Interior LIGHTING
Considering the lighting for your new home is an important part of the interior detailing and something you will live with for years to come, so it's important to get it right. We've put together some of the basics you need to know, examples of upgrade costs and some important things to think about as you begin your lighting plan.
Ambient LIGHTING
The most common ambient lighting you will see throughout your home.
Downlights
We recommend as your standard downlight an option which gives you flexibility. Check the light out here
This downlight has a switch on the back to select from four different colour options for light output.
These include:
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Extra warm - can be nice in bedrooms but can be a little to orange for many.
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Warm - this is the standard colour we recommend
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Cool - this is good for bathrooms or home offices
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White - We suggest this for garages
Find out more about lighting colour here
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View the full range of downlights here
Titlable Downlights
These come in black or white options and are designed where light from the ceiling needs to be directed or are necessary in a residential home with a vaulted ceiling.
We recommend the 7W Tilt SMD Downlight 4CCT. Check the light out here
Feature LIGHTING
Thinking about spaces within your home that you want to make a statement or architectural details you want to accentuate. It may be a pendant or chandelier at the entry of your home, over the kitchen island, dining table or even in your master bedroom.
Feature lighting could be in your kitchen with LED strips recessed under your bench top cabinetry over a bathroom vanity. There is a huge range of store options to choose feature lighting from. We’ve included some of these lighting stores below. And remember before purchasing always check the specifications with your Electrician as we can help guide you.
Key things to note when choosing to add feature lighting:
As an example allow an additional budget per feature light of approximately $120+GST for client supplied pendant light wiring and install. This price will increase if the pendant is larger, comes un assembled or is on a high ceiling.
Or for a 3M LED strip to kitchen allow an additional $390.00+GST
Note: Prices are indicative only
Dimmers
Dimmers give you the ultimate control
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Being able to adjust your light source means you’re able to create the perfect atmosphere in your home, anytime.
Warm and bright and dim and cozy. The versatility that dimmers can give a room can transform the space form full task orientation (think board game, or family get together) to restful (think movie watching). The other benefit dimmers provide is the ability to save energy consumption.
We’ve identified the most common areas within the home that can benefit from dimmers:
Lounge/ media rooms
Bedrooms, master especially
Feature lighting
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Dimmers are $115.36 installed, please note that if the lights can be switched from 2 locations you will require 2 dimmers. ie bedroom door and bedside.
We use these push button style dimmers:
The older rotary dimmers are available on request.
Sensor & tread LIGHTING
Ensuring safe movement throughout your home while being non disruptive to the rest of the household are the primary reasons for using tread lighting or sensor lighting. Entries, hallways, staircases and bathrooms are ideal spaces for sensor lighting to be installed.
For those with little ones sensor based night lights are available and there are options which provide for households where small animals might activate the sensor.
Tread light sensor options:
To give some example indication of costs to install tread lights and sensors: Our standard tread light here are $152.51 installed without a sensor.
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Other example tread options from:
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Bathroom sensors
For bathrooms and toilets as a standard we recommend these here. These sensors are ideal when used independently because they have a built in sensor and work out to be more cost effective than installing a separate sensor. However they are not recommended where more than one light is needed as they would turn on intermittently.
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Hallway sensors
Dependant on hallway length where more than one sensor is needed we recommend these options here
An example price for this unit installed: $152.51
Lighting by ROOM
The Kitchen
The kitchen is, as they say, the heart of the home. Whether it’s a weeknight in with the family or a gathering of with friends, we inevitably end up huddled in this space no matter what the occasion.
As a space that serves as both a technical space for cooking and an atmospheric space for entertaining, lighting and lighting control is critical in the kitchen. Let’s take a look at what you’ll need and where.
Lighting
Feature: Many modern kitchens feature central islands so over island pendants or long strip feature lights are a common addition to a lighting plan.
Recessed: This type of refined, out-of-the-way lighting can go anywhere. But it is particularly important when you want to illuminate areas of visual interest like open shelves and glass cabinets. Recessed lighting can work well over a central island too when an open plan space combines a dining space that has a feature pendant.
Under cabinet/task lighting: This can be used under overhead cupboards to provide tak lighting for cooking our to highlight your feature splash back.
