Blue Marble Lighting Lighting Articles, Information and Links

Crystal does mean cleaning, but it doesn’t have to be too taxing if you follow these few simple guidelines to keep crystal looking its best. If you do not wish to remove the crystal components from the piece, crystal chandelier manufacturer Schonbek recommends you spray with a solution of one part isopropyl alcohol to three parts distilled water and wipe off the solution with cotton gloves. Waterford’s chief lighting designer Billy Canning says hot, soapy water will do the trick. Both manufacturers agree that special cleaning formulas aren’t necessary. Schonbek also cautions that, “A real no-no in the area of cleaning chandeliers…is if the chandelier is finished with a traditional polished gold finish or polished silver but it’s not stainless steel people will use these sprays that you can buy. Basically, what the manufacturers say is to spray the chandelier and let the stuff drip off and that cleans the crystal. But in fact what it does is ruin the frames of the chandelier.” If more aggressive cleaning is needed, the crystal parts will need to be removed from the frame. The crystals can then be hand washed in soapy water, rinsed clean and dried with a cloth. For dusting between cleanings, Schonbek recommends using a feather duster, lambs wool duster or a make-up brush.
back to top >>

How often should I clean my crystal chandelier?

According to Waterford’s Billy Canning, crystal should be cleaned every two to six months. The frequency of cleaning depends on where it is used and how easy it is to get to the piece. Extremely large pieces like 20 foot chandeliers can get away with being cleaned only once a year. Chandeliers used in kitchens will need more detailed cleaning due to oil and grease buildup, as well as dust sticking to the components due to moisture from sinks and stoves. “The beauty of crystal, of course, is the prismatic refraction of the light passing through the crystal ornament,” says Eileen Schonbek Beer of Schonbek Worldwide Lighting. “So the minute it’s got any kind of residue of dust or even moisture—like in moist climates in Florida—the humidity will cause dust to adhere to the crystal and the salt in the air will kind of make it cloudy. So you actually have to clean crystal pretty regularly.”
back to top >>

How do I select the correct size chandelier?

A chandelier can greatly change the mood of any room. It is for this reason that selecting the correct size chandelier for your room is very important. Although the decision can be based on purely a personal opinion, there are some guidelines to help you along.

One-story living rooms and bedrooms

Add the room dimensions in feet and refer to them as inches. For example, if the room is 20 by 20 feet, then add those numbers together to get 40. You should select a chandelier with a minimum 40 inch diameter.
If your ceiling is high then you can add up to six inches or you can go even bigger if the ceiling is very high.
If your space is narrow, then do not use this formula. Instead, you should consider two or more smaller chandeliers.

Dining Rooms

For an 8-foot ceiling, install the chandelier 30 inches above the table and about 34 inches for taller ceilings.
Choose a chandelier that has a diameter one-half the width of the table over which it will hang. For example, if the width of your table is 54 inches, select a chandelier that has a diameter of 27 inches.
For a banquet-style table in an elongated or oversized dining room, two or more chandeliers will work better than one. If you select chandeliers that are one-third the width of the table and hang them centered on each end of the table that would be correct.
The height of a chandelier should be about 3 inches per foot of the room’s height. Therefore, an 8 foot ceiling would have a 24 inch high chandelier.
Dining Room chandeliers should always have a dimmer switch so you can set the mood or use the room for other activities.
Keep in mind that the style and heaviness of the light fixture can also affect what size you need to go with. A visually heavy chandelier can go more towards a smaller diameter. A visually light chandelier can be a little wider in diameter.
The chandelier should provide light for the table, but not be so low as to block anyone’s line of vision when they are sitting at the table.

Foyer or Entry Hall

The size for an entrance fixture is calculated from the room size of the foyer. It is based off the ceiling size, as in many cases, the foyer is also part of the living room or stairway.
The chandelier should be at least 7 feet from the floor. If you would like to hang the chandelier high, then line up the bottom tier of candles with the balcony. If you have a tall ceiling you should follow a rule of thumb of at least 7’6” from the bottom of the light fixture.
Add the width and the length of the room together in feet and convert that figure to inches to come up with the correct width of the chandelier.
The height of a fixture should be about 3 inches per foot of the room’s height.

Personally, I prefer to go a bit larger in a more open area than the above recommended calculations.
back to top >>

What is the proper height to install wall sconces?

Sconces should be installed 60” from the floor. If you decide to use sconces to light hallways, then the sconces should be placed 8-10 feet apart.
back to top >>

How can I properly light my kitchen?

For optimal kitchen lighting, choose a fluorescent kitchen fixture or other close-to-the-ceiling fixture for general lighting. Add a flush mount fixture or recessed downlight above the sink and pendants above your dinette, island or breakfast bar. Kitchen cabinet lighting can be installed under your kitchen cabinets to create a well lit work area, above cabinets for a soft uplighting effect, or inside a glass front cabinet to highlight decorative accents or fine china.
back to top >>

How much light is needed in a kitchen?

