Lighting Basics

We use lights everywhere, day and night.  We take lighting for granted and forget how much it can shape the mood of a room.  Compared to home decorating or remodeling, lighting ranks as one of the most economical ways to change the appearance and atmosphere of a room.

Most guests spend more time in their vacation home or condo after dark than during daylight hours.  It is essential to provide good lighting in every room.  While a unit may look warm and inviting during the day with the drapes open, night usually means less color and brightness.  The challenge is to make rooms look attractive at all times through effective and stylish lighting.  Many hotel rooms have four lamps with a recessed light by the door.

Lighting falls into three basic categories:

Ambient Lighting
This is the most fundamental form and is simply used in place of sunlight.  It enables us to see around a room.  Ambient lighting is accomplished through lamps, chandeliers, and ceiling or wall-mounted fixtures or sconces.

Task lighting
This is used for a specific task and provides direct light that enables you to read a book, sew, or play a game, etc.  It should be bright enough to prevent eyestrain and free of glare.

Accent lighting
This type of lighting creates drama and enhances the decorating scheme.  It is used to spotlight artwork and accessories or highlight architectural features, etc.  It should provide at least three times as much light on the object as the ambient light around it.

Today there are almost endless shapes and forms of lamps that can deliver the various types of lighting needed.  Table lamps provide ambient lighting needed for everyday tasks.  Floor lamps such as torchieres direct light upwards and can be used for ambient lighting as well as accent lighting.  Table and floor lamps that provide bright lighting and directed downward can also be used for task lighting.

Fixtures in a hall or foyer can create a warm friendly atmosphere while also providing ambient lighting.  Long hallways should be illuminated every several feet for safety.  This can be accomplished with ceiling fixtures or wall sconces.

Wall fixtures that swing over a nightstand or bed are excellent for bedside lighting.  These provide light for reading while keeping nightstand tops free for clocks, radios, books, etc.  When replacing lamps consider fixtures with three-way switches so the amount of light can be turned up or down depending on the guest's preference.

Types of Bulbs
The original and still the favorite, is the incandescent bulb.  Incandescent bulbs create a nice flattering light.  These types of bulbs are best used for areas where people gather such as bedrooms, living areas, and dining rooms.

Halogen bulbs are also very popular and are being used in many of the new lines of decorative lighting and smaller track lights.  They give off a very bright white light.  However because of the bright light there is a tendency for halogen lights to create more   glare.  Halogen bulbs should never be touched with bare hands, as it will cause them to burn out faster.  Halogen bulbs also get very hot and should not be placed in a fixture where a child might touch them.  These bulbs generally last longer and can be more energy efficient than incandescent bulbs but not nearly as efficient as fluorescent bulbs.

Energy Saving Light Bulbs
Fluorescent bulbs have improved over the years to produce a warmer light.  The energy crisis several years ago created the need for compact fluorescent bulbs that are available with screw-in bases.  These bulbs reduce energy consumption and last longer than incandescent ones.  Today fluorescent bulbs have improved color balance although many people still prefer incandescents for task lighting or for the warm glow and atmosphere they provide.

Energy consumption and conservation however, is an important issue and recent technological advances have resulted in a new generation of compact fluorescent bulbs available in a variety of styles, shapes, and sizes to fit into almost every lighting application.  Using roughly 75 percent less energy than standard incandescent bulbs, CFL's last 10 times as long, produce the familiar, warm light, and twist easily into most fixtures.  GE has designed bulbs specifically for the hospitality market.  GE's 42-watt spiral CFL combines the light output of a 150-watt incandescent lamp with the smallest CFL size.  Their 12/23/29-watt 3-way Spiral CFL produces light levels equal to or better than the 50/100/150 incandescent.  CFL's however, do contain small amounts of mercury so proper recycling is crucial to avoid broken bulbs resulting in the chemical seeping into the soil and endangering groundwater or workers handling the trash.

Lampshade Care
To care for your shades use a soft brush to clean dust from between the shade pleats and seams.

The options available for creative lighting are almost endless.  If you have specific challenges or a deluxe or premier property it is worthwhile to consult with a designer who specializes in lighting and also an electrician to answer installation questions.