Title 24 Outdoor Lighting Rules for Homes
Section 150.0(k)3 covers outdoor lights permanently mounted to a house or to other buildings on the same lot. Each needs a manual switch plus one automatic package: a photocell with a motion sensor, a photocell with an automatic time switch, or an astronomical time clock. LEDs used outdoors are exempt from the JA8 mark.
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Which lights count
The rule reaches lighting for patios, entrances, balconies and porches. A single-family building includes a duplex, a townhouse and a detached garage, shed or studio on a residential site, so their lights count too. The compliance manual says decorative landscape lighting not attached to a building is outside the rules. The code speaks only of buildings, and no official text settles a freestanding lamp post, so ask the building department before buying one.
Controls
Motion sensing is one option, not a requirement: a porch light on a photocell and a timer complies. An override to on must return to automatic control within six hours, and an energy management system may stand in if it does everything the packages do. The devices have their own rules in Section 110.9(b): a motion sensor turns lights off or down within 20 minutes and shows a status signal, an astronomical time switch offsets sunrise and sunset by at least 90 minutes, and an outdoor time switch has a user-programmable setback.
The light source
Outdoor luminaires also meet Section 150.0(k)1A, but Exception 4 exempts LED sources installed outdoors from JA8, and the manual says so. Incandescent and halogen sources have no such exception. Navigation lights under 5 watts are excepted from the efficacy rule only, an address sign uses no more than 5 watts or meets Section 140.8, and a garage door opener’s own light is exempt as integral equipment.
New build, addition, alteration
Every residential lighting requirement is mandatory and cannot be traded. A new house, an addition and a new ADU meet all of Section 150.0(k) whatever the size; an ADU converted from conditioned space is an alteration under Section 150.2(b)1K. Adding or reinstalling a luminaire is an alteration and replacing only a lamp is a repair. There is no 10 per cent threshold, and no official text says replacing one fixture upgrades the existing switch and sensor. Replacing light fixtures covers the indoor side.
Paperwork
A house has no lighting CF1R. The installer signs the CF2R-LTG-01-E, whose Section H is the outdoor checklist, and some departments want a Mandatory Requirements Summary at permit. Part 1 lets a department waive or simplify the installation certificate for alterations needing no field verification. No ECC-Rater tests lighting; the inspector checks exterior lighting and controls at final.
What a house does not need
Lighting zones, power allowances and shielding are commercial rules; see outdoor and site lighting and outdoor lighting zones. Apartments split their lights, as multifamily lighting explains. The accessory structures guide covers outbuildings, and JA8 light sources the marking.
Common Title 24 Questions
- When is Title 24 required for a home?
- Does a remodel need Title 24?
- Does a room addition need Title 24?
- What plans are needed for a residential Title 24 report?
- How much does a residential Title 24 report cost?
- How long does a residential Title 24 report take?
Frequently Asked Questions
No. They need a manual switch plus one automatic package: a photocell with a motion sensor, a photocell with an automatic time switch, or an astronomical time clock.
The compliance manual says decorative landscape lighting not permanently attached to a building is outside the residential lighting rules. A light on a pole or bollard is a question for your building department.
No. Exception 4 to Section 150.0(k)1A exempts LED light sources installed outdoors. The control requirements still apply to lights mounted to the building.
It can, as an energy management control system or other control, but only if it provides the same functions as the named packages, including returning an override to automatic control within six hours.
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