Lighting plan - great electrician, not-so-great can light placement
Hello GW. Demo starts Friday and I could use some feedback on lighting.
The floorplan for the new kitchen is shown below. We want no more than 3 three-way switches (located just inside the
doors on the left and right), all with dimmers. Ceilings are 8'9".
We're planning the following 3 light sources:
Undercabinet LED strips on left wall (45" run of uppers), upper right to right wall (~10' of uppers around the corner, including a sink on right right), and in pantry on bottom wall.
Can lights -- Our electrician has recommended 4 can lights evenly spaced throughout
the kitchen, with the 2 cans near the top wall about 3' from the wall. I
disagree with this recommendation because I think 3' is too far from
the wall for countertop illumination, and because I'm not sure 4 cans is
sufficient for spots without UC lighting. Fortunately, he is great to
work
with, and I have respectfully disagreed with him in the past with good
outcomes. And I do respect his expertise.A central ceiling light over the moveable table (something simple like a schoolhouse pendant on a short rod).
Here are my specific uncertainties:
(1) Will we have enough light on the countertops where there are no uppers (and thus no UCLs)? I'm concerned about sufficient light in the 2 prep spaces on the top wall, which are in front of the 2 windows. We could put can lights about 12" from each window over these spaces - or alternatively, put a 100-watt semi-flush fixture at each spot (e.g., a semi-flush schoolhouse light to match a center-mounted schoolhouse light on a pendant rod).
(2) Will undercabinet lights be sufficient for the sink on the right? The uppers will be ~24" above the countertops there and will have UC lights.
(3) Will either cans alone - or UC lights alone - provide sufficient work light for the counterspace on the bottom wall (the pantry to the right of the fridge, which will have a countertop with stand mixer, microwave, etc.)? Similarly, I assume we need a can in front of the narrow cabinet to the left of the fridge???
If we do not have sufficient light in some places, I'm willing to add cans and/or semi-flush schoolhouse-type fixtures.
If you read this far, thank you! I welcome any and all feedback.
Comments (8)
cpartist
6 years agoRelated Discussions
Please review my lighting plan. Meeting with electrician tomorro
Comments (7)In order to provide adequate light, can lights have to be spaced in a specific way. The spacing depends on the ceiling height and the 'circle of light' produced by the can light. I googled 'recessed lighting layout' and this site from Forte Electric has good information. The website is not very professional looking but has good advice. This is from Pegasus Lighting Blog but is more general than detailed: To determine how far apart to space your recessed lights, divide the height of the ceiling by two. If a room has an 8 foot ceiling, you should space your recessed lights approximately 4 feet apart. If the ceiling is 10 feet, youâÂÂll want to put about 5 feet of space in between each fixture. For my tastes and eyesight (and age!) you may not have enough light in your kitchen. The UCL will be great but the pendants over the island may or may not provide a lot of light - it depends on the bulb wattage of the fixtures you choose. My current kitchen has only recessed lights and I sure could use more light. Plus, the cans are placed slightly beyond the the counter edges so I stand in my own shadow. I think there is a lot more to recessed lighting layout than simply placing (x) number of feet apart. Here is a link that might be useful: How to layout recessed lighting...See MoreElectrician said we need 6' can lights, this seems too big.
Comments (15)I would love to get rid of the cans PO put in the kitchen. There are six of them, and even with 50 watt flood bulbs they do a poor job of lighting the kitchen. The 120 V under-cabinet puck lights have all also failed one by one. When I went o replace one group I found zip cord in the walls with wire nuts. Looks like the fool did not have clue. They also glued together every slip joint under a bathroom lav, failed to even set the pedestal for the bathroom lav vertical (and then tiled it into the floor), and left 24 inches of granite counter supported only be the cabinet beside the DW. I have a steel frame made to support the granite, and magnets to hold the end panel onto the frame. And the PO was a patent attorney....See Moreneed lighting suggestions for cathedral great room
Comments (23)Most people aren't aware of the problems recessed lights introduce to the building as a system, mainly in upper levels or cathedral ceilings. Even AirTight, Insulation Contact rated cans leak air, it's a question of how much multiplied by how many. I agree with senior editor Martin Holladay from this blog about retrofitting recessed lighting that massive penetrations in the ceiling air barrier should be illegal. If you do have a bunch of penetrations, at least prove the home meets the minimum level of airtightness called for in international codes with a blower door test. To quote Mr. Holladay from his How to Build an Insulated Cathedral Ceiling: "Recessed can lights should never been installed in insulated rafter bays. Period, full stop, end of story. Recessed can lights take up room which should be filled with insulation; they give off heat, creating thermal hot spots in your insulated roof; and they leak air. They should be removed from your ceiling and deposited in front of a moving steam roller."...See MoreLighting for Great Room with a Great View
Comments (22)@truesmama - We have a similar situation with cathedral ceilings that are 21-22' high. Our room is only about 20 x 20' and will have a fan with a light kit. 6 can lights are installed in the ceiling. I am currently testing the following Hyperikon BR40 (https://www.amazon.com/Hyperikon-Dimmable-Equivalent-1320lm-Medium/dp/B0758XX6V3/ref=sr_1_4?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1544345368&sr=1-4&keywords=hyperikon+br40+led). They do come in many color temperatures and price points (lower price points have lower CRI). I'm also testing this Cree 120W equiv BR40 (https://www.amazon.com/Equivalent-White-Dimmable-Exceptional-Quality/dp/B07FFB6DVM/ref=sr_1_6?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1544345405&sr=1-6&keywords=cree+120w+led). Lastly, I have been testing these TANKS (https://www.amazon.com/SANSI-Non-dimmable-Basement-Warehouse-Security/dp/B075F39R39/ref=sr_1_fkmr1_3?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1544345454&sr=1-3-fkmr1&keywords=sansi+300w+led+br40). On my list to purchase to try (https://www.amazon.com/Dimmable-120%C2%B0Degree-Certified-300watts-Replacement/dp/B076PLLRJR/ref=sr_1_4?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1544345498&sr=1-4&keywords=br40+300w+led). Not to bore you. The Hyperikon BR40's would be ambient lighting. The ceiling just swallows them up. I will use them in 9 and 10' ceilings throughout the house for other purposes. The Cree was a little brighter, but still did not have enough oomph for anything other than ambience. Expensive too. The TANKS - omg, these things come in 250w and 300w (sucks 35-40w LED) and are BRIGHT BRIGHT BRIGHT. Like basketball course bright if you choose the cool temp. Only drawback HOT and non dimmable. The last one to order dims - yay, but it's really expensive and with not many reviews.... Hope this rambling helps some...See Moresalex
6 years agoRantontoo, I followed your thread closely! Thanks for posting here. That discussion is what made me start questioning the lighting plan when the electrician wanted to put cans 3' from the walls (among other considerations). I'd much rather have them right 2' from the walls to help illuminate countertops.
Cpartist, in this drawing, the red circles are where cans would go using the electrician's 3' rule. The two green circles are where I am *fairly certain* I need additional light (either cans or something more decorative light small pendant or semi-flush schoolhouse lights). The small window on the left might also need an additional green dot.
I agree about the pantry needing more light. It will have undercabinet lights (with no counter dots, Rantontoo!), but those will only light what's on the countertop and not what's inside those super deep cabinets...
salex
6 years ago
rantontoo
6 years agosalex
6 years ago
cpartist