Browse Forums Lighting + Lighting Design Re: Anyone else not interested in downlights? 2Jun 30, 2014 5:51 am I had downlights and won't be having them again! With no light on the walls they can make a room seem lifeless and here are more reasons: http://www.anewhouse.com.au/2012/01/dow ... ink-again/ The Harder You Try - the Luckier You Get ! Web site http://www.anewhouse.com.au Informative, Amusing, and Opinionated Blog - Over 600 posts on all aspects of building a new house. Re: Anyone else not interested in downlights? 3Jun 30, 2014 7:49 am Well chosen and well placed down lights yes. An abundance in a grid formation, that often uses more lights than a well planned lighting scheme (thus more costly to install and run) and produces a poorer result for me is an obvious no. Re: Anyone else not interested in downlights? 4Jun 30, 2014 8:10 am Totally agree Tom Cat. New house here and we don't have a single downlight. Lot of alternatives these days. It can be done but everyone does look at you like you are from Mars!
Re: Anyone else not interested in downlights? 5Jun 30, 2014 8:42 am We are using a mixture, down lights, up lights, wall lights, pendants and lamps <!-- l --><a class="postlink-local" href="https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?t=62083">viewtopic.php?t=62083</a><!-- l --> Re: Anyone else not interested in downlights? 6Jun 30, 2014 8:43 am As a general method of lighting, NO WAY ! For a specific purpose for dressing up/setting a mood, perhaps... just like having different curtain/blind types for a specific room. If you have a special purpose, then you don't mind paying a lot extra in electricity for the room, but it would possibly be just the one room that you'd do it for. Owner Building at Jimboomba Woods in Logan City Qld. Blog : http://bandlnewhomebuild.blogspot.com H1 thread : viewtopic.php?f=38&t=68283 . Re: Anyone else not interested in downlights? 7Jun 30, 2014 9:33 am Personally I think the key is whether they are narrow beam or wide beam. I like wide beam downlights as they act similar to oyster lights in the spread of light. I despise narrow beam downlights that cast shadows everywhere and all over people's faces and don't reach the floor in strength. So in other words, I like the RIGHT kind of downlight haha. But I do agree they are generally over rated. Build thread: viewtopic.php?f=31&t=65085 Re: Anyone else not interested in downlights? 8Jun 30, 2014 11:36 am As per AKB. Different lights for different purposes. Long hallway - downlights, longish laundry and garage - two fluoros, kitchen - pendants over the island bench, ceiling downlights for the rest, lounge - downlights, wall lights and table lamps, bathrooms - downlights and spots over the vanities. Stewie Re: Anyone else not interested in downlights? 10Jun 30, 2014 3:05 pm We've got 4 down lights and 3 pendant lights in our kitchen and 4 downlights and a chandelier in our living area. They downlights and other lights are on seperate switches so I don't have to have them on if I don't want to. Otherwise I am not really a fan of them. The rental we are staying in has downlights everywhere - even the theatre room and no dimmers - I feel like I'm in a police interragation room the whole time. I am not a fan of them. My build: viewtopic.php?f=31&t=68002 Re: Anyone else not interested in downlights? 11Jun 30, 2014 10:21 pm I'm going against the grain here and saying they are great when done properly and with the right units. Glare is a big factor with them that a lot of people simply don't take into account. The eye is generally drawn to the brightest source of light in a room... the cheaper units with simple diffusers will act like a tiny sun sitting on the ceiling, unlike the better ones with a deeper reflector that bounce the light into the room and actually hide the lightsource from most angles. They are obviously best suited to living and utility areas where evenly distributed and controllable light is required, such as for reading, working or anything requiring minute detail. Rooms like home theatre, bedrooms or any area where relaxation is a general goal is far better with indirect, reflected light, be it combinations of single point diffused ceiling and wall mounts, or even floorstanding/table lamps. Creating a mood is as much about casting shadows as it is lighting a subject, something that wide angle downlights are not very good at. In any case, we put them in almost every room, but include other lights sources for flexibility and decoration, and being older we appreciate a little more light and they are an easy backup until something else takes their place . Re: Anyone else not interested in downlights? 