Please let me know what you think about this lighting plan. Do I have too many recessed cans? Apologies for the rudimentary nature of the symbols. I hope the legend a the bottom of the first page helps. So, here's a bit more detailed explanation of my thought process. I tried to make it match the numbering on the plan Fixtures: 1. For the center kitchen light a large fluorescent fixture 2. 8- 75par30/fl clear alzak potlights for general lighting. Because, I plan to have a crystal chandelier over the DR table, I donÂt think pendants will work over the island. 3. For the sink, I'm undecided between 4" low voltage pendants or 35W downlights. But there will be 3 of them, whatever they are. 4. I will need a ceiling fan box in the LR 5. The dining room fixture will likely need to be relocated too. 6. The existing foyer light is probably fine, but I may want a track to wash the entry wall. WeÂre planning for a large piece of art over there. This is not marked on your plan because I just thought of it. . Outlets: I know that they will place outlets where they need to be to meet code, but I wanted to highlight a couple to make sure they are where needed. 7. 2 switched outlets to turn on lights in the living room 8. An outlet for the china cabinet 9. An outlet for the floating media wall An outlet for the microwave and toaster in the kitchen cubbyhole to the left of the range. Connections This next section is called connections because I donÂt know the right electrical term. But IÂm sure you will understand Connections and switches for undercabinet lights. Low profile, and hopefully low voltage. Connections for and switches lights inside the cabinets. The cabinets will also have uplights that will need to be separately controlled. I'm reading mixed reviews about LED lights but will defer to your opinion for undercabinet. If not LED, Xenon puck seem a popular option. The cabinets themselves are glass-fronted and will have lights too Appliances. I think all of these are in place except the disposal although the fridge outlet location may be need to be fine tuned. Garbage disposal Dishwasher Range hood Stove Refrigerator Switches: This is where it gets complicated. Feel free to stop me. I have identified 3 access points where, IÂd like pretty much total control over nearly all of the lights: The entry foyer and both kitchen openings. I can see thses walls looking like control panels on the Space Shuttle. Switches for sink lights and garbage disposal Switches for kitchen fluorescent, recessed lights, LR switched outlets, DR fixture Switches for kitchen fluorescent, recessed lights, LR switched outlets, LR ceiling fan, DR fixture Switches for foyer light, porch light, LR switched outlets Again, this is my very amateurish attempt. As I said, I welcome your wisdom and advice. ...

Corgimum, overall I agree that your layout is an improvement. I am not sure there would be harsh shadows over the sink, but with the light over the sink and little light coming from the sides (due to the distance from neighboring fixtures) I was thinking that hands and arms would block the light while using the sink. As for the lighting patterns, the cabinet close to the fixture would be awash in raking light, while the other flanking cabinet would get little. Also, I have a predilection for symmetry wherever possible. :-) I'm also trying to figure out the switching for the eat-in table fixture. Ideally I'd like to keep it with the rest of the switches on the right when you come in from the foyer, but with two switches there already for kitchen lighting and under-cabinet lighting it may be confusing which switch controls what.

Once again, consider the source. :-) As long as this is a true main panel, you can co-mingle the grounds and neutrals. But you already knew that. This is purely a matter of personal preference on my part, but I avoid co-mingling when I don't have to. It wasn't long ago that I upgraded the service at one of my houses (just sold the house six weeks ago, as a matter of fact!) and the old 100-amp main panel became a subpanel to a new 200-amp "main". In my other house (the one I'm living in now), I moved the service entrance location such that the feed now runs about 25' through a crawl space before reaching the main panel. As a consequence, I had to install the main breaker under the meter pan, making that the main disconnect and bonding point. Again, from a technical standpoint, my main panel became a subpanel. Needless to say, I was very happy that, in both cases, all the neutrals went to the neutral bars and all the grounds went to ground bars. It was a simple matter to unbond the bars. Even if this sort of change doesn't appear likely in the near-term future, I think it's cleaner to keep them separate. Naturally, YMMV. About the smokes: Make sure you check on the local building and electrical codes before you make this decision. Why? Because this is one of those weird issues about which different local areas take positions that are diametrically opposed to each other. Some jurisdictions require that the smokes be on circuits that are otherwise frequently used so that the occupant is likely to notice if the circuit is out of commission. Other locales mandate a dedicated circuit. Go figure! And why check building codes? It's because local fire departments have their own opinions on this issue and it is sometimes enforced by the building or fire inspector, not the electrical inspector! This is a hidden "gotcha" if there ever was one. And if anyone tells you there's a one-size-fits-all answer based only on the electrical code, don't believe 'em. I know what you mean about those big front porches on the AFCIs! As long as the tails will reach the bar, I, too, put them as far away from the congested action as I can.

Hi there. I'm by no means a lighting expert, but I can tell you my experience and hope you can benefit from my mistake. As a result of a hasty design and no research, I placed my 6" cans in the wrong spot along my cabinets. If you put the cans behind the counter - like yours are placed in the design, you will get shadows on your counter top...very annoying shadows. I then did some research and discovered that the proper placement for the counter lighting is such that the light is centered over the counter's edge. This does indeed eliminate the shadows. As for distance between cans, the simple plan would be to place your 6" cans, 6 feet apart; 4" cans, 4 feet apart, etc. This is for a standard ceiling. A taller ceiling can have them closer, but I don't know the specifics. This leads me to my next mistake which was to place the 6" cans too close together. My kitchen was too bright and I was never able to find the right combination of bulbs to satisfy my lighting needs. Upon this recent remodel, I did better research and I'm now using 4" cans spaced properly and at the right depth (from the wall out to the counter) and the first round of bulbs (standard 9 watt CFL/50 watt equiv) were perfect. HTH.