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Cooking may remain a primary function of the kitchen, but increasingly it serves as one of the main entertaining spaces in the home, even a home office. Learning what type of lighting is best for kitchens today is essential. Despite their importance, kitchen lights can sometimes be the last consideration for designing a space. In this article, I will discuss what type of lighting is best for kitchens.
However, to keep a fruitful kitchen looking great and working, all areas must be adequately lit. The best time to make a new lighting scheme decision, experts agree, is at the planning stage when the kitchen plans are signed off.
The proper lighting can transform the space. They are helping small kitchens feel more extensive. So kitchen lighting ideas small kitchen should stand out with brightness levels that drastically alter your mood and feel. It’s essential to invest in a scheme that provides good task lamps and creates the ideal ambiance.
How to Make the Best Illumination for a Kitchen?
The type of lighting that works best for a kitchen will vary, depending on size and needs, making you choose kitchen lighting not as simple as you might think. Start by considering which areas of your kitchen will support the activities that will take place in each space to determine what type of lighting each location requires. Some spaces, such as the food preparation areas, the kitchen sink, and above the countertop, will require task lighting.
Others, like the dining room, need for both ambient and accent illumination. You’ll need them to sit under softer lighting so they can unwind if they’re going to speak with you as you cook over a glass of wine.
You may wish to consult a lighting specialist or interior decorator, who will have in-depth knowledge of the many light sources, the numerous fixtures available, as well as today’s cutting-edge control mechanisms. Always choose a trained electrician to guarantee a secure installation. Instead than focusing on grids and harmony, the majority of specialists advise that you should consider the critical places that need illumination.
Three Types of Lighting
Ambient light
Ambient light will be your primary source of light, either in addition to natural light or to fill in for lack of it. You want to project as much of it as evenly as possible from your ceiling. You can do this with a combination of (but not limited to) chandeliers, pendant lights, recessed and recessed lighting.
Task
While the ambient illumination allows you to navigate through the kitchen using task illumination, work surfaces, and cabinets, have adequate lighting so that you can safely prepare meals, read recipes and quickly locate ingredients on a shelf. It is beneficial to have full task lighting. Standard options for kitchen task lighting include strip lights and puck lights.
Accent
Lighting is considered the cherry on top of your well-designed kitchen: accent lights, cabinet lights, and any other lights that can accent your favorite elements. They can also transition to ambient lighting and task lighting.
Read More: Best Type Of Kitchens Countertops
Brighten the key areas
About the island, here are the cupboards and more ways to place the light in the kitchen.
Over your kitchen island:
Ambient or task lighting
Depending on whether the kitchen island has a built-in stove/workspace or is more for hanging out, you’ll want to light it accordingly. For task-oriented islands like food prep and recipe reading, try combining recessed lighting and pendant lights.
But for Kitchen Island hangouts like counter seating, something as simple as mini pendants will do the trick. Pendants must set a minimum of 30-32 inches apart and 30-36 inches above the island, six inches from the edge of the island.
Option one:
Where it comes to setting up your Pendant lights, as a rule generally installed, a set of at least two pendant lighting fixtures installed on a cooking island needs to sit at least 30 in from the center of the cooking island with 30-32 in between the countertop and the bottom of the pendant.
One set of three hanging lights should be at the same height, evenly spaced, and be at least 15 centimeters from the island’s edge.
Other option:
Linear pendant lighting
Linear pendant lights work well in the kitchen, especially if you have higher ceilings and hang one at least 40 ” above the countertop.
Learn More: How To Calculate Linear Feet For Kitchen Cabinets
Under-cabinet lighting for tasks and accents
Cabinet lighting is a bit of an accent and much more than just a design embellishment.
While ambient lighting is used to navigate the kitchen, often leaving shadows under cabinets, cabinet lighting is just as important as the lighting on your island.
With the help of under-cabinet work lighting, work surfaces and cabinets light up adequately so you can prepare meals, read recipes and quickly locate ingredients safely on a shelf.
An excellent sales or support person can help you ensure that the size, system, and brightness of a particular fixture is exactly what you need, or even map out a complete lighting scheme.
Standard under-cabinet lighting options in the kitchen include
Strip lights: They are versatile yet fantastic for interior cabinet lighting, shallow cabinets that receive little or no ambient illumination. LED strip lights are also used under the cabinet to decorate counter spaces fully.
Disc lights: Round and oval disc lights make excellent ambient lights and can be used to illuminate countertops in the form of a scallop, spot, or pool of light.
Please focus on the ceiling: Ambient lighting where you need it most. The higher and brighter, the better it is for filling your kitchen with light.
Option one: Recessed down lighting
Recessed downlighting is the condition for ambient kitchen lighting. In a smaller kitchen, you may be able to get away with a larger recessed downlight in the center of your kitchen. But modern kitchen recessed lighting will give you a more customized lighting scheme.
If you want to spread light evenly throughout your kitchen, with an emphasis on illuminating high-use areas, it’s important to square the lights in straight lines along the axis of your counters.
And if you’re concerned about going too bright, add dimmers to give you control in a variety of lighting scenarios.
Another option:
Recessed or semi-recessed lighting works best when you don’t have as ample a space to illuminate. Unlike recessed lights hidden in the ceiling, these lights give you the option to add more stylish touches to your kitchen.