Over cabinet: Placed between the cabinet and ceiling, over cabinet lights add a dramatic touch to your kitchen. Created in a similar fashion to undercabinet lighting, overcabinet lighting can provide even illumination to accent decor and architecture.
Toe-kick Lights: A great way to distinguish kitchens and to illuminate a pathway.
Note: Your kitchen designer may have already specified some of these types of lighting as part of their design plans. Make sure you send us a copy of the completed kitchen plans.
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Dimmers: While full light may be needed for some tasks in the kitchen, the ability to turn the lights to a lower level can come in handy, especially for early morning coffee-making or for late-night snacking. The dimmer can also set apart the cooking area from the dining area; use overhead lighting above the island or kitchen table to distinguish the areas for bigger gatherings.
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Sensors: As with dimmers, sensor lighting can be non-disruptive and assist safety. There is a range of options within the kitchen environment. Very hand for walk in pantry’s when the lights can often be left on.
Entry & Hallways
Feature lighting: Common lighting features in these areas are a wall light or feature pendant.
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Tread Lighting: Discrete low level lighting down your hallway/ entry can provide soft access lighting for night time passing or if the hallway has no natural light during the day.
Find out more about tread lighting here
Sensors: Adding sensors to your tread lighting can be non-disruptive and assist safety. From little ones waking in the night to moving through the house without waking others there is a range of options which can work well even in a home with small animals. Here’s some options to consider.
Find out more about sensor lighting here
Dining & Living Rooms
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Feature lighting: Over a dining table a chandelier, pendant or multiple pendants can create a striking central element within your home, while in a living room it may be wall lights that create soft mood lighting. The mood can be set with a lower wattage lamp or install a dimmer on this to have full control.
Find out more about feature lighting here
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Dimmers: Lower the lighting to transform your living room into your own movie theatre. The dimmer lets you control the lighting when reading a book or enjoying a hobby that needs a bit more light.
Find out more about dimmers here
Bedroom Lighting
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The bedroom requires a combination of ambient and task lighting. For ambient lighting a couple of recessed down lights should do the trick. Two is enough for most bedrooms as you don’t want to flood the space with too much light.
Smaller bedrooms around 3m x 3m are fine with 1 downlight However more can be allocated based on the size of the room - if concerned just ask our team and we can assist with direction on this.
Feature lighting: You may wish to include a feature chandelier or pendant light to centre the room.
Task lighting: comes in the form of table lamps, wall lights or low-hanging bedside pendants.
Dimmers: Rarely do you truly need bright light in a bedroom. In order to keep your bedroom a place for rest, incorporating a dimmer light switch can inform your body that the day is winding down and encourage better sleeping habits.
Sleep Technology: For the people who are big on sleep quality, swap your downlights in the bedrooms to downlights with sleep technology
check out more information on this here
An example of pricing to swap out a standard downlight start from $31.00 per light
Bathrooms
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Feature lighting: Whether you are wanting to add a sense of drama or a luxurious and calming look to your bathroom, feature lighting is a great way to do this. Being wet areas there are limitations so it’s important to identify early on in your project to ensure both the design for the room and the products chosen are suitable. If you have an idea feel free to chat to our team and we can advise the best solution to suit your room.
Dimmers: Lower the lighting to suit your mood. If you’re entering the space first thing in the morning or setting the mood for a relaxing bath then you can set the dimmer to be soft. Needing to apply makeup or see clearly - create focus with the dimmer set to full.
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Sensors Lighting: Sensor lighting in a bathroom (particularly the master ensuite) can be non-disruptive and assist safety if waking at night to go to the bathroom. From under cabinetry LED strip lighting to small discreet individual lights. You can control the look and amount of light with ease.
Garage Lighting
Whether your garage is just for the car and the bikes, or more than that with a full “mens shed” set up one of the most common recommendations in this space are upgrading the garage lights from downlights to linear battens to provide better light.
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We recommend 2 LED batten lights but some might require 3-4 depending on the garage size and use.
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Our standard option is here
Our standard option is priced from $85.00+GST per unit
(not including installation or wiring)
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Our upgrade recommendation is here
The upgrade option is priced from $95.00+GST per unit
(not including installation or wiring)