Some comments
Lots of recessed lighting. Could you utilize surface mounts or glimpse type disc lights?

If you're using FrontPoint, you could eliminate all the smoke and CO detectors from the line item code.

If your electrician is more comfortable with line voltage, use line voltage strips (for cove lighting as well) such as the MaxLite or eW Profile.

If you intend to use RadioRA2, you'd need to figure out if you need a repeater, get all the necessary dimmers (RRD-6NA is an adaptive phase dimmer) and specify which locations they go into. You will not need multi-way wiring.

It looks like you'll have more than 1 panel + cutoff switch

Andrew,

It is a bit hard to read your plan. It seems you have a great deal of recessed lights -- quite similar to the way we initially agreed to wire our home. We are now going to the trouble and cost to change out some of our rough-in recessed lights to fixtures and eliminating others. So our initial plan that we are unhappy with, looked a lot like what you have drawn -- sorry.

On the plus side, your quote seems very reasonable. We paid tons more to have our rough-in done (we are in Canada where everything costs more),.

You might want to try to redraw the plan or enlarge it and consider posting it on the home decorating forum as well as this one.

Do you have any sconces, or ceiling lights that offer up lighting to balance all the down lights you show (sorry I can't read the plan well enough to tell).

I have linked some videos on lighting design from Randall Whitehead

Carol

Here is a link that might be useful: Lighting design videos

Hi again,

I really hope you will consider cross-posting your plan on the home decorating forum and/or the building a home forum. There are lots of experts there who can comment.on how well your plan meets the goal of layered lighting. They may not address your more technical questions though (controls, amps, etc), which are best suited here or there may be another tech based forum for those questions. There are also a few architects and designers (vilcarter, Renovator8, Live_Wire_Oak, Pal, and others) who hang out on the building a new home forum -- who might very well make very valuable comments. So cross- posting the non technical questions on both the building a home forum and home decorating might yield you some valuable input.

Can you make the plan any bigger as well? It is hard to tell if you have sconces in the great room or not. Have you stated how high your ceilings are?

I hope you get the comments you are seeking. It is a hard stage of construction to make decisions on.

Carol

Carol - working on cross posts now. Thanks for the advice. I'm trying to find a way to make the pictures bigger but because all my .pdf's have to be converted to .jpegs and then uploaded to Flickr to post on here it shrinks everything down in size. Wish I could post .pdfs and I'd put the whole house plans up. Thanks & stay tuned - other posts should be up in a minute.

Andrew

A few have tried actually photographing their plans with a camera in sections because they had the same issue as you are having. Hope something works.

The other tech forum I was thinking about for the more tech questions in your posts was the entertainment forum. Maybe they would have some answers.

Carol

I see your other posts now, and they are clearer. You should get some responses on those more active forums, but you won't get as many on lighting topics as other topics. There seems to be less people who comment on lighting design -- maybe due to complexity. I just read one designer I follow (Maria Killam) predict that in 2015 recessed lights will be out of favour. Who knows if she will prove to be correct or not, but it was an interesting prediction. Not sure trends are important, but I have linked her article.

I would strongly advise some sconces in your plan -- they offer such nice mood lighting. The cove lighting you wrote about using in the great room (?) will be nice. Does your master bedroom have a centered fixture (could not see if the light in the centre had an R for recessed or not).

I posted these comments here rather than the other forums because I wanted to keep your new posts at the top in hopes someone with expertise (Not Me) would comment.

Have you tried bringing your lighting plan to a nice lighting store. Often they have lighting experts on staff who will help you tweak your plan (call to find out when the most experienced lighting designer is in).

Carol

Here is a link that might be useful: Pot lights and Trend Forcast

First floor -
1. Possible to use linear cove lighting or surface mount disc lights for the covered porch next to the kitchen instead of recessed cans if the area will not be used for any extensive reading at night?
2. Wash room besides mud room - just use sconces?
3. Mud room - surface mounts?

Notes on RadioRA2/ HA
1. Plan to have a structured wiring media box tucked away in a closet where you have all the necessary ethernet lines and internet service router terminated.
2. For RadioRA2 to work with FrontPoint, the main repeater needs to be connected via ethernet to your internet router.
3. Plan on having ethernet jacks in some rooms as Wifi coverage will be challenging.

Carol - thanks again for the feedback. I have made some changes and I'll note them below. Every time I look at the plan I end up removing cans and subbing out with other items. I will note that every can minus the outdoor lighting are 4" cans rather than dated looking 6" cans. (See below for update comments)

David - I never thought about that but that is a good suggestion. The ceiling will be a stained beadboard.

-I am not familiar with surface mount disc lighting or how good the technology is (I've spent all my time researching recessed and the best retrofit kits). Could you please give me a quick and dirty of the best surface mount lighting available? (Product links would be helpful as well).

-Yep - good call. Wash room is now 2 sconces and no recessed lights.

-That's a good idea on the surface mounts for mud room

- If you could please either link me to some info on them, etc. I will take them into consideration.

-David - noted on the wi-fi issues. I'm thinking of making a central control tower in the basement for all/most media equip (same idea the Control4 guys pitched me).

Some Miscellaneous Lighting Updates:
#1. 1st Floor Wash room only has 2 sconces now
#2. Dining room is only planned to have a rectangular lighting fixture hanging over dining room table for mood lighting
#3. Fixture in Foyer now and removed cans over stairs and lining steps with sconces at top/bottom of each stairway.
#4. Cans are removed from all 2nd floor bathrooms (minus water closet can) and sconces are going to be used in both master bath & guest bath (2 per vanity in master, 3 for double vanity in guest).
#5. Backside of watercloset is a make-up vanity and will use mirror with in-mirror lighting
#6. 3rd floor bath removed can, went with 2 sconces and a light in the shower.

Thanks again for your help everyone. I think this is really starting to come along well!

Andrew

Following are links for surface mount led lights
http://www.lighting.philips.com/main/prof/indoor-luminaires/surface-mounted/celino-led-bcs680-c#filters=

The disc lights are intended as either an easy substitute for recessed lighting where a traditional can cannot fit or is too expensive. Vendors include Halo, Sylvania and Lighting Science
http://www.polar-ray.com/residential-56/led-recessed-lighting/led-surface-mount-downlights.html

In addition to lighting, it would be wise to consider structured wiring for data distribution throughout the house using ethernet for
1. Video surveillance
2. WiFi APs
3. AV distribution
4. Wired internet access

The size of the media center depends on the number of ethernet drop points, ethernet switch(es) - managed or un-managed, POE or not.
Number of telephone lines.

Great advice from Davidtay. One day I will need to get my head around low voltage wiring, controls, etc.

Looks like my advice to post the lighting plan on the other forums has not yielded many comments.

This weekend, I will look through the plans the lighting designer worked out for our home (the plan to reduce the can lights and layer light better) and I will see what tips she passed to along to us that might apply to your job.

What day are your electricians coming back?

Carol