Need help with lighting layout and type

11 years ago

Hi! I am so unbelievably overwhelmed with lighting for our kitchen/LR/DR/FR remodel. For the 8' ceiling height kitchen I think we'll just do halogen or LED 4" cans around the perimeter and then some pendants for the island (and something under cab as well). For the FR/LR/DR, I'm lost because the ceiling is sloped - 7.5' at the lowest and 13' at the highest. We've also got beams to deal with (there's paneling in between the beams now, but we'll be replacing with dry wall). I know I want some kind of recessed lighting around the perimeter and three main chandelier type things, one in each "room" (there are no actual walls, just a half wall with stairs going down to the front door which kind of breaks it up). My questions are:

- How far apart should the cans be? The beams are about 6' apart, do I do one light in between each? 2 evenly spaced? And how far off the perimeter should they be?

-Do I put the chandeliers smack in the middle of each room or should they try to coordinate somehow with the beams?

-Lastly, what kind of lights should I be getting? Do I need special down slope ones? LED or halogen? What size, and are there wattage choices? We like to dim A LOT, so they definitely have to be dimmable.

If anyone has any insight at all I would be so grateful! I'm totally out of my element here. :)

Oh, I should point out that the lighting scheme drawn here is just what we used to get the permits, it's not an actual plan.

Comments (6)

David
11 years ago
If the kitchen has a flat ceiling, it will be easier to do recessed lighting
for example - standard 4" cans + Cree CR4 lamps.

With lighting, the real measure of light output is either candela/ lumens rather than watts.

For sloped ceilings, you need to know if there is enough room for cans in the space above the ceiling board/ panelling.

Assuming that there is, you'd probably be better off using gimbal fixtures like the Cree LE6 or similar type lamp.
The other spaces can be less brightly lit than the kitchen area, so the number of cans can be reduced.

In the event that cans cannot be used, you could try indirect lighting (cove lighting) to accent/ supplement the chandeliers.
amandasplit
Original Author
11 years ago
Thanks so much for the response! Really...you can do standard cans with LED? So why would anyone buy the LED specific housing?

Any suggestions on how to place lights around a room that has 13' ceilings on one end and 8' on the other? Would it look weird and uneven if we space them out evenly? It's not a kitchen so I don't need a ton of light. I'm thinking 4", 6' apart.
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amandasplit
Original Author
11 years ago
Sorry one more question...for the slope ceiling, if we use a gimbal trim do we still need a special housing for slope?
David
11 years ago
Some manufacturers (eg-Cooper/ Halo) make cans and led module combos.

The halo led specific cans also qualify for title 24 since they are airtite, rated for direct insulation contact and use a non Edison base connector.

The special slope housing would not be required if gimbal trim is used. However, it would be good to compare sloped ceiling recessed can solutions against gimbal solutions like the le6 or rt6.

The following link should give you some additional ideas.

Here is a link that might be useful: Juno solutions
amandasplit
Original Author
11 years ago
Thanks so much for the info! Now that we are getting to the nitty gritty we are learning about title 24 and having a hard time finding 4" housing and led bulbs that aren't the screw in kind (sorry getting all the numbers confused) that doesn't cost an arm and a leg. is there a housing/trim/bulb brand/combo that you can suggest that will look nice and comply with the code? Preferably one that isn't $100/fixture? We have 36 total.

Thanks again!
David
11 years ago
Low voltage 4" (or smaller) lighting costs > $100 per fixture since there is an integrated power supply and the manufactured in relatively small runs (compared with the CR4 or RT4 or Halo H4).

You'd be looking at 120V AC fixtures.
For example the CR4 (with GU24 connector)
http://polar-ray.com/Cree-CR4-575L-GU24_p_416.html

or Sylvania RT4 (most commonly available @ Lowes) and GU24 can.

or the Halo H4 + associated housing.