Driveway arches

[mill4011]

Does anyone have experience making their own arches for a driveway using rope lighting to run around the PVC pipe? I'd want to run a single channel for each individual arch, something in the neighborhood of 8 arches total for my driveway. any help/suggestion welcomed.

[Westport Lights]

I have two eight foot, seven channel arches made with rope light. It's not easy wrapping 3/4" pipe, but I imagine you'll be using larger pipe for the driveway so it should be much easier.

Hose clamps and zip ties help hold the light in place and keep it from unwinding on itself. It's also easier to wrap the rope when it's lit since the rope light seems softer when warm.

[mill4011]

thanks for the input. I'd probally use 1 1/2 pvc pipe since you said 3/4 inch pipe is difficult to wrap. are you using 3/8" rope light.

[Darryl Lambert]

Mill4011 is your driveway single width or double? Mine is a double so my arch is 34' straightened out. I tried my first year using 1 1/2" ABS pipe and found it to be a little to unstable in the wind. Switched to metal the year after that! Something to consider.

Darryl

[mill4011]

its roughly 25 feet wide, so I'd think the arch total length would be roughly 40-50 feet straight, in order to make the arch. 1 1/2 ABS, would that bend to make the arch. And then do you use rope light to wrap around the pipe or string out some lights

[Darryl Lambert]

Your arch would be 39.2699081' at a 25' diameter divided by 2 for half circle.

My driveway is 22' across. Because of the long length ABS will bend that much. I found PVC to be not as rigid, but as I said even the ABS moved quite a bit in the wind. It's 11' off the ground at it's peak. Yours would be higher 12.5' if you keep it a true half circle. That's why I suggested using metal.

The lights is the easy part I just wrapped them around secured the starting with electrical tape, zip ties work as well. If your using rope light plug it in and let it warm up first. It will be a lot more flexible then.

Darryl