- Add accent lighting to enhance your kitchen lighting design.
- The grace notes of a well-designed kitchen
- The correct placement of accent lights can help emphasize your favorite elements.
Standard decorative kitchen lights include:
Recessed: this type of refined, out-of-the-way lighting can go anywhere. But it’s imperative when you want to illuminate areas of visual interest such as open shelves and cabinets.
Over-cabinet: Placed between the cabinet and the ceiling, over-cabinet lights add a dramatic touch to your kitchen. Created similarly to under-cabinet lighting, above cabinet lighting designed to emphasize the décor and architecture can provide even illumination.
Toe kicks Lights: Such an excellent means of setting kitchens apart and illuminating a pathway. Toe kick’s lighting comes from LED string or ribbon lights.
Bulb Types
We often focus on lighting in general but do not consider light bulbs, which in and of them, our lighting depends on.
Today there is a wide range of all colors and styles of bulbs, which can significantly facilitate the lighting of our kitchen. From white light bulbs to every color you can imagine.
Halogen bulbs
These are available exclusively in relatively warm 3000K. They also show 100% accurate color, something a jeweler, for example, might be interested in, and they are inexpensive. But they are now considered old technology and will dim as they warm up.
- 【Remote control - adjustable brightness and color temperature】Oeegoo 11 inch ultra-thin dimmable ceiling lamp is embedded, with brightness adjustable by 10% - 100% and color temperature adjustable from 3000K to 6500K. Note: This lamp is wired, non wireless and non battery powered.
- 【Night light+timing+memory function】Intelligent 3-in-1 surface mounted ceiling light is the best companion for sleeping. 10% brightness night light mode, 30 seconds off timing, powerful memory function can automatically retain the last setting. Note: It cannot be installed on the dimmer switch.
- 【High quality waterproof and dust-proof】The white shell is made of fireproof materials. IP54 waterproof grade, suitable for wet places. Sealed ceiling of our embedded lamps, easy to clean, very suitable for bathroom, laundry, balcony, bedroom, children's room, living room, kitchen, dining room, etc.
Compact fluorescent light fixtures
These light fixtures can be spiral-shaped, are mini-fluorescent, which means they may require some time to “warm up.” However, a significant advantage is that they can last ten times longer than traditional incandescent bulbs. They are also available at any color temperature.
They contain a small amount of mercury, so if you break one, the extensive cleaning required makes them less suitable. Track lighting may be needed at various times.
- Lithonia Lighting 2 foot LED 120V fixture provides general illumination to bring bright and evenly distributed light into any room or application - length may not be exactly 24 inches so refer to spec sheet for exact length
- Long lasting LEDs are designed to last 50,000 hours or 23 years when on everyday for 6 hours/day - drastically reducing time wasted changing those hard to install tube light bulbs
- MULTIPLE APPLICATIONS - LED fixtures can be used almost anywhere from kitchens, offices and corridors to bedrooms, closets and utility work areas
LED
LEDs were initially known for their higher price. They have the lowest energy cost and are available in increasingly affordable and flexible technology. They are also known to be the best lighting for a dark kitchen. You can choose from directional, semi-directional, or omnidirectional styles. The latter is the most diffuse, best for light fixtures, directional best for spotlighting, and almost any color temperature.
The new warm LEDs (around 2400K) would be fantastic for chandeliers or more changeable lighting, and you can even find vintage-inspired Edison-style versions (2000K) if you want to add (efficient) ambiance to a living room. In addition, the best-led lights for the kitchen ceiling will depend entirely on your requirements.
- 【Adjustable Brightness】The LED ceiling light is dimmable from 10% to 100%, compatible with most standard dimmers, buzz free.
- 【Quick & Easy Installation】Includes all mounting hardwares, follow our installation guide for a quick and easy setup, It only takes a few minutes. Even one person can install quickly.
- 【Protect Your Family's Safety】This light fixture is overload, short circuit protection function, it can prevent any potential risk of electric shock, electric leakage or even potential disasters caused by electricity short circuit.
What Type of Lighting is best for Kitchens: FAQs?
How bright should a kitchen light be?
The average footprint is 250 sq. ft. You will need approximately 5,000 lumens as the primary light source (20 lumens x 250 square feet). In your dining room, you will want around 30 lumens per square foot at your dining table (for viewing, not examining the food), so if your table is 6 x 3 feet, that’s 540 lumens.
Are LED lights bright enough for a kitchen?
LED lights are best for the kitchen ceiling. They have perfect brightness, plus they are the cheapest in the long run. The most energy-efficient, last the longest, and are environmentally friendly.
Should kitchen lights be warm or cool?
More excellent bulbs are easier to see, so that’s what you should rely on in the kitchen. While warmer bulbs give off that cozy, casual ambiance that makes living rooms and restaurants so appealing. In addition to affecting visibility, the color of a bulb can also change space dynamics just like any other decor element.
Bottom Line
Having a kitchen with the perfect lights can allow us to make a good plate of food. Moreover, these add tremendous value to our kitchen.
It is always important to educate yourself regarding the installation of lights in your kitchen. There are many more kitchen lighting ideas. However, these are the main ones.
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