home lighting – Buy/Sell in Kern County

Matching Room Color and Lighting to Get the Effect You Desire

By: Lisa Kaplan Gordon Published: February 10, 2014 Light changes color, so your lighting design — a top priority for any remodel — should help guide your color choices. Here’s how. If you want to make your remodel project shine, finalize your lighting design before you select paint and carpet colors. The light you choose … Continue reading “Matching Room Color and Lighting to Get the Effect You Desire”

By: Lisa Kaplan Gordon

Published: February 10, 2014

Light changes color, so your lighting design — a top priority for any remodel — should help guide your color choices. Here’s how.

If you want to make your remodel project shine, finalize your lighting design before you select paint and carpet colors. The light you choose to illuminate tasks or set the mood will change the way you see color throughout the room. The Robin’s Egg Blue you picked could look like Paris at Sunset under some kinds of light.

It’s all determined by the way light and colors interact.

“People have to understand that the color of an object won’t look the same 24 hours a day,” says lighting designer Joseph Rey-Barreau. “I just had bamboo flooring installed throughout my house, and during the day it looks totally different than it looks at night.”

The way we “see” color primarily depends on two things:

1. The light that an object absorbs. Black absorbs all colors; white absorbs none; blue absorbs red.

2. How the light source works. Natural light (sunlight) changes throughout the day and is affected by a room’s location. Artificial light changes with the type of bulb you use.

How Sunlight Affects Colors

As the amount and angle of the sun changes, so will your room colors.

“Natural light should always be considered when choosing color for a space,” says Sarah Cole of the Farrow & Ball paint company.

North-facing rooms: Light in these rooms is cool and bluish. Bolder colors show up better than muted colors; lighter colors will look subdued. “Use strong colors and embrace what nature has given,” says Cole.

South-facing rooms: Lots of high-in-the-sky light brings out the best in cool and warm colors. Dark colors will look brighter; lighter colors will virtually glow.

East-facing rooms: East light is warm and yellowy before noon, then turns bluer later in the day. These are great rooms for reds, oranges and yellows.

West-facing rooms: Evening light in these rooms is beautiful and warm, while scant morning light can produce shadows and make colors look dull.

How Light Bulbs Affect Color

The type of bulb you use can alter the colors in a room, too.

Incandescents: The warm, yellow-amber light of these bulbs will make reds, oranges, and yellows more vivid, while muting blues and greens.

Fluorescents: This flat and cool light enriches blues and greens.

Halogens: These white lights resemble natural light and make all colors look more vivid. Using halogens would make the shift from daylight to artificial light less jarring.

Compact fluorescent lights (CFLs): CFLs can produce either a warm white, neutral, or bluish-white light.

Light-emitting diodes (LEDs): You can buy warmer or cooler LEDs, and even “smart” LED bulbs whose color you can control wirelessly. “You can point to the color of the sky in a picture at sunset and make the light bulb in the house be that same color,” says Rey-Barreau.

Related: The Latest In Lighting Trends to Enhance Your Home
Tips for Achieving the Color You Want
Paint squares of primed drywall with samples of the colors you’re considering, and then move them around the room during the day. Apply at least two coats.
Evaluate samples of carpet during different daylight conditions.
Most contractors won’t hang lights before you paint, but you can get a color approximation by placing a bulb you’ll be using in a floor or desk lamp. If you’re hyper-sensitive to color or want a very specific look, ask your electrician to hang the lights, then cover them carefully during painting.
Remember that natural and artificial light will work together during certain times of day, especially in summer when dusk lasts a long time. Turn on artificial lights even during daylight to see what your colors will look like.
Paint sheen also affects color. Glossy finishes will reflect light and change the way the color looks, whereas flat finishes are less reflective and allow colors to look truer under bright light.
Light-colored walls can reflect the colors of bold carpets: A bright blue rug, for instance, can cast a bluish tone on a white wall.

Read more: http://members.houselogic.com/articles/choosing-paint-colors-how-light-affects-color/preview/#ixzz34Rs4y24i

Choosing Light Bulbs Based on Your Fixtures

By: Karin Beuerlein Published: May 6, 2013 In the brave new world of light bulb choices, let your fixture be your guide. Light bulb shopping used to be as simple as turning on a light switch. Today, it means weighing priorities for cost, energy efficiency, and aesthetics. Since you’re probably replacing bulbs one fixture at … Continue reading “Choosing Light Bulbs Based on Your Fixtures”

By: Karin Beuerlein

Published: May 6, 2013

In the brave new world of light bulb choices, let your fixture be your guide.

Light bulb shopping used to be as simple as turning on a light switch. Today, it means weighing priorities for cost, energy efficiency, and aesthetics. Since you’re probably replacing bulbs one fixture at a time, here are some best-bet picks for each type.

