What Is Wall Pack Lighting?
Outdoor commercial wall packs are available in varying sizes and styles to fit any application. Styles include: screw-in LED, integrated LED array, screw-in CFL, and HID lamp types. Access Fixtures commercial wall packs come in various housings to suit your application and can be custom-finished in your choice of RAL color. Wall packs are great for area and accent lighting in commercial and industrial locations.
Exterior-grade wall-pack light fixtures are suited for illuminating streets, walkways, and drive
ways adjacent to buildings. Though typically mounted on the sides of buildings, wall-pack luminaires can be affixed to poles, too. Access Fixtures offers wall packs of many housing styles, light outputs, and sizes. If your project requires traditional housing, we have the wall pack fixtures for you. Our lighting specialists can help you navigate the market and decide what wall packs are best for your budget, your project, and your performance needs. For example, forward-throw wall packs mounted on either side of a building entrance might be a terrific way to illuminate an area, but in some cases, a custom-finished wall pack will be more appropriate.
There are three patterns in which wall packs distribute light. There is a lot to consider when purchasing wall packs, and choosing a distribution style should be your first step:
- Standard, Forward Throw, or Traditional Wall Packs
Distribute light out and down - Cutoff Wall Packs
Distribute light down to the ground - Up/Down Wall Packs
Distribute light up and/or down
Types of Wall Pack Lights – Construction, Styles, and Applications
All wall packs from Access Fixtures are constructed of high-quality cast aluminum and treated with a chromate conversion coating to deter corrosion. Our products are powder-coated to improve consistency and durability.
Access Fixtures offers wall packs built with domestic and international components. Because each wall pack is built differently, some fixtures may be better suited for your project than others.
Forward Throw Wall Packs
ZIBO 100w LED Traditional Forward Throw Wall Pack
Forward throw fixtures send light out and forward, most often in a rounded distribution pattern. This can, of course, be modified, especially with LED fixtures, but any variation of a forward-throw wall pack will still have the goal of increasing light output.
Forward throw fixtures are frequently mounted on walls near property entrances, storage facilities, parking lot perimeters, and school exteriors.
Access Fixtures 50w and 100w ZIBO commercial LED fixtures are popular exterior wall lights. Made with Samsung 3030 SMB LED chips, these name-brand LED chips optimize performance and ensure the highest quality at an affordable price.
Cutoff Wall Packs
Cutoff wall packs are luminaires with a partial shield. Cutoff wall packs represent the middle ground between forward throw wall packs and cutoff wall packs. Read more about the specifics of the cutoff category here.
CUDL 84w LED Wall Pack Light
The risk of light trespass from a cutoff wall pack is less than that of a forward-throw wall pack. However, cutoff wall packs are not dark sky compliant and do send light forward, so keep this in mind when planning your project.
The International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) recognizes the need for outdoor lighting but advocates the use of appropriate lighting, largely to minimize harmful effects on the environment. The IDA recommends that lighting should:
- Only be on when needed.
- Only light the area that needs it.
- Be no brighter than necessary.
- Minimize blue light emissions.
- Be fully shielded (pointed downward).
To reduce light pollution, the dark-sky movement encourages the use of appropriate light fixtures in your area. The advantages of reducing light pollution include reduced energy usage and costs, reduced effects on the environment, and a clear night sky for humans and animals alike.
35w LED Full Cutoff Wall Pack
Cutoff wall packs are largely used when no direct uplight is needed. Direct uplight means no light is emitted above the horizontal plane. Beyond this limitation, the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America (IESNA) requires that all fixtures comply with a glare requirement that limits light output intensity between 80 and 90 degrees.
Many regions require property owners to meet certain standards regarding light pollution, particularly in urban areas where dark sky compliance is a concern. In these situations, wall packs should be fully cut off, ensuring that light is emitted nowhere but downward and slightly forward. The shielding prevents light from shining upward into the sky or out onto surrounding properties. Cutoff lighting is a community-friendly option that provides excellent illumination while eliminating the most common concerns associated with lighting. When choosing your wall packs, you should consider the three components of light pollution: light glare, light trespass, and sky glow.
- Sky Glow
The amount of light emitted upward illuminates the night sky. - Light Trespass
The amount of light that exceeds the boundaries of a given area, such as a flood light that lights up a neighbor’s property. - Light Glare
The harsh, uncomfortable brightness that light fixtures sometimes produce can often be seen from great distances. Light glare often causes visibility issues for drivers, pedestrians, and nearby properties.