It depends on the size. If it’s less than 100 square feet, a 2-light decorative fluorescent fixture is fine. Larger kitchens up to 250 feet will need a 4-light fluorescent fixture. Over 250 square feet will need the 4-light plus additional supplemental lighting.
back to top >>

How can I get optimal lighting in my bathroom?

For optimal bathroom lighting, bathroom fixtures that feature incandescent bulbs behind diffusers radiate the most flattering light and color. Remember that you can use more that bath strips for your next bathroom lighting project. Try sconces on either side of a mirror and a ceiling fixture for balanced lighting throughout the room. Larger baths are very popular today, and a small chandelier over the bath can create a great effect. For more in depth information, see Randall Whiteheads article below Glam Up the Bath With the Right Lighting.
back to top >>

When should I use a dimmer switch?

A dimmer switch can be used with “bright fixtures,” such as chandeliers, pendants and even bath lights, to adjust the amount of light given depending on the activity of the room. To use the dimmer switch effectively, use brighter lighting for parties or dim the lights for a quieter, more intimate setting.
back to top >>

Do dimmers provide energy and cost savings?

Yes. Dimming does provide energy savings and related cost savings. An incandescent lamp dimmed 25%, extends lamp life by 4 times and saves 20% on electricity.
back to top >>

How do I determine the correct amount of wattage to properly light a 12 ft x 16 ft room?

To find proper ambient lighting for a room, multiply the room dimensions to get your total square footage (12 ft. x 16 ft. = 192 ft). Then multiply the square footage by 1.5 for total lighting needed (192 ft x 1.5 = 288 watts). So, for a 12 ft. x 16 ft. room, two 150-watt table or floor lamps would give more than ample light (2 x 150 watts = 300 watts). Another consideration would be an 8 light chandelier with 40 watt bulbs (8 x 40 watts = 320 watts). For specific task lighting within a space (for example, the light needed on a kitchen work island), multiply the square footage of the island (8 ft x 4 ft= 32 feet) times 2.5. Two 40 watt pendants would do the job (32 ft x 2.5 = 80 watts).
back to top >>

What are some basic strategies to lighting design?

Lighting plays an essential role in our ability to perceive the world around us; the lighting system plays a critical role I how we perceive a space and can influence how we act in that space. Lighting can affect performance, mood, morale, safety, security and decisions. The first step in producing the right lighting design is ask what the space is used for.
back to top >>

What is the lifetime and efficiency of a halogen light bulb?

A halogen bulb is often 10 to 20% more efficient than an ordinary incandescent light bulb of similar voltage, wattage and life expectancy. Halogen bulbs may also have 2 to 3 times the life of ordinary light bulbs.
back to top >>

Glam Up the Bath With the Right Lighting
By Randall Whitehead

Finally, bathrooms are getting their due in the design world. Kitchens have enjoyed luxury upgrades for many years, but the bath has always seemed somehow less important. It has been seen as a purely functional space where you shower, shave, apply make-up and use the toilet. Why spend money here when there are lots of other rooms that felt more deserving? Now homeowners, in much greater numbers, are realizing that the bath can be a soothing retreat, a little oasis away from the chaos of day-to-day living. It has become the one room in the house in which you can lock the door and keep the rest of the world out without feeling guilty, at least for a little while.

The Task at Hand
I feel that well-designed lighting is of the utmost importance in the bathroom. Let’s take task lighting for instance. More often than not, people use inadequate lighting techniques for that much-needed illumination at the sink.How many times have we seen a dramatic photograph of a vanity with a recessed downlight directly over the basin? It makes for a great shot, but imagine yourself standing at the mirror with that harsh light hitting the top of your head. Remember when, as a child, you would hold a flashlight under your chin to create a scary face? Well, the same thing happens, only in reverse. Long, dark shadows appear under your eyes, nose and chin. This type of lighting is extremely bad for applying make-up or shaving and can make for a very depressing start to your day. Another typical arrangement is the use of one luminaire (this is what the lighting industry calls light fixtures to confuse consumers) surface-mounted above the mirror. This is only slightly better than a recessed light. At best, it illuminates the top half of the face, letting the bottom half fall into shadow. This is an especially hard light by which to shave, as there are only so many ways to tilt your head to catch the proper light.

For the best task lighting, use two luminaries— flanking the mirror area above the sink—to provide the necessary cross-illumination. The principle of cross-illumination on the vertical axis originated in the theater, where actors and actresses applied make-up in front of mirrors surrounded by bare bulbs screwed into porcelain sockets. In imitation of this technique, luminaire manufacturers started to put vanity light bars on the market about 30 years ago. Unfortunately, soon homes everywhere were sporting the now ubiquitous three-bulb brass or chrome bar above the mirror. Remember, these bars work best when mounted on each side of the mirror. A third bar could be mounted above the mirror, but it is not necessary for good task lighting. Any luminaire mounted above the mirror by itself is not an adequate source of work light.

