ᐅ How many lumens do you have in your living room?

Hello, I am currently wondering if our lighting is sufficient, or rather, I’m curious about what kind of lighting you have in your living room, whether hanging or standing.

Our open-plan living and dining area is about 35 square meters (375 square feet). On one side, there is a tunable white LED strip in a cove with 3600 lumens indirect light, and with an opal cover, it emits about 2800 lumens. Opposite that, we have spotlights illuminating the cabinets with a total of 2000 lumens. This forms the basic lighting. Do you think this is enough, or would it feel too dark? I specifically bought a floor lamp for the couch. Of course, there is also the lighting of the media wall.

Now I’m wondering whether to switch on the ceiling outlet above the sofa, but that would mean quite a lot of lamps.

How much light do you have around your sofa?

We only have a floor lamp in an area of similar size. That is completely sufficient.

Fortunately, we have a dimmable ceiling light from Paul Neuhaus.

It can be adjusted between 2000 and 5000 lumens. At night, it could definitely be less. In the store, the lighting was very misleading, and I thought it would be too little.

Dimmable 150W halogen light above the dining table, LED strip around the media wall, and 5W LED light between the dining and living areas (on the mini hi-fi rack). Usually, only the 5W light is on, except during meals, of course. (Total 36 m² (388 sq ft))

NoggerLoger schrieb:

Do you think this works, or would it be too dark for you?

Lumens measure luminous flux, not brightness. Whether it is too dark, too bright, or comfortable cannot be determined from this value alone. However, the amount of luminous flux is sufficient to achieve a good result if used properly.
In the photos, the lighting in the kitchen and dining area appears successful; the light distribution is accentuated yet still provides good task lighting.
The LED strip on the living room wall above the sofa seems too bright to me since it is directly visible, and visually it seems to reduce the perceived ceiling height, as it creates a distinct line just below the ceiling. It is not suitable as functional lighting, and as ambient lighting, it lacks appeal. A more indirect design and incorporating additional surfaces (for example, around the room or suggesting a connection to the outdoors) would be an improvement.
Above or near the living room table, I think accent lighting would be reasonable. Here, I am thinking more of a floor lamp than ceiling lighting. You might want to look up "Athene Bookowski."

Thanks for the feedback. Originally, the cove lighting was planned all around, but the WAF (Wife Acceptance Factor) was low in the basement because the argument was: it looks like a spaceship. So, I lowered it a bit to allow enough light to escape into the room. It is now about 15 cm (6 inches) below the ceiling. A floor lamp near the table would work, or the impression of a doorway. But when I read that some people find just a floor lamp sufficient, then the cove lighting and spotlights are enough as general lighting. I would like to measure the lux levels, but I’m not going to buy a measuring device for that.

I often think people underestimate how adaptable the eye can be at night.