Table and Floor Lamps: Halogen Incandescent
Light shines in all directions, providing a warm glow.
Dimmable.
Looks most similar to the traditional incandescent.
Uses 25%-30% less energy than the incandescent.

Table and floor lamps look best with omnidirectional light. “You probably don’t want a big bright spot in the middle of your lampshade,” says Jeff Harris of the nonprofit think tank Alliance to Save Energy. “You’re looking for a nice, warm glow.”

Halogen incandescents provide that, and are good with dimmers. You may be able to find a dimmable CFL, but it’s common to experience humming or flickering at low light levels.

For non-dimming lamps, CFLs are great if you can find a color temperature you like.
Color temperature is measured on a warmness (candlelight) and coolness (blue sky) scale. LEDs, CFLs, and halogen incandescents all come in a wide range of color temperatures.
Buy covered globes or A-lamps — bulbs shaped like old-fashioned incandescents — rather than spirals if you can see the bulb and aren’t a fan of the spiral look.
Otherwise, just go with halogen incandescents and don’t sweat the fact that CFLs are more energy-efficient than halogens. Your still saving over a traditional incandescent and the glow is pretty.

So why not LEDs? LEDs point light in a single direction, although new LED-containing A-lamps are designed to compensate for that by using prisms or special coatings. But all that extra technology makes them expensive — probably not worth it for your bedside lamp, which isn’t a big energy hog anyway.

Recessed Ceiling Lights (Kitchens, Family Rooms): LEDs

Energy efficiency is key in high-use areas.
80% energy savings over incandescents.
Bulb life (up to 50,000 hours) much longer than CFLs.
Shine light a single direction — rather than glowing.
Brighter than halogens or CFLs.

Overhead recessed lighting in the kitchen or family room gets lots of use, so energy efficiency is a big consideration; plus, you need bulbs that point light in a single direction so the light actually escapes the can or fixture.

LED reflector lamps, the flat-topped bulbs typically used as floodlights or spotlights, are designed to shine light in a single direction. And that means you’ll get a brighter look with less energy output than CFLs or halogens.

New conversion kits let you put LEDs into your old can fixtures designed for screw-in bulbs.

A word of caution: LEDs don’t dim well unless they’re connected to a wall dimming switch specifically designed for them. You can get LED-compatible dimmers at big-box stores starting at around $30. Same goes for CFLs.

If you do decide on CFLs or halogen incandescents for a warmer quality of light:
Buy reflector-lamp style bulbs, not A-lamps or globes, so the light isn’t trapped inside the can.
If you have multiple cans, you can probably get away with a lower-wattage halogen incandescent reflector bulb and save energy while still having plenty of light.

Bathroom Vanity Fixture: Halogen Incandescents

Better for showing color and texture than CFLs or LEDs.

Lighting over the bathroom vanity is a highly personal lighting choice, especially when there are women in the house. If the light isn’t flattering to your skin tone or makes it hard to apply makeup, you’ll be dissatisfied.

That’s why halogen incandescents, with their pleasing light, are a good bet.

However, if the bathroom where you primp is a high-traffic area and you’re concerned about energy use, experiment with CFLs in a warm color temperature and get a separate lighted mirror for your beauty routine.

Stairwell Light: LEDs

Inconvenient fixtures are a good place to use long-lasting LEDs.

How many times are you willing to drag out a ladder and change the bulb in a tough-to-reach fixture? Take advantage of LEDs’ long life by putting them in spots you don’t want to revisit often:
Fixtures hanging in stairwells
Track lighting suspended from a cathedral ceiling
Cabinets
Ledges
Tray ceilings
Recessed areas

Outdoor Floodlight: Halogen Incandescent

For security and efficiency, use fixtures with daylight/occupancy sensors.
Since outdoor lights aren’t used often, not worth investing in LEDs.
CFLs don’t come on easily in cold weather.
CFLs don’t last as long as advertised when turned on and off frequently.

If you don’t want to get new fixtures with sensors, you can buy a sensor attachment that screws into each socket.

Rarely Used Fixtures: Low-Cost Bulbs

Opt for what’s easy on your wallet.
Use the most energy-efficient bulbs, such as LEDs, in most-used fixtures.

If the total yearly hours for the fixtures in your closets, dining room chandeliers, and the naked bulb in your attic are low, go cheap.

Want to know more about picking light bulbs for aesthetics?