A more recent trend in providing cross illumination is to wall mount translucent luminaires at eye-level on either side of the sink. These can flank a hanging mirror or be mounted on a full-wall mirror. Many new, well-designed North American and European luminaires are perfect for this type of application. To protect the homeowner from electric shock, specifiers should ensure fixtures located this close to water are installed with an instantaneous circuit shutoff, called a GFI (ground fault interrupter). Many builders and architects have a propensity for installing fluorescent or incandescent light soffits fitted with either acrylic diffusers or egg-crate louvers over vanity areas. They too mostly illuminate the top half of a person's face. A white or glossy counter can help reflect some light from below by bouncing illumination up onto the lower part of the face. You are cross lighting from top to bottom in this instance. This is not the optimum solution but a passable substitute if vertical cross-illumination is impossible to install. Remember, the more stuff that ends up on the counter, such as towels and containers, the less reflective surface there will be. And we all know how tidy our clients can be.

While the task area at the vanity is the most critical to illuminate correctly, lighting other areas of the bath bear your design consideration as well. Tubs and showers need a good task light too. For this purpose, recessed luminaires with white opal diffusers are commonly used and relatively effective. One drawback is that many of the units on the market project approximately 2 in. below the ceiling line and may not be visually comfortable. Those who are sensitive to bright light might prefer a luminaire with a lens that is flush or recessed into the ceiling. However, with such a fully recessed unit, the upper third of the shower or tub area will end up being a little dimmer, but these luminaires do reduce glare and allow bulbs of higher wattages to be used. Some companies, such as Lucifer, Juno and Iris, have developed a watertight, recessed, adjustable luminaire that uses an MR16 lamp. This allows the light to be focused.

Make sure that all luminaires in the bath are listed for damp locations by CSA, UL, ETL or other approved testing laboratories. You don’t want the fixtures to start to show signs of rusting. Another direction that has been an option for wet location lighting is fiber optics and LEDs (light emitting diodes). In the case of fiber optics, the light source is remotely located. These fiber optic luminaires can provide illumination without the danger of electric shock. LEDs have recently been introduced as part of a chromatherapy movement that allows homeowners to chose what color of light they want to be surrounded by. A few companies offer showerheads and whirlpool tubs with color-changing abilities. It’s fun, but when I dial in the red light, I feel like I am in the colorized version of the shower scene in Psycho.

Sexing Up Fluorescent
The fluorescent option is important today. California is on the leading edge of requiring homeowners (as well as commercial spaces) to be more energy efficient. As a San Francisco based lighting designer, I have been dealing with fluorescent light sources in the design, construction or remodeling of residential bathrooms (and kitchens) for many years. I know that the rest of the country has been less than enthusiastic about using fluorescent sources, but as we see the effects of global warming and the rising cost of oil, the option of using energy-efficient lighting becomes something worth considering.

I am an advocate of stealth fluorescent lighting. Let’s face it, fluorescent lamps (the lighting industry’s term for a light bulb to further confuse the consumer) are ugly. The compact fluorescents (CFLs) tend to look like long alien fingers or swirly soft ice cream cones. No matter how wonderful the quality or color of the light, the moment a client sees one, they have a negative reaction. It comes from all those years of going to school or working under banks of fluorescents that hummed, buzzed, flickered and made us look like Shrek. Fortunately, the color temperatures of many of today’s fluorescent lamps are very flattering to skin tones. In response to color-rendition criticism, most manufacturers have introduced recessed and surface-mounted luminaires that use lamps with color-correcting phosphors, including the newer CFLs. These lamps not only provide greatly improved color rendering, but they are also at least three times more energy efficient than incandescent lamps. The 13-watt version, for example, produces an amount of illumination close to a 60-watt incandescent bulb.

Many of today's luminaires use two 13-watt or one 26-watt quad lamp that puts out as much light as a 120-watt incandescent source. Because one of the color temperatures available in the CFL is close to that of an incandescent (2700K lamps), both types of light sources can be used in one bath without creating disconcerting color variations. Still, people instantly hate them when they see them. This is where the stealth part comes in. I simply hide the fluorescent lamps inside luminaires where they can’t be seen. When people can’t see them, they don’t instantly dislike them. I’ll hide them in dish-shaped alabaster pendants, opaque indirect wall sconces and white Murano-glass vanity lights. Sneaky wins every time.

The advent of the electronic ballast eliminated the hum, but it must be specified, as magnetic ballasts still hum and are still available. Most CFL quad versions are quiet and have a rapid start-up. Dimming of CFLs is now a standard option. Specifying a luminaire with a two-wire ballast allows for easy replacement of an existing incandescent fixture with a fluorescent version. A very exciting development by TCP (Technical Consumer Products Inc) is the introduction of a standard-socket, CFL that can be dimmed with an incandescent dimmer. This means luminaires that normally use incandescent sources can be retrofitted with fluorescent lamps without changing the socket, adding a dimming ballast or using a special fluorescent dimmer. The name of this amazing lamp is the Spring Lamp. These advances, along with the improved colors, long life and quiet operation, make fluorescent lighting worth a second look. Come on, you can do it!

