Alternative to 'Swiss cheese' lighting

17 years ago

I hate the idea of making my ceiling look like Swiss cheese. We recently had a lighting designer advise us on new construction lighting. She put recessed cans everywhere! I don't mind having them in areas where you can't see the ceiling holes (such as in confined narrow spaces like hallways), but in large exposed areas like our 11' high, 30' long living room, she felt cans were necessary (evidently a single, large chandelier, 4 wall sconces, and several lamps were not enough). After I crossed them out of her plan, our builder cautioned that we would be under-lighting. Are we? Has anyone installed something other than cans (in large or small spaces) and was that light source sufficient?

Also, are cans the "cheaters method" for ensuring sufficient lighting? I quickly flipped through several issues of Architectural Digest and could not find one instance of what, in my mind, seems like a dependence on canned lighting to solve all potential lighting issues.

I would appreciate your feedback and perhaps photos of examples where canned lighting is the best alternative.

Thank you.

Mrs. Blandings

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Comments (5)

texasredhead
17 years ago
Amen, Mrs. Blandings. First, let me say, we are electricians in Dallas, and have installed more cans than I care to count. This seems to be the "thing" to do. Recessed cans largly produce what is called ambient light, that is non purpose related lighting such as a floor lamp or table lamp where you might read or do a cross word. If you like the light level produced by a chandelier and sconces, do not let yourself be talked into something you don't like. In our situation it is not our place to talk people into some lighting scheme.

Now, I,m in the business and could have cans all over the place. We have none. In every room we have overhead light produced by chandeliers, very nice light fixtures or light fixtures attached to ceiling fans.

In one home we even installed eight 6" cans in a large walk-in closet AND a chandelier.
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dim4fun
17 years ago
Choose your lighting designer with the same care as for any other professional service. You need to see their portfolio and spend some time talking about your wishes, and listening to their ideas. There are software tools to allow a designer to calculate the light needed for specific rooms and tasks and show how different fixtures can accomplish the goal. There is no need to guess. Some designers have been through this enough to where they have a good feel for what works and what doesn't in similar areas with similar fixtures. Different types of lighting in a room may be intended to accomplish different tasks and there are many different kinds of recessed fixtures and sizes. You may need more qualified design help or to listen carefully to the basis for the design. Because you came here to post tells me your designer didn't or can't explain the design. Ask them to justify all of the lighting and explain what each type of light is for and how it affects the room.
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danimal
17 years ago
Your living room is a fantastic example of a space where recessed cans don't work well as the primary source of ambient light. With ceilings so high, you have an opportunity to illuminate the ceiling with indirect pendant lighting, wall sconces, etc. Use can lights for what they are good for - display and task lighting.
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nepool
17 years ago
I am with Mrs. Blandings! My setup is completely different than her's, but I feel the same way. Am I making a mistake by not adding recessed lights during my kitchen remodel?

Right now I have 1 light over the sink, 1 large overhead light in the center of the kitchen work area (U shaped kitchen) and one overhead light over the adjoining kitchen table. In the new kitchen, I will have an island (under where the current overhead light is), same sink position, same table position.

I was thinking my new lighting would be: 1 light over sink, undercabinet lights, 1 chandelier or pendants over island, 1 coordinating chandelier over kitchen table. Everyone (on this site and every new kitchen I see) seems to have all that PLUS a ton of recessed lights? What are their purpose? Do they really help you see better when you are cooking? Am I making a huge mistake by omiting them? My ceilings are low... 7 1/2 feet.

Thanks so much for your input... don't want to offend anyone, but, sometimes I think of recessed lights as ceiling acne :) Also, I had bad experiences with HOT recessed lights at a friend's house. I felt like I was in Cancun.
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modernhouse
17 years ago
I am also going through the exercise of putting together a lighting plan for my house. For ambient lighting, there are many alternatives other than recessed cans.

For your high ceilings, consider using semi-flush ceiling pendants that provide mostly up-lighting with some down-light. Something with an alabaster or frosted white bowl. With this type of lighting, a light ceiling color will greatly enhance the amount of reflected light. I would tend to lean towards over-lighting but have dimmers on these lamps in order to adjust the light level to my liking.

One reason designers may like to recommend recessed cans is that they do no have to worry about finding a light fixture that you the customer would approve. This is no small task, as there seem to be thousands of different fixtures available. Also, it is relatively easy to calculate the light coverage and spacing necessary using a given recessed fixture, light bulb type, and wattage.
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Alternative to 'Swiss cheese' lighting

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texasredhead

dim4fun

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