Guide
How to Pick a Bollard
Pick the bollard by place and material first, then wattage and color. Spacing comes from the fixture’s photometrics, not a guess. For most Southern California paths we start at 3000K, a louvered or shuttered head so light hits the walk, and a body that matches the air: fiberglass inland, aluminum for most jobs, 316 stainless at the coast.
That is the whole decision. The rest of this guide explains why, what goes wrong on real jobs, and which Dabmar bollard families Projekt Supply sells for each application.
Written by Projekt Supply Lighting Team. Last reviewed August 29, 2026. First published August 27, 2026. Product-specific information in this guide is checked against manufacturer documentation and Projekt Supply's current catalog.
Where can you buy Dabmar bollards?
Projekt Supply sells Dabmar Lighting bollards online. The families we carry for the jobs on this page are the Dabmar D180, D3400, and D700-SS316.
D180 is a fiberglass, louvered pathway bollard for house walks, inland HOAs, and other corrosion-conscious locations where a simple downlight is enough. D3400 is powder-coated cast aluminum — the usual start for commercial and multifamily pathways when finish options and value matter. D700-SS316 is 316 stainless for coast, marina, pool deck, and salt-air work.
Projekt Supply sells the Dabmar D180, D3400, and D700-SS316 bollard families. Open a family below, or browse the full authorized Dabmar bollard set.
What a bollard is for
IES calls a bollard a short, thick post luminaire for walkway and grounds lighting, optics usually on top. It is path light and wayfinding, not a parking-lot pole. IES pedestrian documents (RP-43, LP-2) care about glare, spectrum, and whether people feel they can see faces, not only average footcandles on the pavement.
DarkSky and IES jointly say outdoor light should be useful, targeted, low, controlled, and warm. If a bollard lights the neighbor’s bedroom or the sky, it failed the job even if the path is bright. That is the Five Principles, not a product seal. We do not claim a DarkSky certification on this page.
The complaints we keep seeing
- The last lights on the run are dim.
- That is 12-volt voltage drop. Landscape contractors size so the last fixture still sees about 10V. Long HOA walks and commercial campus loops usually belong on 120V or 120–277V bollards, not a 12V daisy chain. Several D180, D3400, and D700 LED configurations are 120V or 120–277V for that reason. Non-LED medium-base E26 sockets are 120–277V.
- They rusted / the bronze peeled.
- Salt air can rapidly attack coated aluminum and steel when the finish or hardware is compromised. Solid brass, bronze, copper, or real 316 stainless hold up better, and even those need rinsing. Hardware usually goes first. Do not put a painted steel bollard at the beach. D170 is steel. For exposed coastal or salt-air applications, we generally favor D700-SS316 (316 marine-grade, ETL wet location) or D180 fiberglass, which has no ferrous body to rust, over powder-coated aluminum. D3400 is powder-coated cast aluminum: a strong inland and multifamily pick, not our coastal starting spec.
- Too bright / HOA glare.
- Open-cage heads and 4000–5000K “security white” are the usual cause. Use a louvered or shuttered family (D180, D3400) and a 3000K LED, not the 50K option, unless the site is already cool-white commercial. Frost lens on D3400 softens the source versus clear.
- Water inside after rain.
- Cheap solar path lights often die when the gasket goes and the driver sits in water. Spec-grade wet-location listings and a replaceable lens matter. D700 lists a replacement polycarbonate lens (P-LENS-D700). Surface-mount with the hardware kit, keep cable entries dripped, do not bury a transformer in a puddle.
- Dark patches between bollards.
- People space by eye. BEGA’s method: find the 0.05 fc isoline on the photometric, overlap so the midpoint is about 0.1 fc. Short heads need tighter spacing; taller heads with wider optics space farther. We will not print a fake “always 12 feet.” Use the spec sheet / IES file for the wattage you actually ordered.
- Solar ones died in a year.
- Battery and gasket, not photometrics. If the path needs to work every night, hardwire it.
D180 vs D3400 vs D700: which Dabmar bollard should you choose?
| Dabmar family | Construction | Where we would start | Example model | Shop |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| D180 | Fiberglass | Residential paths / HOA / corrosion-conscious locations | D180-L12-30K-BZ | Shop D180 |
| D3400 | Cast Aluminum | Commercial / multifamily pathways | D3400-L12-30K-BZ-CLR | Shop D3400 |
| D700-SS316 | Stainless Steel 316 | Coast / marina / salt-air applications | D700-L12-30K-SS316 | Shop D700-SS316 |
Projekt Supply carries all three Dabmar bollard families shown above.
How to choose
Live configuration counts come from the catalog. If a family is missing, it is not on the site yet.
D180
House path, inland HOA
Rust, simple downlight
Dabmar lists it for pathway, walkway, driveway, and entrance. Fiberglass body. Black or bronze. Louvered head.