BAKU 50w LED Wall Pack Crescent
Though light distribution is the most important factor when deciding on new fixtures for your project, design, and aesthetics are an important factor in the decision-making process, too. Not only do you want your lights to give you the best output possible, but you want them to look good and suit the style of your space, right?
Access Fixtures has a range of cutoff wall packs, designed based on performance and style, too. These fixtures offer a contemporary appearance that is easy to install, durable, and with exceptional light distribution. These units can be perfect for applications such as restaurant and office entrances, where style and decorative requirements are important. Fixtures such as the BAKU 50w LED wall pack crescent boast sleek, modern designs while offering high performance, extraordinary light, and a hidden light source. The BAKU is an easy-to-use, UL-listed, rebatable die-cast aluminum crescent (half-moon) wall pack meant for use in stairwells; above doorways; outside commercial, retail, and industrial buildings; and elsewhere. It features a tempered, prismatic glass lens, and a moisture-sealing gasket developed from high-temperature silicone. Its dark-sky-compliant design limits light trespass, making it ideal for use in areas with strict regulations. Other popular options include the Medium Socket Round Wall Pack and the STAT 23w LED Wall Pack.
Shop Cutoff Wall Pack Fixtures
Up and Down Light Wall Packs
HAMA 40w Up and Down LED Wall Sconce
Up-and-down lights are popular breeds of fixtures designed to provide a specific kind of illumination. Up-and-down lighting does what you would imagine: It sends light either up, down, or up and down. These fixtures are typically used to highlight particular cutoff designs or to create a symmetrical lighting pattern on an exterior wall.
The Access Fixtures HAMA 21w and 40w Up and Down LED Outdoor Wall Sconces are popular entryway lights, cutoff lights, wall uplights, and wall downlights for apartment buildings, brick facades, and more. Chip-on-board (COB) LED technology and the option to select 70-degree or 100-degree optics make it easy to direct the light for your project where you want it.
Wall Pack Beam Spread
When selecting your wall packs, it’s important to know what distribution pattern
(beamwidth) your project will need. Size, output, mounting height, and distance will all make a difference and help you decide what beamwidth is most suitable for your space.
Beam Spread
Many wall packs from Access Fixtures can be built with specific beamwidths—if you need your light to be more of a spotlight (narrower beam spread) or more of a flood light (with a wider beam spread), we can get you the fixture you need. Depending on how high a wall pack is mounted, a wider or narrower beam spread may be most appropriate. Access Fixtures lighting specialists are here to help you find the right wall pack for your facility.
A great place to start is to decide what classification you want:
- Narrow Spot (NSP)
Popular for commercial wall pack applications - Very Narrow Spot (VNSP)
Casts acute, focused light - Spot (SP)
Mostly used for commercial properties
Casts a softer, medium-sized beam - Flood (FL)
Suitable for a wide range of applications
Casts a wide beam - Narrow Flood (NFL)
Typically used in homes and smaller business properties
Casts a medium-sized beam - Wide Flood (WFL)
Provides a lot of light and a wide beam spread - Very Wide Flood (VWFL)
Used for specialty applications, typically used in outdoor spaces.
Access Fixtures can build these fixtures with custom optics to better suit the delivered light for your project. Are you looking to project a narrow beam of light outward? Widen the beam spread to 120 degrees? Angle the light left or right? Not a problem. Talk to our specialists at 800-468-9925 today and we’ll walk you through the options to find the absolute best setup for your location.
Wall Pack Optics
Time, budgets, space, output and sources are all important factors you should consider when selecting a wall pack. First and foremost, you’re probably seeking a fixture to eliminate a problem—either your space has insufficient or outdated lighting or there is no light at all. Eliminating dark areas and providing excellent light output and distribution comes down to properly assessing your space and making informed decisions.
As we’ve mentioned, one of the most significant factors in creating a positive lighting outcome is to decide and assess light distribution patterns. There are three main categories of light distribution patterns; each serves its own unique purpose.
Type III
Type III light distribution casts light approximately 2.75 times wider than the height at which a wall pack is mounted. Type III is best mounted near the area being lit. This allows the wall pack to project its light outward. This form of light distribution is typically used for landscape areas, outdoor parking lots, roadways, and other general area lighting applications.
