Have you ever sat down to watch TV and noticed glare on the screen from lamps or ceiling fixtures? Wanted to read a magazine in your favorite chair but had to squint because of poor lighting? Light Bulbs Unlimited advanced approaches to residential lighting design address these issues; improving the aesthetics and comfort of the home, as well as safety and visibility in areas where home owners perform common tasks. As an important component of high performance quality homes, advanced residential lighting design techniques can also reduce the home’s energy use. Residential building code requires that every habitable room and bathroom be lit by at least one switch-controlled source. Yet a single light source rarely provides more than one type of light. Types of light include ambient (general lighting around the room), task (lighting that illuminates a specific area such as a counter or reading chair), and accent lighting (the track light that highlights photos).

Research into lighting design indicates that each room needs a balance of different types of light to help homeowners perform common tasks while making the home aesthetically attractive. Achieving this balance means a lot of different light sources. Unfortunately incandescent lamps, which are most often used in homes, are energy hogs and burn out quickly. Why Change? Chances are homebuyers don’t make as much fuss about wanting better lighting as they do about, say, wanting a bay window. So why should you? As part of a quality home, advanced residential lighting design not only improves the look and feel of rooms, but can also reduce the energy required for lighting and cooling. Homebuyers notice the difference in how homes that are well lit feel, and in a market where there is often little difference between one builder’s product and another, this small competitive edge may give you an advantage. Additionally, reduced energy use, a cost savings for homeowners, is an advantage that has become clearly marketable because of increased consumer awareness and rising energy prices.

Where Do I Start?
Call Light Bulbs Unlimited and let us help you prioritize your lighting needs. Light Bulbs Unlimited focuses on rooms used most, such as the kitchen, family room, and perhaps a home office. By designing with energy efficient lighting like fluorescents, lighting electricity costs can be substantially decreased. This approach gives the best return on an investment in high quality fluorescent lighting and allows latitude to use incandescent in rooms that are used infrequently. Light Bulbs Unlimited emphasizes the Architectural Character of Rooms an aesthetically appealing technique for quality lighting design is to use concealed light fixtures in coves or window trays to illuminate distinctive room features like the ceiling. The light will appear natural and unobtrusive, thereby enhancing its effectiveness. Layer Lighting for Maximum Effect Design lighting in layers. Ambient light from room surfaces and furnishings provides general illumination and light for way-finding and safety. Provide task lighting for activities such as cooking, TV or computer viewing, reading, and socializing. Provide accent light for highlighting architectural features and other decorative and aesthetically distinctive aspects of the home. Consider the room’s purpose when designing a room’s lighting; consider which activities are most important for that room.

In the kitchen, for example, counters, eating areas, and work surfaces should receive primary lighting, while cabinet interiors should receive secondary consideration. Lighting as part of integrated systems design; it’s important to remember that, as a component of the house, lighting can impact other house systems. When hard wired energy efficient fluorescents are installed in the most used fixtures throughout the house, reduced cooling loads can result, and a downsized air-conditioning system may be possible. An integrated systems design that starts in the planning stages and is carried through in the field will enable you to plan for these interactions to maximize the performance of the home. If you’re committed to building quality homes, it’s absolutely necessary to consider advanced approaches to residential lighting design. Improving lighting as part of an integrated systems design can improve the home’s overall appearance and performance, making it more energy efficient, safe, and visually comfortable.