ᐅ Lighting Planning in New Construction – How Did You Approach It?
Created on: 23 Mar 2018 11:33
A
Annsterdam
Hello everyone,
who can assist us with lighting planning?
How did you approach your lighting design? Did you decide on your own, or did you hire professionals for it?
Generally speaking, the question is whether everything should be planned to be as bright as possible, or if, for example, the living room doesn’t need to be that bright.
We have already come up with some ideas, but we are still lacking inspiration.
1. In the hallways and the main bathroom, we are considering installing surface-mounted spotlights.
Recessed spotlights are quite expensive and less flexible for changes later on.
What do you think about this approach?
2. Along the staircase, we also want to install spotlights, probably with motion sensors near the steps. I have also seen lights installed under the steps, which I find really stylish. What makes sense here in your opinion?
3. What do you think about wall lights / sconces? Where and how could they be used to be effective and not look outdated?
4. Do you have any ideas regarding indirect lighting? Maybe in the living room or the bathroom?
I think indirect lighting is very elegant, but unfortunately I’m lacking good ideas here as well.
I have so many more points about lighting, but it’s probably not useful to write everything in one text block. Therefore, I would appreciate your help with these first points.
Best regards,
Anne
who can assist us with lighting planning?
How did you approach your lighting design? Did you decide on your own, or did you hire professionals for it?
Generally speaking, the question is whether everything should be planned to be as bright as possible, or if, for example, the living room doesn’t need to be that bright.
We have already come up with some ideas, but we are still lacking inspiration.
1. In the hallways and the main bathroom, we are considering installing surface-mounted spotlights.
Recessed spotlights are quite expensive and less flexible for changes later on.
What do you think about this approach?
2. Along the staircase, we also want to install spotlights, probably with motion sensors near the steps. I have also seen lights installed under the steps, which I find really stylish. What makes sense here in your opinion?
3. What do you think about wall lights / sconces? Where and how could they be used to be effective and not look outdated?
4. Do you have any ideas regarding indirect lighting? Maybe in the living room or the bathroom?
I think indirect lighting is very elegant, but unfortunately I’m lacking good ideas here as well.
I have so many more points about lighting, but it’s probably not useful to write everything in one text block. Therefore, I would appreciate your help with these first points.
Best regards,
Anne
C
cybergnom24 Mar 2018 20:11It largely depends on which perspective you identify with. Either you have the attitude: press a switch and the room is lit. Or you pay more attention to the lighting.
Since I am 100% convinced that lighting has a very significant impact on well-being, I belong to the second group. At first, my girlfriend wasn’t convinced at all, but after visiting several exhibitions, she now agrees with me.
Because we see lighting as a central element of the house, we are having it planned by a professional and have also allocated an appropriate budget. It’s not enough to just have a plan and great fixtures. The whole system also needs to be controlled intelligently (in our case, KNX).
In my opinion, if lighting plays only a minor role, there is no need for an external planner. You can manage that yourself quite easily with some common sense…
Since I am 100% convinced that lighting has a very significant impact on well-being, I belong to the second group. At first, my girlfriend wasn’t convinced at all, but after visiting several exhibitions, she now agrees with me.
Because we see lighting as a central element of the house, we are having it planned by a professional and have also allocated an appropriate budget. It’s not enough to just have a plan and great fixtures. The whole system also needs to be controlled intelligently (in our case, KNX).
In my opinion, if lighting plays only a minor role, there is no need for an external planner. You can manage that yourself quite easily with some common sense…
To be honest: in the typical renter’s situation (ceiling outlets usually placed centrally everywhere, with a few wall outlets retrofitted), I’ve never been left in such darkness or had such uncomfortable lighting that I thought: I need to build a house just so the lights can finally be positioned correctly.
It seems to me that lighting design is being heavily hyped lately, especially with the trend of recessed spotlights.