Make Me Pretty
Indirect lighting in a bathroom adds a warm overall glow to the space. It softens the shadows on people’s faces and has the benefits of Botox without the pain. Wall sconces or cove lighting that direct light upward can provide a wonderful, gentle ambient illumination. Both of these can use miniature incandescent and halogen sources, LED or CFLs. The fluorescent choices not only comply with tighter energy restrictions but also provide comfortable low-maintenance light for the entire room. For bathrooms with higher ceilings, pendant-hung fixtures, such as the alabaster luminaire I mentioned earlier, can also be considered as a source of fill light.

Visualize
Along with this newfound need for ambient illumination comes an opportunity for accent lighting. Plants and art pieces (not affected by moisture) can be highlighted. This can add some dramatic lighting in a space that formerly was overlooked.

Window to the Sky
Often, skylights are installed to supplement or replace electric lighting during the daytime hours. Clear glass or acrylic skylights can project a hard beam of light, shaped like the skylight opening, onto the floor of the bath. Bronze-colored skylights will cast a dimmer version of the same shape, while a white opal acrylic skylight diffuses and softens the natural light, producing a more gentle light that fills the bath more completely. Existing clear or bronze skylights can be fitted with a white acrylic panel, frosted-glass window frame or a shade material to soften the incoming light. All specified skylights should have ultraviolet filters to slow the deterioration or fading of materials caused by the sun's ultraviolet rays. If the light well is deep enough, low maintenance recessed steplights using fluorescent or long-life incandescent lamps can be mounted between the diffusing material and the skylight. These inexpensive lamps can be used to keep the skylight from appearing as a dark recess in the ceiling at night.

Take a Powder
When people are entertaining, the room most frequently visited by their guests will likely be the powder room. This space can be treated differently than the other bathrooms. No serious tasks are going to be performed by guests. This is a place where people will wash their hands or check their hair and make-up before rejoining the soirée. If they come to shave, they are feeling a little too comfortable. The lights here should just provide a flattering glow. Sometimes a pair of translucent luminaires on either side of the mirror or a single wall indirect sconce will do the trick. An accent light on a piece of art or flower arrangement will add a little dramatic punch. Put the various types of lights on dimmers to allow for flexible control over the illumination levels.

The Bottom Line
The most important thing to remember in lighting the bathroom is that good illumination for tasks is numero uno, because looking good is hard work.

Randall Whitehead is a nationally known lighting designer and author. He has written seven books on the subject including Residential Lighting, A Practical Guide. He has also appeared as a guest expert on HGTV, the Discovery Channel and CNN.
back to top >>

How to Properly Light an Outdoor Area
How to Properly Design Landscape Lighting
The Good, The Bad and The Ugly
Guidelines and Common Mistakes in Residential Outdoor Lighting
By Randall Whitehead

Step one: Start by looking from the house through the windows.
One of the great benefits of exterior lighting is that it can visually expand the interior rooms of a residence. When there is no illumination outside, windows become highly reflective at night. This is known as the "black hole" effect. The windows end up reflecting the lights in the room, so that all the clients can see at night is their own reflection instead of the view beyond. People often feel boxed-in at night when they are surrounded by these "black holes". The rooms can seem smaller than they actually are. The rule of thumb is to try and balance the amount of light inside and outside the house allowing the windows to become more transparent, as they are during the day. Psychologically, too, people feel safer when they can see the yard area around them. They feel more visible inside the house when there is no lighting outside. You don't have to light up the exterior like the White House. That type of illumination would come under the heading of security lighting.

Security Lighting Is Not Pretty
Security lighting and landscape lighting are two different things and people should not use the same lights to perform both functions. A source of light that is good punch of illumination, turned on by the clients when they hear a noise outside, will serve as security lighting. They do not need to be glaring and confrontational; the main objective is to provide enough light so that homeowners can see what is causing the disturbance outside. Lighting designed to give an instant flood of light outside, is optimally controlled by a panic switch located next to the bed in the master bedroom and in the bedroom of another responsible person in the household, such as the grandparent, au pair, or oldest child. These lights can also be controlled by a "motion sensor". Security lights are to be used for safety and should not come on as part of the landscape lighting. There is nothing worse than driving up to someone's home, only to be assaulted by glaring lights mounted on the corner of the house. As a guest you may feel like you've been caught in the middle of a prison break.

Landscape Lighting should be subtle
Landscape lighting needs to be almost subliminal. Attention should be drawn to the plantings, sculpture and out-buildings, not the luminaires (this is the industry term for light fixtures). Decorative exterior luminaires such as lanterns can't do the job by themselves. They can easily overpower the facade of the house and the yard area if they are the only source of illumination.