A strategic plan for buying pricey LEDs

What to know about CFLs

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9 Ways to Increase Daylighting to Fend Off Seasonal Affective Disorder

By: Dave Toht Published: December 21, 2011 Adding skylights, solar light tubes, windows, and other means of daylighting can brighten your winter and help alleviate symptoms of seasonal affective disorder (SAD). If winter brings on bouts of the blahs, you’re in good company. As days shorten and temperatures drop, most people tend to slow down … Continue reading “9 Ways to Increase Daylighting to Fend Off Seasonal Affective Disorder”

By: Dave Toht

Published: December 21, 2011

Adding skylights, solar light tubes, windows, and other means of daylighting can brighten your winter and help alleviate symptoms of seasonal affective disorder (SAD).

If winter brings on bouts of the blahs, you’re in good company. As days shorten and temperatures drop, most people tend to slow down and feel less energy.

For some, however, the problem can be serious. Days of low light may greatly alter moods, and can even be hazardous to your health. The condition has a name: seasonal affective disorder, or SAD. In some cases, medial attention may be necessary.

Fortunately, your house can help combat the winter doldrums and even SAD. Here’s how.

What’s seasonal affective disorder?

Bears aren’t the only ones with the urge to hibernate.

Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is a big-time case of the winter blues — a very real type of depression. It affects as much as 20% of the U.S. population, spiking among people living in northern latitudes.

Surveys show that less than 5% of people in southernmost states, such as Arizona and Florida, experience symptoms, while in a northern city like Seattle, more than 30% of the population cites the ill effects of SAD. The symptoms include:
low energy
oversleeping
poor concentration
irritability
avoidance of social situations
craving for sweet or starchy foods, with consequent weight gains

How your house can help

Turning on a few extra lamps is a natural response, but what your body really craves is more daylight — simply switching on a few more lights won’t do the trick. Typical artificial light can’t hold a candle to the power of daylight.

For example, standard indoor lamps produce only 100 to 1,000 lux (a measurement of light intensity). Compare that to the 50,000 to 100,000 lux of a sunlit sky.

Even an overcast day can pack 10,000 to 25,000 lux. That’s why good interior lighting, although cheering, doesn’t get to the heart of our biological need.

Instead, you need to boost the daylight inside your home, known as daylighting. Try these methods:

1. Trim tree branches and shrubs that block sunlight. An added benefit: cutting back foliage so it’s at least 2 feet away from your house helps prevent water damage to your roofing and siding. Cost: $50 for pruning tools.

2. Add a solar light tube. A 10- to 14-inch reflective solar tube is a relatively simple way to bring outdoor light into otherwise dim areas of your home, such as hallways. Cost: $500, installed on a one-story house.

3. Add a skylight to your home. A skylight provides 30% more light than a window. Cost: $2,500 and up, installed.

4. Add windows. If you have the wall space, consider letting in more daylight with a new window. Cost for a 3-by-5-foot window: $1,000 to $1,500, installed.

5. Add a bay or bow window. These windows bring in a lot of light and give a room a sense of spaciousness. Cost: $5,000 and up, installed.

6. Replace a solid exterior door with an all- or partial-glass door, or a door with glass sidelights. An upscale door replacement is $5,000 to $10,000.

7. Open curtains and blinds so they don’t block natural light. Make a habit of opening your window coverings first thing in the morning. Cost: $0

8. Rearrange furniture in your living room, office, or den so you’ll be closer to bright windows. Place large pieces of furniture against walls so they don’t block light. Cost: $0

9. Get outside. Whenever possible, take a long walk or tackle an outdoors chore. Cost: $0

Professional help

Sufferers whose symptoms get in the way of enjoying normal activities should consult a physician or therapist. Medication, behavioral therapy, and treatments using a special 10,000-lux light therapy lamp are often prescribed.

Read more: http://members.houselogic.com/articles/seasonal-affective-disorder-lights/preview/#ixzz34RqpkEpD

Outdoor Lighting for Curb Appeal and Safety

By: Dave Toht Published: March 18, 2010 Well-planned outdoor lighting improves curb appeal, safety, and security for your home. Think about it: Most of your guests (and if your home is on the market, many would-be buyers) see your home only in the evening, when its best features may be lost in the shadows. Well-executed … Continue reading “Outdoor Lighting for Curb Appeal and Safety”

By: Dave Toht

Published: March 18, 2010

Well-planned outdoor lighting improves curb appeal, safety, and security for your home.

Think about it: Most of your guests (and if your home is on the market, many would-be buyers) see your home only in the evening, when its best features may be lost in the shadows.

Well-executed outdoor lighting enhances architectural detail and plays up landscape features, casting your home in the best possible light and adding an abundance of curb appeal.

Outdoor lighting also adds value. Judith Patriski, an appraiser and owner of Quad Realty Co. near Cleveland, estimates that for upper-bracket homes, an investment in outdoor lighting can yield a 50% return. “When you pull into a driveway and see a gorgeous home, you’re going to pay more for it,” says Patriski.

