where to site downlighters in a living room

[mk2phil]

I currently have a single pendant light in the center of my living room which is rectangular in shape. I'm going to replace this with low voltage downlighters, but am not sure where they should be placed to get the optimum effect?

Should I place one in each corner and then 3 down the centre, or 3 banks on each side and so on. Is there a guide that electricians use when installing these lights that tells them where lights should and shouldn't be placed depending on the room?

Thanks

Oh, and would you guys use 50w bulbs or 35w bulbs for a more ambient effect.

 

[Diyisfun]

Re location..Thats a personal thing. They need to look good as well as being practical, I would suggest putting them on a dimmer & if need to be 2 banks of lights on 2 dimmers.

 

[sparkyspike]

What effect do you want? Some people put downlighters close to each corner and keep the centre light. This gives quite a smart effect. For even spread of light, come in about 800mm from each edge. Alot depends on the spacing of your joists. I'd use 50W lamps as you can always dim them.

 

[Taylortwocities]

Your centre light will probably be sitting on a joist so u wont be able to put a downlight there.

TTC

 

[mk2phil]

I would like it to be subtle but effective - my worry is that it'll be light in the corners and too dark in the centre, but if I put more in the centre it'll be too much.

 

[Steve]

mk2phil, if you want even light, dont use ELV downlighters. They are inefficient, and create more shadows than light.

If you must use downlighters, use mains voltage downlighters. Then you can fit them with compact fluorescent lamps! Not only are these very efficient, but they produce a very uniform pool of light, which is much wider than the standard GU10 lamp's beam. Of course, you can't dim these, but your OP never mentioned wanting to dim them.

See here:
http://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Main_In..._Internal/Downlights_Energy_Saving/index.html

 

[mk2phil]

ELV?

 

[rlc]

As it's not clear what you dwelling comprises of - don't overlook Part B of the building regs : fire safety......if necessary consider buying the ones with integral firehoods as this will probably end up being a cheaper option.

http://www.iee.org/Publish/WireRegs...nstalling_recessed_luminaires_in_ceilings.pdf

 

[luminaire]

Try Illumina Lighting, they have a technical hotline and although they sell lighting for commercial use, their advice is always useful.
Tel No: 0845 6060414

 

[sparkyspike]

ELV = extra low voltage, in this case 12v.
LV = low voltage (eg 240v)

 

[sparkyspike]

Why do you want downlighters in particular? They're not always the ideal way of lighting a living room. Some people prefer to use table lamps or standard lamps on a dimmable lighting circuit with a centre light which is also dimmable. This can give a variety of moods.[/i]

 

[mk2phil]

Thanks for the replies.

I'd like to use downlighters becuase my ceilings are only 7'6" and the current pendant light we have is too low. I was thinking that fitting downlighters would make the room appear slightly taller as there is no central pendent hanging down, and they are unobtrusive in their flat design.

I also think they look quite stylish and modern which is the look we want to go for in the living roon.

We already have wall lights fitted which work really well - we usualy only use these but when we're eating then we turn the pendant light on and the effect is horrible.

 

[mk2phil]

sparky - wouldn't 240v be normal mains voltage, i.e. GU10?

I thought low voltage was defined as 12v?

 

[Steve]

LV is low voltage with respect to the grand scheme of things (we're talking HV pylons running at 110,000V). Generally LV is 200-500V.

ELV is extra low voltage - 12-50V, IIRC.

This is the way the regs define it.

 

[ppuch1]

ELV = 0 to 50v ac
LV = 50 to 1000v ac