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spencer_electrician

lighting art in an entry way, anyone like the apurure style trims

A few years ago in our small entryway, 9 feet long and 4 feet wide I decided to add 4 can lights down the middle. My idea was to have the original central light fixture at a nice looking glow but have brightly lit art work at the same time. I messed up and got what I thought were the par16 eyeball trims but really they are wide and use par20s. The cans are 4 inch line voltage. Now it is just a really bright entryway but no real distinction in what is lit. I would like the most pin point like trim possible. I've seen the apurture type trim online but have never installed one at any of the homes I have wired. Would these be able to focus on individual 3 foot wide art down the hall? I would like to have 2 of the cans lighting art on the left wall and the other 2 lighting art on the right wall. The center light fixture provides general illumination.

Heres the light I'm talking about

http://lbclighting.com/NS-47.html

Thanks

Comments (3)

  • dim4fun
    17 years ago

    Hi Spencer,

    A Par 20 lamp is too long to be aimed at wall art in a 4" housing. It won't pivot enough without hitting the side of the can. How did you aim at the walls with what you have now? Nora must be including a short whip with the slot aperture trim to convert to a line voltage GU10 base MR16 because that type of slot aperture trim only works with small lamps like the MR16.

    Check on the adjustment range for the trim and wattage limit with the combination. You may be limited to 35 watts. To dramatize and call attention to something accent lighting needs to boost the lumens on the subject well above the surroundings to bring your eye to it. You may need to dim the center fixture to help compensate so that the art stands out if I understand the look you want of spotted paintings glowing more intensly than the surroundings rather than the general wash of light you have now.

    Different brands and styles of trims have different ranges of adjustments. Normally the slot aperture has the largest of the adjustment ranges and may go to 40 or 45 degrees without blocking the lamp so this should be a good choice. Other trims claim 35 or more degrees but may partially block the lamp.

  • spencer_electrician
    Original Author
    17 years ago

    Right now they are not really aimed at all except to the left or to the right. In the living room I used halo eyeballs that use a par 16 bulb and they work really well except they have a longer throw to get the light to the right location. It says on that link that it uses a par 20 bulb in the aperture. does the bulb sit tilted inside and the light shines out through the slit? I have 2 seperate dimmers, one for the cans and one for the center fixture. I have also seen trims were the socket portrudes from the trim, how would they compare to an aperture?

    Thanks

  • dim4fun
    17 years ago

    I read the part about the Par 20 in the Nora slot aperture but I don't believe it. I'm guessing it is a typo. A Par 20 with their gimbal trim could not possibly aim more than 20 degrees. The Par 16 makes more sense as it is smaller. Other brands with that slot aperture trim use the GU10 base MR16.

    The beauty of the slot aperture is that nothing sticks out to interupt the ceiling.