And she emphasizes that it’s not only about aesthetics: “In all price ranges, lighting for security is important” — to protect against both intruders and falls. Here are the elements of successful outdoor lighting.

Mimicking Moonlight

Much of the success of exterior lighting hinges on its design. Hang around lighting designers long enough and you’ll hear a lot of talk about “moonlight effect.” That’s a naturalistic look that features light no more intense than that of a full moon, but still strong enough to make beautiful shadows and intense highlights.

Other techniques outdoor lighting designers use:
Highlight trees. Whether illumined from below or given presence by a light mounted in the tree itself, trees make stunning features.
Use uplights. Uplighting is dramatic because we expect light to shine downward. Used in moderation, it’s a great way to highlight architectural and landscaping features.
Have a focus. The entryway is often center stage, a way of saying, “Welcome, this way in.”
Combine beauty and function. For example, adding lighting to plantings along a pathway breaks up the “runway” look of too many lights strung alongside a walk.
Vary the fixtures. While the workhorses are spots and floods, designers turn to a wide range of fixtures, area lights, step lights, and bollards or post lights.
Stick to warm light. A rainbow of colors is possible, but most designers avoid anything but warm white light, preferring to showcase the house and its landscape rather than create a light show.
Orchestrate. A timer, with confirmation from a photocell, brings the display to life as the sun sets. At midnight it shuts shut down everything but security lighting. Some homeowners even set the timer to light things up an hour or so before dawn.

Adding Safety and Security

Falls are the foremost cause of home injury, according to the Home Safety Council. Outdoors, stair, and pathway lighting help eliminate such hazards.

Often safety and security can be combined. For example, motion-detecting security lighting mounted near the garage provides illumination when you get out of your car at night; the same function deters intruders. Motion-detecting switches can also be applied to landscape lighting to illumine shadowy areas should anyone walk nearby.

Even the moonlight effect has a security function: Soft, overall landscape lighting eliminates dark areas that might hide an intruder, exposing any movement on your property. Overly bright lights actually have a negative effect, creating undesirable pockets of deep shadow.

Switching to LEDs

Once disparaged for their high cost and cold, bluish glow, LEDs are now the light source of choice for lighting designers. “They’ve come down in price and now have that warm light people love in incandescent bulbs,” says Paul Gosselin, owner of Night Scenes Landscape Lighting Professionals in Kingsland, Texas. “We haven’t installed anything but LEDs for the last year.”

Although LED fixtures remain twice as expensive as incandescents, installation is simpler because they use low-voltage wiring. “All in all, LEDs cost only about 25% more to install,” Gosselin says. “And they’ll save about 75% on your electricity bill.”

Another advantage is long life. LEDs last at least 40,000 hours, or about 18 years of nighttime service. With that kind of longevity, “why should a fixture have only a two-year warranty?” asks Gosselin. He advises buying only fixtures with a 15-year warranty — proof that the fixture’s housing is designed to live as long as the LED bulbs inside.

Related: LEDs Aren’t Cheap: Here’s How to Get the Most for Your Money

Innovations

The growing popularity of exterior lighting has led to innovative fixtures. Here are some bright new ideas:
Solar lighting: When first introduced, solar pathway lights produced a dull glow that rarely made it through the night. They do much better now that they are equipped with electricity-sipping LEDs, more efficient photovoltaic cells, and better batteries. Still, they have yet to measure up to hard-wired systems.

Related: Get Solar Lighting Tips
Hybrids: Porch lights now come equipped with LED lighting for all night use, and a motion sensor that clicks on an incandescent bulb to provide extra illumination as you approach the front door. Hybrids use about 5% of the power a solely incandescent fixture requires.
Barbecue light: Tired of grilling steaks by flashlight? Now you can buy a gooseneck outdoor light, ideal for an outdoor kitchen.

Estimating the Cost

Total outdoor lighting costs will vary according to the size of your home and the complexity of your lighting scheme. Expect to pay about $325 for each installed LED fixture. LEDs also require a transformer to step the power down from 120 volts to 12 volts, running about $400 installed.

A motion detector security light costs about $150 installed. Porch lights and sconces range from $100-$250 installed, depending the fixture and whether running new cable is necessary.

Contractor-installed outdoor lighting for an average, two-story, 2,200 sq. ft. house might add up as follows:
7 fixtures to cover 100 feet of LED pathway lighting: $2,275
Transformer: $400
4 LED uplights to dramatize the front of the house: $1,300
2 LED area lights for plantings: $650
2 motion detector security lights: $300

Total cost: $4,925

Related: Find Out How Much Value Landscaping Can Add to Your Home

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