If I were to build now, what I would probably do is apply the concept of empty conduit pipes not only in the walls but also in the ceilings. That means potentially having multiple ceiling outlets that can be activated as needed. Then you wouldn’t need a “cable mess” if the ceiling light doesn’t belong in the center anymore.
But first, going to an astrologer or consulting an oracle on how to best compose your light show—that seems like a thing of the “planned cesarean single-child generation.”
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
It seems to me that lighting design is being heavily hyped lately, especially with the trend of recessed spotlights.
If I were to build now, what I would probably do is apply the concept of empty conduit pipes not only in the walls but also in the ceilings. That means potentially having multiple ceiling outlets that can be activated as needed. Then you wouldn’t need a “cable mess” if the ceiling light doesn’t belong in the center anymore.
But first, going to an astrologer or consulting an oracle on how to best compose your light show—that seems like a thing of the “planned cesarean single-child generation.”
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
G
garfunkel25 Mar 2018 01:1511ant schrieb:
If I were building now, I would probably apply the concept of conduit pipes not only in walls but also in ceilings. So potentially multiple ceiling outlets that can be activated as needed. That way, you don’t need a "monkey swing" if the ceiling lamp is no longer wanted in the center. I think that’s a good idea and I did it the same way.
Overall, I would generally set up two lighting circuits. One indirect, subtle or mood lighting circuit, and one for "bright" lighting.
I think you can keep spotlights to a minimum. In any case, the internet offers many lamps, sometimes even affordable ones, that simply look good.
Nice lamps can definitely enhance a room significantly.
For inspiration, I would search a lot online. That way you can better realize your own ideas later. Planning services would be too expensive for me since I believe you can do it yourself.
Although, this is also a matter of cost—you can really spend a lot of money here.
I see this differently. Light, specifically its wavelength, has been scientifically proven to have a significant impact on human well-being and health/performance. This doesn’t mean that a ceiling outlet in the center of the room is unhealthy, but there are certainly other, possibly “better” options. Those who want this should consult a lighting designer and invest their money wisely (assuming the designer is competent), as they will receive added value for themselves. This value is subjective. If someone doesn’t recognize this added value, they simply don’t pursue it. It has nothing to do with trends or stereotypes like “you haven’t seen Generation Y.”
One person may like smart homes and will go to a system integrator or do it themselves; another prefers a fireplace and will consult a stove builder or visit a hardware store; a third may go to a carpenter for custom furniture or to IKEA and “lose” 5cm (2 inches). Some furnish their home themselves, while others hire an interior designer. All are legitimate approaches, independent of generation or fashion, but rather based on individual preference and, equally, personal budget.
One person may like smart homes and will go to a system integrator or do it themselves; another prefers a fireplace and will consult a stove builder or visit a hardware store; a third may go to a carpenter for custom furniture or to IKEA and “lose” 5cm (2 inches). Some furnish their home themselves, while others hire an interior designer. All are legitimate approaches, independent of generation or fashion, but rather based on individual preference and, equally, personal budget.
garfunkel schrieb:
Planning would be too expensive for me because I believe it’s something you can do yourself Some of the work that so-called "lighting designers" do (drawing shopping lists for designer lamps into floor plans) is like that, yes. You can certainly get value for money under the same title, but most home builders are not gallery owners and don’t need their Kujaus lit in a way that anyone would mistake them for real Rembrandts.
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
I planned the lighting myself.
With a bit more life experience through age and living, I know that there is task lighting, ambient lighting, necessary lighting in storage rooms, as well as the obligatory pendant light over the dining table, and that coziness cannot come from overhead lighting alone.
The standard with the general contractor is centrally positioned ceiling outlets in the rooms. We have basically kept this. In the wide kitchen, they are divided into two, and in the living room they are shifted slightly. The fact after four years is: hardly any ceiling lights are used, except for the pendant light over the dining table and in the WC and utility room.
What we actually use are task lights in the kitchen under the wall cabinets and the range hood. Living room: two table lamps plus a floor lamp for reading.
