Fallout 4 Workshop: How to Power Lights

If you’ve dedicated a lot of time to playing Fallout 4, chances are you’ve searched for resources and built a sizable, well-protected settlement for your community. Yet, you might encounter a problem providing electricity to all the lights in your settlement. While building structures is simple enough, powering the lights in your settlement can be challenging, leaving you in the dark. Fortunately, we can help shed some light on this problem with a brief guide on how to power lights using the Fallout 4 workshop.

How to Power Lights in Fallout 4

The first step you need to take is building a generator of sufficient power for all items that need power in your settlement. Luckily, unless you’re using spotlights, lights only require a general connection to power and won’t use Power Units from the generator. In most cases, you can go with a small generator, but building a big generator might be a better use of resources to power your other items that use power units. In this case, I recommend you look at all items you want to place in your settlement and then count the Power Units required for all items that need power. A Power Unit is represented by the Lightning Bolt icon with a number next to it when viewing it in the workshop.

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I found the best way to power lights is by using a single generator, power pylon, switch, and power conduit in this order: Generator -> Power Pylon -> Switch -> Power Conduit. Any lights or items in the range will gain power when the connection is made, and you can power them down using the switch whenever you fancy. This won’t work with items like terminals because they need a direct connection to a power source. Still, this method allows you to power many items without the need for ugly wires or unnecessary generators.

That’s all you need to know about how to power lights in Fallout 4. While this is just a basic setup, you can use these tips to expand your settlement into a massive multi-level base that will be a beacon of hope for lost settlers in The Commonwealth.

Author’s Note: I wrote this guide while playing Fallout 4 on Steam Deck.