Hello,
Although the start of construction is still a while away, gathering information and ideas certainly can’t hurt.
We are building a single-family house with an attached garage, but so far, we haven’t had any contact with the company itself or their craftsmen/electricians.
I would really like to have lighting on the staircase, but I am not yet informed about the various options.
It will be a floating staircase (prefabricated stair system), and I would like the lighting to run from the ground floor to the first floor and from the first floor to the attic. I want it to have a “cozy” feel, possibly dimmable?
Mainly, it should be useful for when we or the “little one” want to go to the fridge in the evening, so it shouldn’t be too bright or harsh.
From some quick online research, I found out that there are LED handrails, and when I visited the model home park, I mostly saw lights integrated into the walls.
Since we are both completely unskilled in DIY, this will definitely be done by an electrician and should not be a DIY project.
We need to submit the electrical plan shortly before construction starts, and to avoid time pressure or forgetting something, I’m interested in:
1. What lighting options are available for the staircase?
2. What connections are needed for each option?
3. Are these LED handrails recommended?
I think that’s it for now; sorry if I forgot anything.
Best regards,
Madira
Although the start of construction is still a while away, gathering information and ideas certainly can’t hurt.
We are building a single-family house with an attached garage, but so far, we haven’t had any contact with the company itself or their craftsmen/electricians.
I would really like to have lighting on the staircase, but I am not yet informed about the various options.
It will be a floating staircase (prefabricated stair system), and I would like the lighting to run from the ground floor to the first floor and from the first floor to the attic. I want it to have a “cozy” feel, possibly dimmable?
Mainly, it should be useful for when we or the “little one” want to go to the fridge in the evening, so it shouldn’t be too bright or harsh.
From some quick online research, I found out that there are LED handrails, and when I visited the model home park, I mostly saw lights integrated into the walls.
Since we are both completely unskilled in DIY, this will definitely be done by an electrician and should not be a DIY project.
We need to submit the electrical plan shortly before construction starts, and to avoid time pressure or forgetting something, I’m interested in:
1. What lighting options are available for the staircase?
2. What connections are needed for each option?
3. Are these LED handrails recommended?
I think that’s it for now; sorry if I forgot anything.
Best regards,
Madira
Hello Madira,
First of all: Stair lighting is very practical and also adds an important safety feature.
We have the lighting installed in the wall above the steps. LED, not dimmable. Four light fixtures, each operated with 1.5 watts LED. They can be switched off and are equipped with a twilight sensor. Of course, you can install more lights, but in my opinion, that’s not necessary. The important thing is that it works well and serves its purpose. It also looks decorative this way.
In show homes, I have seen many examples. Wall lighting is the most common. But lights integrated into the steps themselves (on the front edge, underneath) look very nice as well.
I have no personal experience with LED handrail lighting.
For me, the most important aspect of this kind of lighting is that the steps are well illuminated. I’m not sure if handrail lighting achieves this effectively. You would need to check what beam angle the lights have.
Best regards,
Thorsten
PS: I briefly looked into it. There are various systems available for handrails. Some provide good illumination and are very decorative!
First of all: Stair lighting is very practical and also adds an important safety feature.
We have the lighting installed in the wall above the steps. LED, not dimmable. Four light fixtures, each operated with 1.5 watts LED. They can be switched off and are equipped with a twilight sensor. Of course, you can install more lights, but in my opinion, that’s not necessary. The important thing is that it works well and serves its purpose. It also looks decorative this way.
In show homes, I have seen many examples. Wall lighting is the most common. But lights integrated into the steps themselves (on the front edge, underneath) look very nice as well.
I have no personal experience with LED handrail lighting.
For me, the most important aspect of this kind of lighting is that the steps are well illuminated. I’m not sure if handrail lighting achieves this effectively. You would need to check what beam angle the lights have.
Best regards,
Thorsten
PS: I briefly looked into it. There are various systems available for handrails. Some provide good illumination and are very decorative!
We have our stair lighting installed in the wall above the steps. We use six LEDs – not dimmable. Our staircase goes up in a U-shape with walls on two sides. We are happy with this solution and don’t miss the dimming function because the LEDs provide enough light without being too bright.
