Hi, I posted my question in a relevant thread a few days ago but got no responses.
As a general rule, it's best to NOT to dig up long-dead threads and tack new posts onto them, unless it is a direct response (as in "reply") or update to something posted in that thread.
I'm a new homeowner so pardon my lack of knowledge when it comes to my home. I'm looking to install three lights in my soffits to help light up my house. I'll want to have them automatically turn on and off day/night. I don't know what type of material the soffits are - they seem like a thin, plastic type material. Will that affect the type of light/housing I buy? I definitely don't want my roof to catch fire
OK, you have at least two separate issues in play here:
First, there is the matter of the light fixtures themselves. There are all manner of fixtures (both recessed and non-recessed) which are potentially appropriate for soffit use. Literally, THOUSANDS of possible choices. Selecting among them will depend in part on just what you mean by "light up my house". Are you looking primarily for decorative lighting (where something like a tightly focused downward "wall-washer" would be appropriate)? Or perhaps security lighting (where you want to put light (and lots of it) EVERYWHERE, including areas of the lawn well away from the house itself? Or some combination of the two? Or something else entirely (such as landscape lighting or pathway lighting)? Once past those questions, you get to the matter of what type of light source to use: Incandescent, Halogen, Compact Fluorescent, LED, Metal Halide, etc.; and each of these will have their own sets of pros & cons in any given application.
As for attaching them to the soffits, what you see when you stand beside your house and look up (probably some sort of vinyl or aluminum sheathing) is not all that relevant. The lights will near-certainly need to attach to some STRUCTURAL part of the house (i.e., the framing). So it is what is BEHIND that sheathing which matters. In that same vein, if there is insulation in those areas, then any recessed fixture you choose MUST be explicitly rated for insulation contact.
Once you've settled on the basic type of fixture, and how best to install it/them, the other issue is the powering, switching and control of those fixtures. You mentioned that you want automatic Dusk/Dawn operation; but you will surely ALSO want some degree of manual control. And what of timer-based or motion-sensing control? Depending on the type & purpose of the lights, either of these could well be more appropriate/useful than simple photocell-based Dusk/Dawn operation. And of course, you need to consider exactly WHERE to put the switch(es) and the sensor/control modules (if any).
So as you can see, there's quite a bit more to it than just "what lights should I buy?" And most of these questions can only be answered by you.