Type IV
This form of light distribution is also known as forward throw. As previously discussed, this optic creates a round distribution pattern that directly pushes light outward. This form of light distribution is best used in parking area perimeters and wall mounting on building exteriors.
Type V
Type V light distribution is typically used for large areas such as parking lots and wide-open outdoor spaces. It works best when placed directly in the center of the space being lit. It produces a circular or square distribution pattern.
Light Sources for Wall Packs
When selecting lighting fixtures, a major consideration should be the light source technology. Each kind of fixture has its own unique combination of operating characteristics. These characteristics include efficacy, which we measure in lumens per watt; color accuracy, which is measured in CRI; lamp (bulb) life, which is measured in hours; and lamp lumen depreciation, which measures lumens lost over a fixture’s lifetime. Each technology has its pros and cons; your decision will impact the quality of light, the maintenance requirements of the system, the integration with existing fixtures, and the cost of operation. Popular light sources for wall packs include LEDs, fluorescents, metal halide, and high pressure sodium. LED is the obvious wall pack light source in terms of overall light output, lumen efficiency, optic and color choice, and longevity.
Wall Packs – Features, Colors, and Optional Extras
Custom Colors
Commercial wall packs come in various housings to suit your application. Most units from Access Fixtures can come standard in black, architectural bronze; many are also available in white. Need a color match? Choose a custom RAL color to ensure your new fixtures fit right in with the other elements of your project. The RAL system has been used since 1927, and currently includes over 2,300 colors with 70 metallic shades.
Kelvin Temperature
Do you want a wall pack to emit a specific color light? You will need to be familiar with Kelvin temperatures, or the color temperature, of the light source. The color temperature of a lamp indicates whether the lamp has a warm, midrange, or cool color appearance. Many of our LED fixtures can be built to a specific color temperature, so if you have a particular Kelvin in mind, Access Fixtures can help get you what you need. Need help deciding on Kelvin temperature? Contact one of our lighting specialists today at 800-468-9925.
Wildlife and Turtle Friendly
32w LED Turtle & Wildlife Friendly High Output Cutoff Wall Pack 120v-277v
Access Fixtures wall packs are also available with wildlife and turtle friendly options. Wildlife lighting from Access Fixtures uses LEDs that emit light in a wavelength safe for wildlife in coastal areas, roads, walkways, and parking lots. Turtle hatchlings are particularly affected by standard light fixtures, as they instinctively use the bright, white light of the moon to guide them toward the ocean. Any standard lighting installed near the beach can disorient and mislead the turtles. The problem is so serious, many cities and neighborhoods prohibit use of any fixtures that don’t have the “turtle friendly” stamp of approval. The lights in this category are set to a specific wavelength between 590 nanometers and 610 nanometers, which turtles cannot see. Click here for more about turtle lighting from Access Fixtures.
Photometric Analysis
A photometric analysis is a great way to view the light output of a proposed lighting
Learn More about Photometric Analyses
solution. If you are trying to meet tight light-level parameters or simply want an idea of how much light a wall pack design will provide, our photometric team can run a series of reports. With so many factors to consider, like horizontal footcandles, vertical footcandles, max/min ratios, light trespass, light distribution, and mounting height—not to mention the unique performance of each fixture—a photometric analysis is often a sensible route to take. Using photometric software, we can a property layout; add, remove, and adjust specific light fixtures; and generate any kind of light reading that might be relevant for your project. An Access Fixtures lighting specialist will then share the report with you and, if you’d like, go through it one page at a time on the phone. If we need to run more reports beyond that, we will.
Photometric analyses enable lighting specialists to make recommendations regarding the type and number of luminaires. Allowing a lighting specialist to create a lighting layout eliminates the guesswork. With photometrics, customers can see the exact light they will be receiving prior to installation.
Access Fixtures Lighting Specialists Can Make This Simple
Access Fixtures is your factory-direct source for high-quality lighting, including T5, PSMH, and LED industrial and warehouse lighting. If you’d rather have an Access Fixtures lighting specialist tell you about a fixture or type of fixtures, or if you need help placing an order, call us at 800-468-9925. Our customer service team located in Worcester, MA, is ready to get you the fixtures you need.
