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Kitchen remodel-- are 6" recessed lights outdated? 4" or 5" better?

7 years ago

The good folks on the lighting forum seem to be quiet so I am also posting here! I could use your help! We're remodeling a 15 x 17 foot dark kitchen, and replacing dark
cabinets with off white. We will have recessed lights, 2 pendant lights
over an island, and under counter lighting. DH thinks that 6" LED recessed
lighting (8 foot ceilings) will provide better overlap. I am leaning
toward 5" or 4" recessed lighting. What are your thoughts?

Comments (5)

suzanne_sl
7 years ago
We recently went with 5" lights in a very similar kitchen and lighting arrangement to the one you're describing. 4" seemed too small and 6" too big. The 5" use the same housing as the 6", which had us stymied for a bit until we figured it out.

The critical number you're looking for is the lumens. A correct lumen choice will give you all the coverage you need. We used to use 100 or 75, etc. watt bulbs and we knew how bright that was. With LED lights, there are lumens, a different set of numbers with the same result. You're probably looking for something around 960 lumens each for your setup. We got our lights from Costco and they were about 1100 (?) lumens. When everything is turned on and up you could land an airplane in our kitchen.

The other number is a color "warmth" number. 2700 is popular in kitchens, but some people go whiter/cooler with 3000 or even higher.
patagonia2
Original Author
7 years ago
Thanks so much! But I'm wondering about something that you wrote-- what do you mean by the 5" use the same housing as the 6"?? We used the 5" in our bathroom and the diameter of the recessed lights seems smaller than our 6" lights. I'm missing something-- could you clarify? At any rate, many thanks for your advice!!!
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I have just skimmed through the responses above, so I might be missing something. Steph2000, I'm not sure if you are having trouble finding a 4" housing or a 4" retrofit LED module to work in the housing. If it's the LED module, I would think the Cooper/Halo retrofit would meet your needs. It can go just about anywhere (I have them outside and in my shower), but you can't use it in housings in direct contact with spray foam insulation. It comes in 4" but I have it in the 5"/6" with my 10' ceilings. It was recommended by my lighting specialist, and it's great. My brother used the 5"/6" in his remodel (he has 8' ceilings at the most) and it looks good there, too. The LED's are a cleaner look than regular recessed bulbs. And once they are installed and you are living with it, you spend about 0% of your time staring at the ceiling. I'll link it below. lcskaisgir, you might want to consider these LED's, regardless of your can size. Here is a link that might be useful: Cooper Halo Retrofit LED
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suzanne_sl
7 years ago
The light comes in 2 parts, the can (housing) and the light:

The 5-6" can accommodates either a 5" or a 6" light unit. Either way the ring on the outside of the light covers the underlying housing.

Installed, it looks like this

We had trouble finding 5" housings because we live in CA and needed the connector in the back that is specifically Title 24 compliant. Title 24 is an energy conservation thing and requires a connector that is LED only vs a connector that allows LED or something else. We couldn't find that in available 5" cans, but could in 6" (5-6") cans. It was very confusing there for a while.
patagonia2
Original Author
7 years ago
Got it now! Thanks very much for the pictures, and for your help!!
PRO
Joseph Corlett, LLC
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
patagonia:

I can't speak to size, but if light position is critical, I can't overemphasize using remodel cans over suzanne's pictured new work lights.

I've been in a claustrophobic Florida attic prying those mounts from trusses because the electrician didn't look at the cabinet placement drawings before installation.

Your electrician roughs in Romex, drywall over it, cabinets go in, then you pick the exact spot for the light, drill the hole, fish for the Romex, and perfect placement.

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