Posted on: March 3, 2008
Just the Right Light
Follow these 21 tricks of the trade to maximizing your home’s lighting potential, providing a safer, simpler layout
By CTW Features
Image courtesy Sea Gull Lighting Products
No one looks forward to the time of life when failing eyesight can make simple tasks, such as reading the newspaper or working a jigsaw puzzle, difficult or even impossible. Little do they know, but many homeowners invite vision problems into their homes early, with poor decisions about lighting and light fixtures.
In fact, inadequate or incorrectly placed lighting undermines the vision of family members of all ages. For aging adults the stakes are especially high. When everyday tasks such as cooking, cleaning, reading a prescription label or choosing an outfit become difficult, they can lose their ability to live on their own.
Badly lit areas of the home threaten youngsters, too. Dimly lit stairs to the playroom; improvised homework areas; activity tables in an unlit corner – all pose safety issues for young children and adolescents.
Why not audit your home’s lighting and address the shortcomings? Let the researchers at the Lighting Research Center, Troy, N.Y., part of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, show you how.
1. Boost the Watts
Increase light levels throughout your home. Place fixtures close to your task areas, or select light bulbs with more lumens (look for lumens rating on the package).
2. Think Contrast
Paint the bathroom doorframe a dark color to contrast with white or light-colored walls. Use dark placemats to contrast with white or light porcelain. If your stairs are dark, paint the vertical portion (riser) of the stair with a light color. If your walls are dark, paint the railing a light color.
3. Add Lights to Workspaces
Place light fixtures over the sink, stove, countertops and other fixed work areas. Locate these fixtures to the side and slightly in front of the position where a person would usually stand to see the task.
4. Add Lights Under Cabinets
If you have upper cabinets, light your countertops with thin, under-cabinet lighting fixtures mounted on the underside of the cabinets.
5. Pay Attention to Position
Avoid shadows by placing the light source on the side opposite to your writing hand. Right-handers should place light to the left; left-handers should place light to the right.
6. Pastel Paints are Your Friend
Use light colors on walls and ceilings to reduce shadows and to soften the effects of bright light sources.
7. Beware Glare
Place task lights to your side to avoid reflected glare from your work surface or glossy magazines. Older eyes don't deal with glare as well as younger eyes do. Shaded or indirect light sources provide more comfortable light.
8. Bare Bulbs are Bad
Bright objects in your field of view impair your ability to see. Place some kind of opaque or translucent material between you and the light bulb if you can see the bare bulb while standing or sitting.
9. Be Choosy About Fixtures
Avoid using clear glass light fixtures. Fixtures with opaque or frosted glass help control glare.
10. Window Treatments Help
Use shades, blinds, or curtains to minimize glare from windows.
11. Focus Light Correctly
When using extra light on objects of special interest, such as pictures or vases, aim the light at the object, not at your face.
12. Go to School on Bulbs
For good color fluorescent bulbs, ask for a bulb with a correlated color temperature (CCT) of 2700 to 3500K, and with a color-rendering index (CRI) of at least 80. These bulbs are designated as "827," "830," and "835." Electronic ballasts are worth the extra cost; they prevent flickering and buzzing.
13. Beware ‘Full Spectrum’ Hype
Never pay a premium for so-called "full spectrum bulbs." These costly bulbs ($8 per bulb and up) are often marketed as "the closest thing to natural sunlight," and claim to provide better reading light, less eye fatigue and reduced glare. Yet there is no official definition of what constitutes a “full spectrum” bulb, and researchers at the Lighting Research Center have found that they provide very little difference in visual performance or user preference.
14. Try Compact Fluorescents
Buy compact fluorescent lamps with the ENERGY STAR label or 130-volt incandescent bulbs, especially for hard-to-reach areas where long life is important.
15. Some Dim Lights Help
Always have some dim lights on in the room when using the TV or computer to minimize the harsh contrast of the bright screen and a dark room.
16. Don’t Forget Bath Lights
In the bathroom, use a shower light for good visibility. Lights on both sides of your mirror will ensure even lighting without glare when you are shaving, applying makeup, or reading fine print on medication bottles. Choose non-shiny vanity countertop surfaces with light colors to reflect light to the underside of your chin.
17. Go Beyond Ceiling Lights
In the kitchen, avoid having only ceiling fixtures in the center of the room that cast your shadow when you are working at a counter or sink.
18. Choose Adjustable Bed Lamps
Light fixtures near your bed should be adjustable and should be placed above your headboard or to your side, below your eye level, to avoid glare.
19. Switch on a Nightlight
Use nightlights, or select a fixture to leave on all night near your bedroom. Mark the path between your bed and the bathroom with one or more plug-in nightlights. These are often available with a photo sensor that turns the light on automatically.
20. Install Glowing Toggles
Install light switches with toggles that glow in the dark. Place switches where you can reach them from your bed.
21. Light Up Your Porch
Where possible, place porch lights on both sides of your door. If you have only one light, place it on the keyhole side of the door.