Hallway/stairs: wall outlets, 5 units each with 3-watt LEDs.
In the office, we have two floor lamps and a table lamp on the windowsill.
In the bathroom and bedroom we have recessed spotlights due to the low ceiling height, but these are rarely turned on except during ironing. Instead, we tend to use bedside lamps that can be switched both at the door and at the head of the bed, the mirror light in the bathroom, and a wall outlet.
For us, lighting is mostly cozy and comes from no higher than 1.80 meters (5 feet 11 inches). We find this comfortable and suitable for the daily routine. A positive side effect: no sleep disturbances [emoji4]
I like beautiful lamps... these do not include recessed lights but rather fixtures that emit light as objects. It took me three years to find great lamps that are both design-worthy and affordable (discontinued models on private sales like vente-privee, Westwing). One is still missing over the dining table: a pendant from Ikea for $5.99, which elsewhere might cost around $99.
Sometimes I feel I should have paid more attention to indirect lighting (and corresponding power outlets). Then I hold one of those many (colorful) LEDs in the store and realize that I don’t want harsh, glaring, or colorful light at all. In the walk-in closet and kitchen, we had extra switchable outlets installed, which still haven’t been used because the lighting we have is sufficient for work and as accent lighting.
Example: in the kitchen, we have one of our many globe lamps on a cabinet. It is on as accent lighting from 7:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m., and also from 4:00 a.m. to 6:30 a.m.; it is sufficient for coziness, emergency lighting for a kitchen trip, accent lighting for the living room due to the open plan, and a signal that the house is occupied for potential burglars. The switching times are adjusted about twice a year by a $3.99 timer plug.
With a bit more life experience through age and living, I know that there is task lighting, ambient lighting, necessary lighting in storage rooms, as well as the obligatory pendant light over the dining table, and that coziness cannot come from overhead lighting alone.
The standard with the general contractor is centrally positioned ceiling outlets in the rooms. We have basically kept this. In the wide kitchen, they are divided into two, and in the living room they are shifted slightly. The fact after four years is: hardly any ceiling lights are used, except for the pendant light over the dining table and in the WC and utility room.
What we actually use are task lights in the kitchen under the wall cabinets and the range hood. Living room: two table lamps plus a floor lamp for reading.
Hallway/stairs: wall outlets, 5 units each with 3-watt LEDs.
In the office, we have two floor lamps and a table lamp on the windowsill.
In the bathroom and bedroom we have recessed spotlights due to the low ceiling height, but these are rarely turned on except during ironing. Instead, we tend to use bedside lamps that can be switched both at the door and at the head of the bed, the mirror light in the bathroom, and a wall outlet.
For us, lighting is mostly cozy and comes from no higher than 1.80 meters (5 feet 11 inches). We find this comfortable and suitable for the daily routine. A positive side effect: no sleep disturbances [emoji4]
I like beautiful lamps... these do not include recessed lights but rather fixtures that emit light as objects. It took me three years to find great lamps that are both design-worthy and affordable (discontinued models on private sales like vente-privee, Westwing). One is still missing over the dining table: a pendant from Ikea for $5.99, which elsewhere might cost around $99.
Sometimes I feel I should have paid more attention to indirect lighting (and corresponding power outlets). Then I hold one of those many (colorful) LEDs in the store and realize that I don’t want harsh, glaring, or colorful light at all. In the walk-in closet and kitchen, we had extra switchable outlets installed, which still haven’t been used because the lighting we have is sufficient for work and as accent lighting.
Example: in the kitchen, we have one of our many globe lamps on a cabinet. It is on as accent lighting from 7:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m., and also from 4:00 a.m. to 6:30 a.m.; it is sufficient for coziness, emergency lighting for a kitchen trip, accent lighting for the living room due to the open plan, and a signal that the house is occupied for potential burglars. The switching times are adjusted about twice a year by a $3.99 timer plug.
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