Table lighting driving us crazy!! Help needed

16 years ago

Lighting our dining table is driving us crazy!!!

In response to an earlier post, someone recommended a strategy descibed in one of Randall Whitehead's books. He suggested using two adjustble recessed cans on either side of the central light over the table. The central light could be either a recessed downlight or a hanging fixture of some sort. The two side cans would be angled so that the lights beams shine diagonally across the table at a shallow angle. These angled side lights supposedly bouce light off the table to fill in with fewer harsh shadows.

While the side lights should be angled rather than straight down, Whitehead advised that the angle be less than 45 degrees to keep from shining in eyes. He did not specify any other numbers.

We have one 4" can with an adjustable MR16 in place, so we tried several experiments this evening. We can't seem to find the right placment or angle.

Has anyone one done this? How far from the central fixture should the lights be placed and/or how far from the ends of the table? What kind of recessed cans should we use?

Our table will be either rectangular or a long oval about 42" wide x 66-70" long. Our ceiling is just under 8' high.

We were trying to keep the angle no more than 30 degrees, but we still see some glare. If we make it less than 30 degrees, then the beams do not cross in the center of the table as shown in Whitehead's diagrams.

Our lighting store has this arrangement on display, but the ceiling is much higher so it does not really show how it would work with our own lower ceilings.

I am not sure if the small MR16 cans are right in this application as they seem rather shallow. We love them for for accenting our artwork, but I don't know if these were intended for over a table.

We are planning to use 6-inch black Alzak deep cones in other parts of the room as we like having the bulb up high out of sight. I don't know of any adjustable trims that put the bulb deep up into the can, however.

Please share recommendations for what type of cans/trims to use over the table and where to place them.

Any other suggestions??

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Comments (6)

dim4fun
16 years ago
If the crossed fixtures don't work for you then it OK to use these fixtures to point straight down to create pools of light on the table below. This is a very nice display effect for holiday meals or any other meal with pretty glasses, dishes and food. The crisp halogen light source focused on the table looks great and the chandelier lights everyone's faces.
dibgar
Original Author
16 years ago
Thanks, dim4fun.

The table is used for all meals but it also is used for grading papers, paying bills and other tasks. Having good light is important for a variety of reasons so I hope to have some flexibility in lighting this area. Just a central chadelier doesn't seem to be enough, so I think we would like to use the downlights at the ends as you suggest.

Now, if we can just figure out where to place them.

If we use recessed cans straight down, where should they be placed--near the ends of the table or pulled in closer to the central fixture?

Other cans in the room will be 6-inch deep black alzak cones. Would these be appropriate to use as the two end fixtures or should we use something smaller over the table?

I want the central fixture to be something that will light everyone's faces, but how low do I need to go to make that happen? Our ceilings are not quite 8 feet high. I would prefer to keep a fixture closer to the ceiling to avoid blocking the view of art on the wall behind the table. If I keep it close to the ceiling, however, will I lose the benefit of lighting people's faces?

People vs tasks vs artistic aesthetics--we need to find a happy medium!

We need something that will give us enough light to complete our tasks (eating, reading the newspaper, grading term papers, paying bills, etc.). At the same time, we want a pleasant place for the people (flattering light without glare). Creating an artistic view from across the room is the least important variable, but it would be nice.

Again, thanks for your suggestion.
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green-zeus
16 years ago
My kitchen has an 8' ceiling and I have 2 rows of 3 adjustable cans. You can point the light where it is the best over the table. If, at times, you don't want as much light you can put them on a dimmer. Mine have 65 watt floods in them. It gives great lighting over the table--even for grading papers!!!
dibgar
Original Author
16 years ago
Thank you, green-zeus. I also saw your response on the kitchen formum.

What kind of cans do you have? What style trims? How closely are they spaced? Are the rows of cans over the table itself or off around the edges? If you have them angled, do you get much glare in eyes?

We are using 6" deep cones in other parts of the room, but I don't know if they can be adjusted. Do we need different trims in this area?

The electrician arrived a little while ago. He has plenty to do in the main kitchen, but I hope he also will get to the family/dining room before he leaves.
dim4fun
16 years ago
Dining fixtures are normally 5' above the finished floor which leaves 30" between bottom of chandelier and the table. This allows for a centerpiece below the fixture. Your table is not long enough to have any choices about where to put the recessed fixtures. Put them where they clear the chandelier diameter. Don't put them over the heads of people seated at the ends of the table. They need to be in front of seated guests. Because of the crowding 4" fixtures might be best.
dibgar
Original Author
16 years ago
I went back to the lighting store yesterday to check out chandeliers, but all seemed too intrusive in our space.

At one point I thought about using a semiflush fixture, but the saleswoman said that such a fixture probably wouldn't give us the effect we are seeking. While a semi-flush fixture would bounce some ambient light off the ceiling, it probably would not provide the fill light we want at the level of people's faces. She said we really would need a lower chandelier for that purpose.

She suggested that we go with just the recessed cans over the table for now. We will put the preliminary wiring in place so that we can go back later to add a chandelier if we decide to use one. This buys us some time and it will be easier to pick a fixture after we see everything else in place.

Table lighting driving us crazy!! Help needed

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Table lighting driving us crazy!! Help needed

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