Regarding lighting integrated into the handrail or the steps themselves, I have some concerns that these lights might suffer from constant use and wear. For example, when carrying heavy items or luggage up the stairs, it’s possible to bump into them. On the other hand, I’ve slipped on a step before, and the heel of my shoe could potentially have damaged the light. Occasionally, you might also need to walk up with “dirty shoes,” which could cause the fixtures to get dirty. Talking about dirt: if a little child (still small) grabs the handrail with dirty or chocolate-covered hands…
It doesn’t have to happen, but it can. That would be frustrating.
How easy is it to replace LEDs integrated into a handrail or stair step? Is this even possible?
Many “regular” lights are designed as disposable products. If an LED fails, the whole fixture often has to be thrown away.
Regarding lighting integrated into the handrail or the steps themselves, I have some concerns that these lights might suffer from constant use and wear. For example, when carrying heavy items or luggage up the stairs, it’s possible to bump into them. On the other hand, I’ve slipped on a step before, and the heel of my shoe could potentially have damaged the light. Occasionally, you might also need to walk up with “dirty shoes,” which could cause the fixtures to get dirty. Talking about dirt: if a little child (still small) grabs the handrail with dirty or chocolate-covered hands…
It doesn’t have to happen, but it can. That would be frustrating.
How easy is it to replace LEDs integrated into a handrail or stair step? Is this even possible?
Many “regular” lights are designed as disposable products. If an LED fails, the whole fixture often has to be thrown away.
f-pNo schrieb:
We are happy with the solution and don’t miss the dimmer function since the LEDs provide enough light without being too bright.Exactly. Very little light is actually sufficient here.
At the time, I thought the dusk sensor would be enough, turning the light on when it got dark.
But we have a cat. Cats don’t like closed doors. Both light and cats pass easily through open doors: the stair lighting started to disturb my sleep, even though it was only a total of 6 watts of LED.
So in August ’15, I had a switch installed afterwards. Only upstairs. That’s enough. Turn it off before going to bed. If you get up during the night: switch it on.
In the morning, switch it on as well, then the light will turn on automatically again in the evening.
The safety benefit of such lighting cannot be emphasized enough. Clearly visible steps in the dark or at night: brilliant.
Best regards
Thorsten
Thank you both very much.
So, illuminated steps or those that light up when you step on them definitely aren’t necessary and are probably quite expensive as well.
May I ask how many steps you have? We have an open staircase (so the steps are not closed) and according to the master plan, there should be 14 steps.
Maybe, if the lights are meant for the wall, one light every third step?
Are there special lights for this? Especially ones with a dusk-to-dawn function?
By switch, do you mean a regular on/off switch?
According to the scope of work description, no handrails are planned on the right wall (exterior wall), which is why I thought these LED handrails might be practical.
What beam angle would you recommend?
There might be a company nearby that sells this kind of product, so I could possibly take a closer look—internet pictures look nice, but they’re often edited.
Regarding dirt buildup—wouldn’t it actually be better to have the chocolate-colored fingerprints on the handrail (which can be washed) instead of on the "white" wall?
Our “little one” is still 5 but will be 6 or 7 by the time we move.
So, illuminated steps or those that light up when you step on them definitely aren’t necessary and are probably quite expensive as well.
May I ask how many steps you have? We have an open staircase (so the steps are not closed) and according to the master plan, there should be 14 steps.
Maybe, if the lights are meant for the wall, one light every third step?
Are there special lights for this? Especially ones with a dusk-to-dawn function?
By switch, do you mean a regular on/off switch?
According to the scope of work description, no handrails are planned on the right wall (exterior wall), which is why I thought these LED handrails might be practical.
What beam angle would you recommend?
There might be a company nearby that sells this kind of product, so I could possibly take a closer look—internet pictures look nice, but they’re often edited.
Regarding dirt buildup—wouldn’t it actually be better to have the chocolate-colored fingerprints on the handrail (which can be washed) instead of on the "white" wall?
Our “little one” is still 5 but will be 6 or 7 by the time we move.
Madira schrieb:
Regarding the dirt – wouldn’t it actually be better to have the chocolate fingers on the handrail, where they can be washed off, instead of on the "white" wall?
Definitely. Even better, though, if the lights don’t get stained by the chocolate fingers.
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