Lanterns as architectural jewelry
Typically you will see two lanterns flanking the front door and maybe a post light at the end of the driveway. These just become disturbing hot spots that leave
everything else in silhouette. Still, they can play an important role in the overall lighting design. Their job is to create the illusion that they are providing all of the exterior lighting, when, in
reality, they should have no more than 25-watts to 45-watts worth of illumination. They should serve the same purpose as interior decorative luminaires. That
function is just an alluring glow instead of a glare bomb.

Another aspect to consider when selecting an exterior lantern is the glass. Too often, they are chosen with a clear or beveled glass. The result is that at night people only see the lamps inside, instead of the luminaire itself. If you choose a luminaire that has a frosted glass, an iridescent stained glass, or a sandblasted seedy glass, then the volume of the lantern is seen instead of just the light bulb. If the lanterns are existing on the project, it is possible to have the glass in them sandblasted. Often, mirror companies also do sandblasting as a side line. Remember to have only the inside sandblasted, a sandblasted exterior finish will show fingerprints because of the oil in our skin.

Correct sizing of exterior fixtures can be tricky. Lanterns displayed in lighting showrooms appear about 25% larger than they do when installed on a home. The eye tends to make a visual room out of the surrounding fixtures so the lantern is viewed in a very small space. If you are unsure of the right size lantern for the house or gate then cut out a piece of cardboard the size of the prospective lantern. Hang it on the house or column and then back away. View it from the street or driveway to help you get the scale right.

Step Two: Choosing the right type of lighting system
In designing the landscape lighting a decision must be made as to which voltage system will be used, 120-volt or 12-volt. If the landscaping has already been completed you should not consider the installation of a 120-volt system, it will be expensive and disruptive to the plants due to trenching as required by code. 120-volt systems require the wiring to be buried in conduit or the use of direct buried wire. Luminaires for 120-volt systems are often larger than those using 12-volt lamps. Check local codes for permit requirements. If it is a new landscape project then a 120-volt system can be considered.

12-volt lighting systems are less restrictive and installation is relatively easy. The low-voltage 12- gauge cable does not have to be buried, but hiding it under a layer of bark or a shallow layer of dirt is more visually appealing. Low-voltage systems can use much less power and may not require any additional circuits. The flexibility of a low voltage system makes altering the original lighting design feasible and easy without costly rewiring. When laying out a 12-volt system remember to include the transformer locations. Voltage drop needs be taken into consideration if it is necessary to have a run of over 100 feet. Numerous transformers offer multi-tap connections with various voltages to help keep the lights consistent in brightness.

Voltage drop - a loss of electrical current due to overload or long length runs causing lamps at the end of the run to produce a dimmer light than those at the beginning of the run. The best lighting design can combine both low voltage and line voltage sources. In most parts of the country the outside spaces can only be used at certain times of the year. The rest of the time we must be content with looking out the windows from inside the house. In order to see the outside spaces, the light level outside needs to be equal to or brighter than the indoor illumination. This is where line voltage, mounted under the eaves of the house and directed out towards the yard, can be more effective than low voltage sources. Since the house is already 120 volt. The addition of line voltage directional fixtures is pretty straight forward. In the warmer months these fixtures can stay off, letting the low voltage landscape lighting which is integrated into the foliage become the main source of illumination.

Step Three: Figure out the best way to light
There are many techniques for landscape lighting from which to choose. When working with new construction it is a good idea to specify a number of exterior rated duplex GFI (ground fault interrupter) receptacles for future landscaping or portable luminaires for parties. Also, planning ahead for switching and transformer locations will save money when the landscaping is started. Save time and money by having power lines or conduit installed under the driveway or patio before paving or bricking. Small plants and trees grow, some slowly and some rapidly. Plan for maximum growth and install smaller wattage lamps that can be replaced with higher wattages as the foliage matures. Using a variety will keep the design interesting. Using only one technique may create a too commercial looking design. Here are some options for you to consider:

Uplighting
This can be a very dramatic way of lighting trees that gives visual height to the landscaping at night. A house looks more dramatic and dimensional when tall trees can be seen illuminated above the roof line. The luminaires can be ground mounted or actually installed below-grade. These buried luminaires are known as well lights. Well lights have little or no adjustability, so they work best for mature trees. Luminaires using CFL's (compact fluorescent lamps) for tall trees and LED's (light emitting diodes) for smaller trees such as Japanese maples are offering long life and energy efficient alternative to standard incandescent sources.
Above-ground directional luminaires have a much greater flexibility and therefore do a better job for younger trees as they mature. Use shrubbery to conceal the light source from view. A below-grade junction box will allow the luminaire to be closer to ground level.

Silhouetting or Backlighting
This is a good technique to consider for topiaries, bamboo that runs along a wall or for thick leafed trees like magnolias. Washing a stone or brick wall behind greenery lets the plantings become more sculptural. Fluorescent luminaires can do a good job of wall washing, while consuming a small amount of power with a long lamp life. Remember to specify a ballast designed for low temperatures if your project is located in a cold
part of the country and use a color temperature that either compliments the plants ( a cooler Kelvin rating of 4,000K-5,000K) or the wall surface behind the plants (a warmer Kelvin rating of 2,700K to 3,500K).

