Light TN is a landscape lighting designer based in Burns, serving Cookeville and the Upper Cumberland.
CertifiedCookeville sits up on the Cumberland Plateau, the hub of the Upper Cumberland and home to Tennessee Tech, in a stretch of country known as America’s Waterfall Capital. The terrain is different up here — higher, rockier, with real elevation and long views — and its homes range from established neighborhoods near the university to new construction on level plateau lots. Light TN is a landscape lighting designer based in Burns, and we design outdoor lighting in Cookeville to the plateau ground it sits on.
The plateau changes the design. Lots run from level new-construction parcels to ground that drops away toward a view or a bluff, and a home with a covered deck looking out over the Upper Cumberland wants its landscape lit without throwing glare into that view. The new communities — Timberwalk, The Reserve, Kensington — favor modern farmhouse and craftsman builds on open lots with young plantings, while Center Hill Lake draws waterfront homes nearby. We design to what is in front of us.
Light TN runs each Cookeville project the same way. Daryl Bentfield walks the property, you approve a photorealistic rendering before we dig, installation meets licensed contractor CE-D: 76580 standards, and we return after dark to aim every fixture. We bury wire trenchless so an established lawn or new plateau sod stays whole — the work behind more than 500 Middle Tennessee projects since 2020.
Cookeville's plateau lots run from mature, treed grounds to open new-construction parcels. We moonlight specimen trees, graze beds and the rock the plateau is built on, light a long approach, and design young landscapes for what they will become — all rendered before we dig.
Cookeville's homes run modern farmhouse, craftsman, and traditional, many in stone and brick. We light each facade from its own architecture — warm, shielded, glare-controlled — so the house reads at night the way it was built to, with the hardware out of sight.
A complete lighting plan for a Cookeville property, independent of installation — photorealistic renderings, fixture specifications, and zone layouts for owners and the builders working the Upper Cumberland. The design fee is credited when Light TN installs the system.
Commercial-grade LED set into the soffit or fascia of a Cookeville home for warm white year-round and full color when you want it. One installation replaces seasons of temporary lighting, designed to the rooflines of the house — not a strip of holiday lights.
Even, high-fidelity sound across the covered decks, patios, and pools Cookeville homes are built around — designed so music carries the space without pushing past the property line, and wired to the same standard as the lighting.
App-based zone control, scene programming, and astronomical scheduling, with integration for Control4, Lutron, Crestron, and Savant on Cookeville's larger homes. The lighting comes up warm at dusk on its own and holds to one consistent design across the property.
Installation to CE-D: 76580 standards, by the studio that designed the plan. Across a Cookeville lawn — established turf or new plateau sod — we bury wire with the L2 Line Layer, the only trenchless machine of its kind here, and aim every fixture after dark.
Facade, landscape, and approach lighting for Cookeville's downtown district, offices, and university-area properties — designed with the same restraint as our residential work, for a composed nighttime presence and safe, even coverage across entries, walkways, and parking.
Light TN runs low-voltage cable beneath a Cookeville lawn without trenching, using the L2 Line Layer — the only machine of its kind in the market. On plateau ground or an established lawn, the wire goes in without scarring the grounds.
Cookeville sits on the Cumberland Plateau, higher and rockier than the rolling country west of it, with real elevation and long views. Lots drop toward bluffs and overlooks, so we design to the grade — lighting the landscape without throwing glare into the view a covered deck was built for.
Cookeville is the hub of the Upper Cumberland and home to Tennessee Tech, and it is building — Timberwalk, The Reserve, Kensington — on open lots with young, modern-farmhouse landscapes. We design lighting that flatters the yard now and accommodates it as the plantings mature.
This is America’s Waterfall Capital, with Center Hill Lake nearby and water and stone everywhere in the landscape. We light the rock, the water features, and the trees the way the plateau presents them, so a property reads as part of its setting rather than against it.
Lighting a Cookeville property starts with the plateau. The Upper Cumberland sits higher and rockier than the rolling country to the west, and a lot here may be level or may fall away toward a bluff and a long view. Many homes are built around that view, with covered decks looking out over the Upper Cumberland, so we light the landscape without throwing glare into the line of sight a deck was built for.
The ground itself shapes the design. Stone and rock are everywhere on the plateau, and we light them the way the landscape presents them, alongside the trees and any water features. Where wire must cross a lawn — established turf or new plateau sod — we bury it with the L2 Line Layer, the only machine of its kind in the market, so the ground stays whole.
