern Virginia, DC & Montgomery County, MD.
From our design studio in Aldie, Dayloom designs outdoor lighting for Northern Virginia, Washington, DC and Montgomery County, MD homes, from first-time projects to the area’s finest estates.
At Dayloom, we believe that your home’s outdoor lighting should enhance its unique aesthetic by accentuating architectural features and incorporating an elegant design that’s customized to your taste.
Balancing aesthetic beauty with functional needs — safety, security, and entertainment — is what we do best. Our designs have earned 3 international LIT Lighting Design Awards and 8 North American AOLP awards.
Award-Winning Lighting Design
Dayloom has won 3 international LIT Lighting Design Awards and 8 North American AOLP awards.
LIT 2021 Winner
Landscape Lighting: Willing Warriors Retreat
Selected for the LIT 5-year anniversary exhibition, Athens (2022)
2018 Award of Merit
Commercial Lighting: Stone Tower Winery
2021 Award of Merit
Residential Large Lighting Project: Bull Run
2022 Winner
Feature-focused Lighting: Bench Swing in the Woods
2022 Award of Merit
Residential Large Lighting: Catharpin Estate
2023 Winner
Small Residential Lighting: Residential garden
2023 Winner
Feature-focused Lighting: Idyllic Bench in Woods
2025 Winner
Commercial Lighting Project of the Year: The Barns at Wolf Trap
2025 Award of Merit
Outdoor Living Lighting: Historic garden, Alexandria, VA
2020 Honorable Mention
Landscape Lighting: Bull Run
2021 Winner
Landscape Lighting: Catharpin Estate
Award-Winning Lighting Design
Dayloom has won 3 international LIT Lighting Design Awards and 8 North American AOLP awards.
2018 Award of Merit for commercial lighting: Stone Tower Winery
2021 Award of Merit for residential large lighting project (Bull Run)
2022 Award for feature-focused Lighting (Winner)
2022 Award for residential large lighting (Award of Merit)
2023 Award for small residential lighting (Winner)
2023 Award for feature-focused lighting (Winner)
2025 Award for commercial lighting project of the year
2025 Award of Merit for outdoor living lighting (historic garden, Alexandria, VA)
LIT 2021 Winner: Willing Warriors Retreat (landscape lighting)
Selected for the LIT 5-year anniversary exhibition, Athens (2022)
2020 Honorable mention for landscape lighting (Bull Run)
2021 Award for landscape lighting (Catharpin Estate)
Featured in print
Dayloom's lighting work appears in two design books from Inspired Intermedia.
Masters of Landscape Lighting
Patrick Harders and Dayloom are profiled on page 26, and Patrick wrote the prologue for the book's Northeast section.
Preview the book (opens in a new tab)·Publisher page (opens in a new tab)
Inspired Outdoor Living
Featured in the book's collection of outdoor projects.
From Vision to Illumination: The Dayloom Method
- Step 1: Your complete design, free: photo renderings of your property, scaled drawings, fixture selection and a complete plan from a professional lighting designer, Patrick Harders, LC.
- Step 2: Your design visit. Our designer walks your property with you. You only need to be there at the start. Afterward, you’ll receive a full-scale plan.
- Step 3: Comprehensive Planning. Full-scale engineering plans and optional 3D renderings provide total clarity before installation.
- Step 4: Precision Installation. Our expert team brings the design to life using award-winning fixtures and meticulous craftsmanship.
Frequently Asked
What is the typical cost of a professional landscape lighting system in Northern Virginia?
Most professionally designed landscape lighting systems in Northern Virginia fall into these typical ranges: $4,500–$9,500, $9,500–$17,500, $17,500–$43,000, or $43,000+, depending on property size, landscape maturity, and the level of design detail required.
At Dayloom, every lighting system is custom designed and engineered to last decades, not just a few years. The final investment depends on several factors including:
Property size and layout
Landscape maturity and architectural features
Desired lighting effects and coverage
Backyard elements such as pools, patios, and outdoor living areas
To help homeowners plan, most projects fall into these common investment tiers:
$4,500 – $9,500
Lighting for front or rear areas of many standard homes.
$9,500 – $17,500
Lighting for both front and back on many homes in the DMV region.
$17,500 – $43,000
Larger projects with mature landscapes, developed backyards, patios, or pools.
$43,000+
Estate properties, large grounds, or full-property lighting designs.
Two common industry benchmarks homeowners use when budgeting:
Lighting often represents about 10% of a landscaping or hardscaping investment.
Landscape architects often recommend allocating around 1% of the home’s value toward outdoor lighting.
Many Dayloom project showcases include real investment ranges so homeowners can better understand what different scopes of work look like.
You receive a written proposal after your design meeting. A deposit is due upon a signed contract to start work and order products. There is no deposit at the design meeting.
What landscape lighting fixtures and products does Dayloom use?
Dayloom designs and installs your lighting, using professional fixtures designed and manufactured by Sterling Lighting and built to last decades rather than the typical 5–10 year lifespan of many products.
After years of installing systems from major brands, our team saw too many fixtures that were expensive but not built for the long run. Patrick Harders, LC, co-founded Sterling Lighting to change that, and he is its CEO.
Sterling luminaires are:
Designed by lighting professionals with hands-on installation experience
Engineered for durability, optical precision, and long service life
In 2025, Sterling Lighting received international LIT Lighting Design Awards for its performance, durability, and optical design.