Spotlighting
Try and use this technique minimally. Statues, sculpture or specimen plants deserve to be highlighted but they will tend to dominate the view as people look outside unless other lighting techniques are layered with spotlights used only to accent the special objects. Spotlights should definitely be shielded with a deep snoot and louver to avoid glare. The main objective is to see what is being illuminated instead of the source of illumination.

Path lighting
This is one lighting technique that needs to be done correctly. Too often we see walkways or driveways flanked with rows of pagoda lights as the only source of exterior illumination. This tends to look like an airport runway at night. Also since they are so glary they draw way too much attention to themselves which takes focus away from the surrounding plantings. When a pathway light is needed (and no trees or eaves are available for illumination from above) consider using an opaque mushroom-type luminaire that projects light down without drawing so much attention to the light source itself. The luminaires should not exceed 1.5 feet in height and should be installed using stakes or mounting boxes that keep them vertical. There's nothing worse that a run of tilted path lights that look a little intoxicated. Spacing of path lights will depend on the style of the luminaire and lamp options Again path lights alone are not enough. They should be used in combination with additional lighting sources will help create a more comfortable exterior environment.

Step or Stair Lighting
Fixtures can be recessed in the side walls of an exterior staircase or the steps themselves to illuminate the risers. This will provide safety as guests negotiate the stairs. There is also linear low voltage lighting (available in incandescent, fiber optic and LED versions) that can be installed under the nosing of the steps to provide a more even glow of illumination along the entire width of the steps.

Moonlighting
This is the most naturalistic way of lighting an exterior space. The effect is as if the area were being illuminated by a full moon. A dappled pattern of light and
shadow is created along pathways and over low level plantings. This is accomplished by mounting luminaires in mature trees, some pointed down to create the patterned effect and some pointed up to highlight the foliage canopy.

Step Four: Control issues
It's best not to dim exterior lighting. Many outdoor luminaires use incandescent sources. When incandescent lamps are dimmed, the light becomes more amber. The yellow cast makes the plantings look sickly. The whiter the light, the more healthy the plants look. You can divide the lights into different switching groups. A typical arrangement would be to have the decorative exterior lights on one switching group, possibly on a timer that would come on and go off even if your clients aren't home. The second group could be the accent lighting throughout the yard, and the third would be the security lighting.

Step Five: The color of light
Many times using colored filters can distort the color of plantings to an unrealistic color. One exception is when designing with incandescent sources; one filter you can consider is a daylight-blue filter. It filters out the amber hue of incandescent light to produce a blue-white light that is very complimentary to plants, making them look lush and green. This is great for areas of the country that have snow too. Nobody likes yellow snow. Many manufacturers offer daylight-blue filters as an option, normally listed at the back of the catalogue. Sometimes they are called ice-blue or color correction filters. This small addition can make a huge difference in the overall look of the landscape lighting. Also keep in mind that there are many more exterior luminaires using fluorescent. LED and HID (high intensity discharge) sources on the market suitable for residential installation. Mercury vapor and metal halide HID sources, as well as the cooler colored fluorescent and LED sources, can do a wonderful job of providing a crisp blue-white light without the need for a filter.

Step Six: In the heat of the night
When entertaining outside on colder nights having a source of heat to help take off the chill is an option worth considering. Infrared heaters made for exterior residential use are available in a variety of shapes and sizes. Two of the most popular are the umbrella-style and surface mount versions. Both are available as portable or permanently installed units. Fire pits are also becoming very popular. These very quiet products use infrared quartz, propane gas or natural gas to produce an energy efficient, low cost, form of heating that can help extend the usability of the outdoor spaces as the nights get cooler.

The bottom line
When putting a landscape lighting design together it is best to layer different techniques of lighting so that the overall look is as natural as possible. Keep it understated. An effective lighting design does look like a miniature golf course.
back to top >>

