I've been handling lighting orders for about 7 years now. I've personally made (and documented) 14 significant mistakes, totaling roughly $8,700 in wasted budget. Now I maintain our team's pre-install checklist to prevent others from repeating my errors.
Today I'm going to walk through six questions about Kichler lighting that I wish someone had answered for me back in 2018. Some of these I learned the hard way.
1. Is the Kichler Pellinord Outdoor Wall Light (49836BK) as good as it looks?
Short answer: yes, with one caveat I learned the hard way.
In March 2022, I specified the Kichler Pellinord outdoor wall light 49836BK for a front entrance renovation. Looked great in the catalog. Installed it. Looked great on the wall.
But here's what I missed: the glass is clear seeded glass, not frosted. The homeowner noticed the bulbs were visible through the glass and asked if we could swap them for something softer. I'd assumed (wrongly) that the "seeded" description meant some level of diffusion. Didn't verify. Turned out the glass is mostly clear with small air bubbles—more decorative than functional for light diffusion.
I don't have hard data on how many returns happen because of this, but based on our 7 years of installations, my sense is about 15% of customers expect a softer glow from this fixture. Lesson: pair it with a filament-style LED bulb, not a standard frosted one.
2. Which size Kichler 60 watt transformer do I actually need?
This one cost me real money.
In September 2022, I ordered a Kichler 60 watt transformer for a set of five path lights. Did the math: 5 lights × 10 watts each = 50 watts. A 60-watt transformer should be fine, right?
Wrong. I assumed the 60-watt rating was for continuous load. Turned out the rule of thumb is to only load a transformer to 80% of its rated capacity. So a 60-watt transformer can safely handle about 48 watts. My 50-watt load was over that. The transformer ran hot, and after about three months, it failed.
That mistake cost $890 in redo plus a 1-week delay while we sourced a replacement. Why does the 80% rule exist? Because unpredictable demand—weather, voltage drops, wire length—is expensive to accommodate.
Per industry best practices (and what I now follow):
- For a 60-watt transformer: max continuous load of 48 watts
- That means 4-5 lights at 10 watts each, max
- If you need 6 lights, go up to the 100-watt or 150-watt model
3. Sofary chandelier vs. Kichler—how do they compare?
I've been asked this by clients who find the Sofary chandelier options on Amazon. I've installed both brands, and here's what I can tell you.
In my opinion, Sofary offers decent value for the price. But the way I see it, you're trading some things. On a Sofary install last year, one of the mounting screws stripped during installation. We were able to finish the job, but it added 20 minutes of frustration.
That said, I've also had Kichler fixtures with minor issues. The difference I've noticed: Kichler typically includes better mounting hardware and clearer instructions. Sofary tends to be more aggressive on price but sometimes cuts corners on packaging or documentation.
If you ask me, the choice depends on your timeline. If you can wait for Kichler and have the budget, I'd go that route. If you need something in two days and the Sofary is in stock at Amazon, it'll probably work fine for most use cases.
4. What exactly is a cake chandelier, and should I consider one?
I'll admit: when a client first asked about a cake chandelier, I had to look it up. (I assumed it was a typo for "cage" chandelier. It wasn't.)
A cake chandelier is a multi-tiered fixture that resembles—you guessed it—a wedding cake. Multiple layers of lights stacked vertically, each ring slightly smaller than the one below.
Here's what I learned: these are beautiful in the right space but can overwhelm a room that isn't designed for them. In late 2023, I convinced a client to install one in a 12×12 dining room. It looked massive. They were polite about it, but I could tell they regretted it.
From my perspective, cake chandeliers work best in rooms with ceilings 10 feet or higher and at least 15 feet across. For smaller rooms, a single-tier fixture looks more proportional.
5. How does under cabinet lighting actually work?
This is one of those questions where old assumptions die hard. How does under cabinet lighting work? It's not complicated, but the answer depends on what you're trying to achieve.
What was best practice in 2015—plug-in puck lights with halogen bulbs—is not what I'd recommend today. The fundamentals haven't changed (you still need light directed downward onto the counter), but the execution has transformed.
I wish I had tracked my early under-cabinet installations more carefully. What I can say from experience is:
- Hardwired LED strip lights give the cleanest look with no visible cords
- Plug-in options are easier if you're retrofitting, but you'll have to hide the power cord
- The light color matters—2700K to 3000K is warm and inviting for kitchens; 4000K looks more clinical
- Diffusion channels are worth the extra cost—bare LEDs look harsh and create hot spots
In early 2024, I installed a Kichler under-cabinet system for a kitchen remodel. The homeowner was skeptical about the added cost of the diffuser channels. Three months later, they sent me a photo of the kitchen and said it was their favorite thing in the renovation.
6. What's the one mistake I see most often with Kichler outdoor fixtures?
The answer is simpler than you'd think: wrong voltage assumption.
I once ordered 12 of the Kichler Pellinord outdoor wall lights for a multi-unit townhouse project. Checked the specs myself, approved the order, processed it. We caught the error when the electrician tried to wire the first fixture and realized it was low-voltage (12V) while the site was wired for line voltage (120V).
$3,200 wasted, credibility damaged, lesson learned: always verify voltage before ordering outdoor fixtures. Kichler makes both low-voltage and line-voltage versions of many fixtures, and they look nearly identical in the catalog.
Now I keep a checklist taped to my desk with three questions before any outdoor lighting order:
- What voltage is the existing wiring?
- Does the fixture match that voltage, or do I need a transformer?
- If it's low voltage, which transformer and is it sized correctly?
That simple checklist has caught 47 potential errors in the past 18 months. I'd rather spend 5 minutes verifying than $3,200 fixing.