Does professional landscape lighting increase home value?
Well-designed landscape lighting improves curb appeal, nighttime usability, and perceived safety, all things buyers notice.
Outdoor lighting is consistently ranked as one of the most desirable features for homeowners because it improves:
Curb appeal
Nighttime usability of outdoor spaces
Perceived safety and security
Overall property presentation
However, not all lighting systems add value.
Low-quality fixtures, poor installation, or outdated systems can actually reduce resale appeal because buyers assume they will need to replace them.
Dayloom systems are designed differently.
Our lighting systems combine:
Fixtures designed and manufactured by Sterling Lighting, which Patrick co-founded and leads as CEO
Installation practices refined over many years
A design led by Patrick Harders, LC, who specializes in landscape lighting
A well-designed lighting system does more than illuminate a property — it enhances how people experience the home.
Does Dayloom provide lighting design drawings, documentation, or renderings?
Yes. Every Dayloom project includes detailed lighting design documentation before installation begins.
Professional lighting systems require the same level of planning as architectural projects, which is why Dayloom begins every project with a comprehensive design phase.
Typical project documentation includes:
Lighting layout drawings showing exact fixture placement
Photometric calculations ensuring proper light levels
Light trespass study on certain projects, when requested
Low-voltage wiring diagrams for safe installation
Control system integration documentation
Final as-built drawings for future upgrades or renovations
This design-first approach helps every system perform as designed.
Whether you are working with a landscape architect, builder, or managing the project independently, this level of documentation ensures precision and long-term reliability.
What makes Dayloom different from other landscape lighting companies?
Dayloom is a landscape lighting design-and-install company that focuses on outdoor lighting and outdoor audio, serving homes across Northern Virginia, Washington, DC, and all of Montgomery County, MD, including Potomac and Bethesda.
Unlike companies that offer lighting as a small add-on service, Dayloom specializes in professional lighting: we design your system, then our own crew installs, aims, and tunes it.
Patrick Harders, LC, is an NCQLP Lighting Certified designer who specializes in landscape lighting.
Dayloom has received:
3 international LIT Lighting Design Awards
8 North American AOLP awards
Fixtures are designed and manufactured by Sterling Lighting, which Patrick co-founded and leads as CEO.
Our reputation has been built one system at a time, with a focus on long-term performance, craftsmanship, and design excellence.
Dayloom has 488 Google reviews, rated Excellent.
How can I speak with Dayloom about a landscape lighting project?
Homeowners can request a complete design, free: photo renderings of your property, scaled drawings, fixture selection and a complete plan from a professional lighting designer, Patrick Harders, LC. It starts with a conversation with the Dayloom team about your property, goals, and lighting design options.
During the consultation we typically discuss:
Your property layout and landscape features
Lighting goals such as curb appeal, entertainment spaces, or security
Potential design approaches
Rough investment ranges for similar projects
This conversation helps you understand what is possible before moving forward with a full design process. A deposit is due upon a signed contract to start work and order products. There is no deposit at the design meeting.
Get My Free Design Plan or call 703-636-5225. Dayloom serves Northern Virginia, Washington, DC, and all of Montgomery County, MD, including Potomac and Bethesda.
Patrick Harders got tired of 'cookie-cutter' lighting. So he created two companies that do it all.
Award-winning designs that stand the test of time.
Dayloom fixtures are designed and manufactured by Sterling Lighting, which Patrick co-founded and leads as CEO. At Dayloom, Patrick Harders, LC, leads every design and has won numerous awards for his work.
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Washington Business Journal, May 31, 2024
As seen in
- Washington Business Journal (2024)
- The Washington Post (2015)
- Fox News (2019)
- Fox 5 DC (2015)
- Forbes (2018)
- Realtor.com (2018)
The Washington Post feature (2015) covered Patrick Harders, founder of Dayloom.
Dayloom Wins Commercial Lighting Project of the Year!
Award-winning designs that stand the test of time.
We are honored to announce that The Barns at Wolf Trap has been awarded Commercial Lighting Project of the Year in North America by the AOLP (2025)!
Honored in Athens, 2022
Willing Warriors Retreat, a lighting system we donated in Haymarket, Virginia, won a 2021 LIT Lighting Design Award. It was then chosen for the LIT Awards’ curated exhibition of top winning designs at the House of Lucie gallery in Athens, Greece, in May 2022, and Patrick was there beside our print.
Teaching with Eleftheria Deko, 2025
Patrick Harders and Eleftheria Deko, lighting designer of the Acropolis, led the Landscape Lighting Summit in Athens in 2025. Patrick’s talk went back to the fundamentals of light: key lighting properties, design principles, and how they play out in landscape and architectural lighting.
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Serving Northern Virginia, Washington, DC & Montgomery County, MD
From our design studio in Aldie, we design and install landscape lighting across Northern Virginia, Washington, DC, and all of Montgomery County, MD, including Potomac and Bethesda. See lighting in Potomac, MD.
Explore our work by area
For the stories told
Old-world craftsmanship
We highlight what makes your house a home.
Every Dayloom design is custom to your home and your budget, with clear investment ranges below.
Our lighting is subtle, but the results are remarkable. With professionally designed and installed light fixtures, your home can project a welcoming environment before guests even reach the front door.
View stunning transformations of outdoor spaces in Northern Virginia, Washington, DC and Montgomery County, MD through expert lighting design collaboration.