Randall Whitehead's Top Ten Lighting Tips for Outdoor Lighting

1. There is no single exterior light fixture that can perform all lighting needs in the garden. The moonlighting effect is a design method in which a number of light sources are blended together to create a natural looking design.
2. Put together a planting plan, outdoor furniture layout, and sculpture or water feature locations before attempting to create a lighting design. The lighting should relate to the way the outdoor spaces are going to be used.
3. Try to get all the players (homeowners, lighting designer, landscape designer and contractor) together. This is called team approach to design. The result is a cohesive design where all the elements work with each other.
4. Create two levels of light. One for when you are inside looking out and one for when you are actually in the garden. Most of the time we look out into our gardens because it is just too cold much of the year to be out there.
5. Choose one style adjustable shielded exterior fixture that can serve as a downlight, accent light or wall wash. Don't mix fixture types. It draws too much attention to the fixtures themselves. Only the decorative fixtures, such as the lanterns flanking the doors should be seen.
6. Always try to include some exterior lighting in the over all design even if you are working on the lighting inside of your house first. It not only keeps windows from becoming black mirrors at night, but it also visually expands the interior spaces.
7. Do not put exterior lights on dimmers. Standard incandescent light, when dimmed, becomes even more amber in color. Green plants look sickly under yellow light.
8. Locate a panic switch for security lights in the master bedroom. It's no fun running to the front door in the middle of the night to turn on the outside lights.
9. Don't just locate light switches for the main rooms and landscaping at the front door. Most people enter their homes from the garage. This is where a second set of switches should be installed.
10. Use a daylight blue, color correcting filter on the outdoor lights, which will eliminate the amber quality of incandescent light. This will keep the plants looking healthy.
back to top >>

How to Properly Light an Older Kitchen
Shedding New Light on Old Kitchens
by Carolyn Murray

Folks who rehabilitate an old house kitchen often breeze past one of the most important concerns--the lighting. It's a common oversight because lighting technology is little understood by homeowners, and lighting's potential for enhancing kitchen ambiance is often missed by architects and designers. Then, too, homeowners mistakenly believe that they have to forego a kitchen that looks of a period with the rest of the house in order to use it in a contemporary way. The truth is that with good design, common sense, and some of the latest lighting technology, your kitchen can remain the center of life in your house while providing plenty of light for your work. Even though kitchens and electric light go back over 100 years (see sidebar), none of the historic approaches will provide adequate light for the way we live today. The question, then, is how to achieve an improved quality of light while maintaining or restoring the period ambiance of your kitchen. The answer is so basic that we often miss it: Put the light where you need it. When it comes to meeting the lighting requirements of kitchens, "there is no single light fixture that can perform all the functions," according to Randall Whitehead of Lighting Design Services in San Francisco. Instead, there needs to be layers of light.

Lighting Types and Terms
There are three major types of lighting that you can layer to illuminate a kitchen. The first, ambient light, is the general light in the room. Good ambient light allows you to work safely while giving the room its period look. The second, task light, provides higher and more-focused levels of light to a particular work area. The third, accent light, is even more focused and highlights objects or areas you want to show off, such as artwork, glassware, or special pottery.

It also helps to understand some common terms people throw around when they discuss lighting. The luminaire is the light fixture, and a lamp is what most people know as a light bulb. Light has color, which is measured in degrees Kelvin and commonly summed up as being either cool or warm. The higher the temperature, the more white the light. Incandescent lamps normally produce light from 2,600K to 3,100K in temperature, a range that has a lot of yellow in it. Fluorescent lamps vary in color from 3,000K to 4,200K. Their higher numbers represent the "cool white" lamps sold in hardware stores that tend towards the blues. Fluorescent light has come a long way in the last five years, expanding tremendously in color range and installation flexibility. There are dimmable compact fluorescents, electronic ballasts that eliminate flickering, and tubes as tiny as a pencil.

Now that you grasp the basics, let's address the unique lighting challenges that owners of old-house kitchens face. Very likely, your lighting is inadequate or unpleasant. There may be a single light source, or you may be working with a remodeled kitchen that has track lights, fluorescent lights, or recessed can lights in the ceiling. If any of these are the case, you are probably working in your own shadow most of the time. You may have wiring that is not up to code or insufficient to power the light levels you want. You may want to keep a wonderful original light fixture, but it is too small for modern needs or doesn't provide
enough light. Your ceilings could be really low or really high. Or you may be working with solid masonry walls or pristine lath and plaster that you are loathe to cut into for wiring. Rest easy. There are solutions for all of these challenges.

Ambient Options
How do you use the three lighting types of light to most effectively illuminate your kitchen? Let's start with the fundamentals. Since ambient light's purpose is limited to safety and appearance, don't try to make it serve as task light. If you do, you will actually end up with less light where you need it--on the work surface. The reason is that when you stand at the counter, you will cast a shadow on your work from any light source above or behind you. However, since ambient light functions as general light, it will provide the means to give the room its period look. This is where you show off that vintage pendant or ceiling-mounted fixture that is historically appropriate for your house. Moreover, it's possible to reproduce a favorite light fixture so you have the number of luminaires you need to achieve good scale and sufficient light. (Or you might reuse it in a mud room, small hallway, or powder room.) Whatever the fixture, you can place it over a table, in the center of the room, or in a run of two or more if the kitchen is long. Then control the circuit on a dimmer for a variety of light levels. Dimmers are especially effective for creating a welcoming and flattering environment for family and friends when you open your kitchen to the rest of the house.

