5-Minute Outdoor Lighting: Mr. Level founder Joe Work is introducing another innovative way to save money at home
By Patricia Nugent
A few of the nicer behavioral shifts that happened during the pandemic look like they are here to stay. With so much time spent at home, we’ve fostered a stronger appreciation for our abodes, and have been investing in domestic betterment, indoors and out.
“Over the past two years, people have been doing more home renovation, pool installation and revamping their outdoor living environment,” says Joe Work, founder of 5-Minute Outdoor Lighting. “It’s a natural that they should want to install beautiful outdoor lighting to bring it all to life, but that can be prohibitively expensive to hire a company to do, and complicated to do yourself.”
He came up with the novel concept of 5-Minute Outdoor Lighting kits to deliver to homeowners or businesses for custom-designed, permanent, color-changing LED lighting at affordable pricing.
Plug It in and Forget It
“It’s a pretty simple process,” he explains. People take a photo of their home or business, email it to us, and we custom design the lighting. Then we ship a prewired kit that contains everything needed—the commercial-grade 150-watt transformer box with photocell, the wiring and lighting units—for a beautiful outdoor lighting display.
“All people need to do is take it out of the box, plug it in, and forget about it. We include a QR code with instructions on how easy it is to install. The individual lights are just pushed into the ground.”
Since the lights come on automatically at sunset and off at sunrise, there’s no worrying about programming. This is an excellent safety feature for your home’s exterior. It even makes a great gift for senior moms and dads, and the company can ship worldwide.
“We offer two styles of lights: spotlights, which come in five shades of white from a warmer yellow-ish shade of white to bright white and 8 different vibrant colors, as well as path lights, with a natural glow.” says Joe. “They can have the lights static or transforming, slowly or quickly. Customers can hide the wires under mulch or bury them if they like.”
You can set the lights to Christmas shades to complement your outdoor décor, or, if you’re like many of Joe’s first customers over the Fourth, celebrate with red, white and blue.
“I think the average homeowner is a little frightened about installing electrical, but we take all of that away,” he adds. “Most good-quality LED lighting is expensive, but I was able to find a supplier that is about 40% less expensive than most companies. Our units are 4.8 watts, so they’re extremely bright.”
You Get What You Pay For
Joe points out that when he was sourcing companies that carry outdoor lighting so he could offer the kits, quality was everything.
“I wanted something my customers could depend on that would be long-lasting and durable, even in Northeast Ohio weather,” he says. “I found a commercial grade, stainless steel transformer with a photo eye, and individual LED lights, which are backed by a 10-year warranty. The system even uses silicone wire nuts to protect against corrosion. When you see other similar outdoor lighting at places like big box stores, the quality is nowhere near as good as how we wire our kits.”
Meet Joe Work
Local entrepreneur Joe Work has made a career of thinking outside of the box—and then putting in the time and effort it takes to make it work.
Six years ago, the Fairview Park High School grad branched out from the landscaping business into polyurethane concrete leveling, founding Mr. Level.
The service business fixes uneven, sunken or cracked driveways, sidewalks, walkways and patios, so homeowners don’t have to replace them.
Before starting Mr. Level, Joe did his research in the industry and discovered the innovative polyurethane fill method, which is eco-friendly and made in the USA from recycled materials. With a roadmap in place, he hired employees who he trained to deliver high-level workmanship and customer service.
The model worked and today his start-up company is the fifth largest residential/commercial concrete lifting company in the country for quantity of polyurethane purchased.
Much like with Mr. Level, as soon as Joe got the idea for 5-Minute Outdoor Lighting, he ran with it. He sourced the lighting industry and came up with the parts to assemble prewired kits.
Last month, he decided to test market the concept in the Cleveland area with a simple Facebook post. He sold out of units the first day and has been thriving ever since.
5-Minute Outdoor Lighting is based in Cleveland and ships everywhere. Check out their Facebook page with some beautiful photos to give you an idea of how outdoor lighting can bring your home or business to life. Call 440-552-5659 for more information or a free estimate.