- Finishes:
- Black, Bronze
- Voltage:
- 100V-277V, 120V, 120V-277V, 86V-265V
- Wattage:
- 12W–Non-LED
- Configurations:
- 24
D3400
Most commercial / multifamily walks
Finish options, value, glare
Powder-coated cast aluminum, black / bronze / verde, clear or frost. Shuttered head. Usually the value pick.
- Finishes:
- Black, Bronze, Verde Green
- Voltage:
- 120V, 120V-277V, 86V-265V
- Wattage:
- 12W–Non-LED
- Configurations:
- 66
D700-SS316
Coast, marina, pool deck, salt air
Finish failure
316 stainless, wet-location ETL. Use this instead of painted aluminum or steel at the beach.
- Finishes:
- Stainless Steel 316
- Voltage:
- 120V, 120V-277V, 86V-265V
- Wattage:
- 12W–Non-LED
- Configurations:
- 11
D110
Open-cage look, inland only
Same path job, more sparkle / more glare
Use only if the designer wants that look and glare is acceptable. Not the shielded, DarkSky-principles pick.
- Finishes:
- Black, Bronze
- Voltage:
- 120V, 120V-277V, 86V-265V
- Wattage:
- 12W–Non-LED
- Configurations:
- 22
D170
Coastal steel
Will rust
D170 is steel. Do not specify at the beach.
- Finishes:
- Black, Bronze, Verde Green
- Voltage:
- 120V, 120V-277V, 86V-265V
- Wattage:
- 12W–Non-LED
- Configurations:
- 33
Default LED: 12W, 3000K, and 120–277V when the run is long. LED configurations on these families are mixed 120V and 120V–277V — pick the 277-capable row for long commercial homeruns. Non-LED medium-base E26 sockets are 120V–277V. Step down to 6–9W on a short residential path. Step up to 20W only if photometrics say the path is wide or spacing is forced wide.
Already have a Dabmar model number?
A Dabmar MPN identifies one configuration inside a family — wattage, color temperature, finish, and similar options — not the whole family. Projekt Supply provides direct manufacturer-MPN configuration URLs so you can open that exact row instead of hunting through every finish.
D700-L12-30K-SS316 identifies a specific configuration within the D700-SS316 family. Projekt Supply lets buyers open individual Dabmar manufacturer model numbers directly instead of searching through an entire family.
Spacing, in one paragraph
IES does not hand you a single spacing chart for every bollard. It asks for a maintained light level and uniformity on the walking surface, with glare under control (RP-43 / LP-2). In practice: pick the family and wattage, pull the photometric, space so the dark gap still meets the target (BEGA uses about 0.1 fc minimum on many pedestrian paths; that is BEGA’s method, not a Dabmar photometric).
A planning range you will hear on jobs is roughly 8–20 ft for typical walkway bollards. Treat that as a first sketch, then confirm. Stairs and grade changes need extra light; that is a step light, not a farther bollard.
Color and dark sky
Five Principles: if it does not need to be on, don’t. Shield it. Don’t over-light. Control it. Keep it warm. California CLTC’s outdoor recommendation is CCT no more than 3000K. 2700K is softer at a house. 4000K is a campus look. 5000K is the complaint generator. These families are offered in 27K / 30K / 40K / 50K so you can match a spec; we will still tell a Tarzana or Malibu walk to start at 3000K.
Title 24
Title 24: landscape lighting not attached to the house is generally exempt. Lights on the building need high-efficacy LED plus photocell + motion or timeclock, or an astronomical clock. Still put the yard on a photocell or timeclock so they are not on at noon. This is a field note, not a code review or legal advice.
12V vs 120V
12V is fine for a short residential bed with a transformer you can reach. Commercial walks, parking islands, and anything over a long homerun should be line voltage so you are not chasing dim last fixtures. Kichler: if calculated end voltage is under about 10V, fewer fixtures, fatter wire, or a higher tap.
Our 120–277V D180 / D3400 / D700 LEDs exist for that job. Non-LED medium-base E26 sockets on these families are 120–277V compatible — they take a lamp, not a 12V landscape driver.
What we won't claim without manufacturer data
Exact mounting height per family, DarkSky seal, BUG rating, IP number, lead time, and “Made in USA” stay off this page until the catalog has those fields. Until then we point at material, voltage, CCT, and the live product URL.
Common Dabmar bollard questions
Where can I buy a Dabmar D180 bollard?
Projekt Supply sells the Dabmar D180 family online. It is the fiberglass, louvered pathway bollard we start with for house walks, inland HOAs, and other corrosion-conscious locations.
Where can I buy a Dabmar D3400 bollard?
Projekt Supply sells the Dabmar D3400 family. It is powder-coated cast aluminum, and it is the family we usually start with for commercial and multifamily pathways.
Where can I buy a Dabmar D700 bollard?
Projekt Supply sells the Dabmar D700-SS316 family. It is 316 stainless steel, and it is the family we favor for coastal and other corrosion-conscious salt-air work.
Shop the full authorized set on Dabmar bollard lighting.