Another place to locate ambient light is at the top of cabinetry. Consider installing fluorescent tubes (now made as small as a T-2 size, about the diameter of a pencil), low-voltage light strips, or wall sconces on the soffit above the cabinets (an idea I picked up in Whitehead's book Lighten Up). Or, if your ceiling is very high, you can mount lighting along the inside of a crown molding to create a glow around the perimeter of the ceiling. When the ceiling is high, hang your pendant light fixtures about 7' to 7' 6" above the floor. This lends a warm, more human scale to the room. If your ceiling is very low, flush-mounted ceiling fixtures are the only possibility for light in the center of the room. When this is the case, minimize the use of upper cabinets, and put sconces on the wall at about 6' high to make the room feel more balanced.

Taking Light to Task
The next layer to tackle is task lighting--in essence, getting light to shine where you need it. First think about where you need the highest levels of light to see what you are doing, then put a light source there. The most common practice is to mount fluorescent tubes along the bottom of the upper cabinets. This is an effective approach but not the only option. Other possibilities for under-cabinet lighting are halogen light strips and low-voltage "puck" lights. Looking much like their hockey namesakes, puck lights are housings about 2 5/8" in diameter by as little as 7/8" thick that hold tiny reflector bulbs. They recess into the plywood or composite board used to make the cabinets but give off a fair amount of heat, so don't store perishable foodstuffs directly above them. A technology rarely considered for this application, but which has definite benefits, is fiber optics. Fiber optic strip lights, for example, give off no heat at all. Fiber optics works by carrying light along hair-thin filaments of glass. The light source, which can be either an MR16 up to 250 watts or a 400-watt metal halide bulb, is kept in an illuminator--a separate housing that is located in a pantry or closet. This installation makes changing bulbs or repairs delightfully simple.

With under-cabinet lighting, be sure to consider the nature of the surface material it will illuminate. If the surface is glossy, as in stainless steel and polished marble or granite, the counter will become a mirror reflecting the image of the light source. You'll avoid this problem if you aim the light on the backsplash--unless that is glossy too. Always bring the fixture forward and block the face so it doesn't shine in your eyes when you sit at a nearby table. Suppose you need light on a countertop where there are no upper cabinets. Two solutions come to mind. One is mounting wall sconces so they cast light down toward the counter. The other is discriminating use of recessed downlights. When you choose downlights, be sure they have housings with small apertures (openings). Also, make sure the color inside the housing and on the trim blends with the ceiling. For example, for a white ceiling you might pick a low-voltage downlight in a 4" aperture with white trim and inside. Mount downlights no more than 18" from the wall so they shine on the counter, not on your head. The MR16 lamp should be a flood type--that is, one that covers about a 40-degree spread. Your electrician can help you determine how many downlights you will need, but be careful not to overdo it. These fixtures are anachronisms in any historic period and best kept to a strict minimum.

Where else do you need task light? How about in closets, pantries,cabinets, or drawers? Here take advantage of small light sources, such as appliance bulbs or fiber optic heads, mounted inside these spaces and controlled with a momentary contact or jamb switch. When you open the space, the light goes on; when you close it, the light goes off. The result is very efficient and effective.

Artful Accents
The third layer of light is accent lighting--a type that can add ambiance to your kitchen very effectively. Think of the glass cabinets you plan to install. Lighting them with dimmable "puck" lights, strip lights, or fiber optics can add a warm glow to the room. If you prefer solid shelving rather than glass, follow Whitehead's advice: Rout out about 1" of the back of the shelf and install a light strip behind it. This creates a glow that runs up and down, plus it gives you back-lighting for your glass objects. You can also employ accent lighting to draw the eye to certain objects, like art or collections, or to accent a texture on a wall--perhaps old brick or stone that tells the story of your house. Accent lighting is the only type where you should consider track lights. These fixtures are now available as low-profile tracks (2" thick) and with very small heads. They do attract attention to themselves, however, and give off a lot of heat, so use them sparingly. A better solution is fiber optics. With very small heads and no heat or ultraviolet emissions, they are ideal for lighting valuable objects.

The ideas presented here vary greatly in up-front price tags, but long term cost is relative to efficiency. For example, the typical 100-watt light bulb costs around 50 cents and lasts about 700 hours--roughly 29 days of\ constant use. The T-2 fluorescent tubes mentioned above cost about $2.80 yet last about 22,000 hours. That translates into 916 days, or nearly 3 years. Another item to consider for efficiency and energy savings is the compact fluorescent. Standard line-voltage light fixtures cost less than low-voltage (6- to 24-volt) systems. Fiber optics is more expensive. Fluorescent lighting provides the most light for the least
money but has its limitations.

Before making a decision about what will work best for your own project, review all the possibilities with a lighting designer, a knowledgeable interior designer or architect, or a reputable electrician. Since a lot of these products and ideas are relatively new, be prepared for a little research too. Most important, remember that you don't have to over light the kitchen to achieve good lighting. By lighting your work, not the top of your head, you can get the light levels you need while enhancing the charm of your period kitchen.

Carolyn Murray is the principal of Heritage Design Group based in San Francisco
back to top >>

Web Design by www.pixclinic.com