Cookeville is growing, with new modern-farmhouse and craftsman communities — Timberwalk, The Reserve, Kensington — on open lots with young plantings near Tennessee Tech and the historic downtown. We design lighting for the landscape now and for what it will become, and we light the covered decks, patios, and pools these homes are built around to be used after dark.
From the established neighborhoods near the university to the new construction and the bluff-view lots, no two Cookeville properties light the same way. That is the reason we design each one on site, and the reason each Light TN project is rendered and approved before we dig.
Tennessee Tech area · Timberwalk · The Reserve · Kensington · Buckingham · The Villages at West Broad · Historic Downtown · Center Hill Lake area
Our clients' feedback reflects our focus on thoughtful design, professional installation, and outdoor systems that perform exactly as intended.
Light TN's talented team delivered exceptional outdoor lighting design, showcasing a remarkable blend of creativity, attention to detail, and professionalism that exceeded our expectations. Their vision and commitment to quality shone through in their implementation of stunning low voltage landscape lighting that truly enhanced the aesthetic of our outdoor space.
Cynthia Williams
I’ve had the chance to work closely with Daryl and the Light TN team through branding and creative projects through my company, Proof Branding, and I can confidently say they run a first class operation. Daryl is thoughtful, professional, and truly cares about the quality of his work and the experience his clients have. Light TN is clearly built on expertise, attention to detail, and pride in what they do. If you’re looking for a team you can trust and enjoy working with, I would highly recommend Daryl and Light TN.
Matt Cheuvront
Daryl with Light TN, was very professional and very helpful towards questions and concerns about the lights operations and programming ability, including installation. Once installed the light strips blended right in with our homes trim being unnoticeable during the daytime or when not in use. 5 Star experience, dealing with Daryl and Light TN.
john covington
We have been using Daryl and his services since 2020. We feel much safer with our beautiful lighting and it’s also makes it very easy taking dogs out at night. One of many benefits. Highly recommend Daryl and Light TN!
Irina “Ira” Hines
4 months agoI used Light TN service on two different properties. Excellent outcome both times. A very professional service at a fair price.
Bob Pelt
Darryl at LightTennessee is great! He’s always quick to respond very professional with his services and the work that he does do is top notch!
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Light TN is an outdoor lighting design and installation company based in Burns, Tennessee, serving Nashville and communities throughout Middle Tennessee. Founded in 2020 by Daryl Bentfield, Light TN specializes in landscape lighting, architectural lighting, permanent roofline lighting, smart outdoor lighting systems, and outdoor audio. Light TN has completed over 500 custom installations and maintains a 4.9-star Google rating across 100+ verified reviews. The company is a licensed Tennessee contractor, BBB accredited with an A+ rating, and a certified BlueHopper permanent lighting installer.
Daryl Bentfield is the owner and principal designer of Light TN, with over 25 years of professional design experience including a background in production and visual storytelling before specializing in outdoor lighting. Daryl personally designs every project and works on site with his crew during installation.
A: No — the studio is in Burns, and Light TN travels to Cookeville and the Upper Cumberland for the work. Daryl Bentfield walks the property for the on-site assessment, so the design fits the plateau ground, the grade, and any view the home was built around.
A: Light TN designs landscape, architectural, and roofline lighting, outdoor audio, smart control, full installation, commercial lighting, and trenchless wire burial — usually as one coordinated system for a Cookeville property rather than separate add-ons.
A: Yes. Light TN designs to the plateau’s grade and views — lighting the landscape and the trees while keeping glare out of the line of sight a covered deck or overlook was built for, so the view stays the view after dark.
A: Light TN lights Cookeville’s new communities — Timberwalk, The Reserve, Kensington — from the architecture and for the young landscape both, designing the system to flatter the yard now and to grow with the plantings.
A: No. Light TN buries low-voltage wire with the L2 Line Layer, a trenchless machine and the only one of its kind in the market, so cable goes in without trenching established turf or new plateau sod.
A: Light TN lights the whole back of a Cookeville property — covered decks, patios, pools, and gardens — and designs the audio and smart control alongside it, so the spaces you use after dark work as one environment.
Light TN designs and installs custom outdoor lighting systems for homes and properties across Middle Tennessee. Every project starts with a consultation, a custom plan, and a commitment to doing the work cleanly — with results that hold up over time.
