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How to Properly Choose New Light Fixtures? or is it Really a Shot in the Dark?

Any person who has remodeled their home or has embarked on building a new home from scratch knows about the varied of choices one needs to make before the project is complete. The last home I built, my 15 year old son and I lived the blueprints for 11 months. We sat up nights imagining the flow of each room, where the light switches would go, where to hang the light fixtures, what color to paint the walls, choosing the floor coverings. Every aspect affected the project in some way. So we thought it all through carefully. We walked the foundations (my son realized its was 4 feet off the day the footings were dug), measured the framing, generally ran the contractor crazy but we were certain we had all the answers until the week before the final punch list walk through the contractor asked…..what are you going to do about door knobs? Door knobs? You mean the doors didn’t come with knobs? No and the closets don’t come with ceiling lights, shelves and brackets either!

Additionally as the house took shape we realized that all of the thought we had put into light fixtures went by the wayside when the rooms took shape. Corners were dark, walls needed to be lit for anything we wanted to hang and be able to actually see, the kitchen fixture cast a shadow on the countertops which would have made cooking in the dark a newly acquired art. These faults are more prevalent in new construction but are equally important in a renovation because you can now correct all the lighting problems inherent in your existing house, with some careful thought, planning and some assistance from people that know lighting. Choosing a light fixture and planning for the right type of lighting may appear to be a challenge, but one of your greatest sources of information can be your dealer. Unlike the big box stores, who staff their lighting department with whoever isn’t working  in the plumbing department  today, lighting specialty and many internet dealers can be invaluable in providing guidance for helping you make those decisions easier. They can also be your best source for hanging heights, style, color, power needs, wattage etc.  Many can offer help in positioning of each fixture by preparing a lighting plan. Even with this help you still need to live the plan, imagine how each fixture will affect your living space. Is one recessed light to little or six too many? Lighting can be an expensive and VERY PERMANENT part of your plan. So plan carefully and seek guidance.

The fixtures will generally fall under one or more of these four categories:

1.decorative (purely ornamental)

2. task (needed to make work surfaces clear and illuminate rooms)

3. protective and/or safety lighting (outdoor fixtures such as floods, spots, porch)

4. accent (to wash a wall or shine down on a specific non-traffic area)

5. ambient (background)

6. general lighting (the misc. category covering everything else and this is the one where “murphy’s law” will prevail because you won’t realize you needed it until after its too late)

 Fixtures also come in different types:

 chandeliers

 pendants

 spotlights

track lights

 wall or ceiling-mounted (especially in bathrooms)

 fluorescents

 cabinet or undercabinet lighting fixtures.

Most of these need no further description here but do need to be thought of individually so you won’t forget that you need them. What each does require is proper selection, placement, scale, size, wiring/switching and most importantly must fit your style sensibility. Additionally, these days, more and more of us are becoming more concerned with the environment and the costs of operating a home. So ask about which lighting fixtures are most economical, consider the fixture’s illumination quality, as an example dark tinted bowls or shades cut down considerably on the quantity of light they emit. What type and size bulb does it take?  Specialty bulbs can be VERY expensive to replace. Can it utilize low voltage or compact fluorescents? Lastly and probably the most important to you is to consider the style that is most likely to weather the test of time as opposed to that “satellite shaped” flying  dining room chandelier that you thought “you just had to have” (my son chose that one).  

In summation, everyone has their own preferences when it comes to the type of lighting and the decorative style of light fixtures that best reflects their own sense of taste. The most important thing to remember is to choose effective lighting for what you want to achieve, and choose fixtures that compliment your home and can do the most to promote the environment. When in doubt seek competent professional help.

About the Author

Im a retired disabled accountant with vast knowledge in the DIY area having built several houses and worked on my own projects for 30+ years. I spend most of my days reading and responding to over 30 forums and discussion groups.
I currently author and manage a blog site for a friend's builder supply business. I include personally written articles on the subject of home and home repair along with featured specials on products offered by the company