12Jun 30, 2014 11:18 pm I'm not a huge downlight fan. We are fitting our place out with quite a few wide beam ones though. I have left lots of battens in place to swap out for some fine light fittings. Our rental has them everywhere, including the bedrooms. They have their place. I like them in our walk in robe as you don't have to worry about hitting them when putting stuff up high. Re: Anyone else not interested in downlights? 13Feb 08, 2015 4:11 pm As a lighting designer, I like to use indirect lighting and wall washing wherever possible. This can be achieved with the right downlight. I too dislike the "cave effect" that downlights can have when used in simple grid formation. I hate looking across the ceiling and seeing spots everywhere. When it comes to architectural lighting, in my opinion, less is more. You want the lighting to highlight the architecture. You don't want the architecture to disappear behind a halo of glare created by too many cheap LED downlights or oyster lights. Building Services Engineer Renovating our 1960's modernist home in Brisbane https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=53&t=82091 Re: Anyone else not interested in downlights? 14Mar 08, 2015 10:19 pm And yet most display homes I have walked through over the last 3 months have downlights by the hundreds. I think with the right downlight and the use of dimmers, they are very practical. You can always add mood lights on separate switches. Cheers, Paul (& Lisa) Parkhill 36 by ClarendonHomes in Coomera Retreat H1 Build Thread And Blog Building Blogs List - Go Ahead And Add Yours!! Re: Anyone else not interested in downlights? 16Mar 18, 2015 4:04 pm I feel Down lights are simple and insipid, which is exactly some people want for their room lighting. However, I find it very boring. Plus when a recessed down light is installed, it makes a hole of around 60 – 90mm in the ceiling. I personally don't like holes in my ceiling because it has a number of important properties to be maintained. I would rather go for pendants. Pendant looks classic. Pedants are surely a better option for high ceilings because the long cords of these pedants bring the lights down which creates a warmer and cosier atmosphere.
Re: Anyone else not interested in downlights? 17Mar 18, 2015 4:16 pm We have all of 3 down lights in our whole house. Everything else is either batten fixtures or wall fixtures. The 3 down lights that we have are directly over the island bench in our kitchen and are switched separately. That's, in my opinion, the purpose of down lights, hence their name, to provide directed light down on to a surface. They're not really great for lighting up entire rooms. The only other place I might have put them is in a media room setup but I would have still included a batten or wall fixture as well. We don't have a media room though. Paddington 29 @ Blue Horizon Estate (Lot 105, Wattleridge Crescent, North Kellyville) Our Build Progress Blog: http://light487.wordpress.com/ Re: Anyone else not interested in downlights? 18Mar 18, 2015 8:16 pm Personally I disagree that pendants are great for high ceilings per se, it depends on the pendant. If you have one that has upward lighting as well as down, then I would agree. However I think a downward-only pendant in a room with high ceilings is a complete waste of the room, because the dimension of space created by the high ceiling is lost because the ceiling will be dark. Downlights, when used sensibly and thoughtfully, can and are appropriate for most applications. Building Services Engineer Renovating our 1960's modernist home in Brisbane https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=53&t=82091 Re: Anyone else not interested in downlights? 19Mar 26, 2015 9:30 am I like them in cabinets for display but not in the roof as general lighting. I have little IKEA stick on/magnetic battery operated ones in our liquor and crystal display cabinet. Building a Metricon Barkly 29 in North Brisbane - https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=77396 Re: Anyone else not interested in downlights? 20Mar 26, 2015 11:19 am Yup they certainly serve a purpose just not, in my opinion, he purpose of lighting large and spacious rooms by themselves. Coupled with other types of lights they are good. Like in my example previously, they are good for lighting up your kitchen bench top in addition to the area lights that are lighting up the rest of the room. Also, in a media room they would be great because they tend not to be in positions where they will reflect off the screen.. Paddington 29 @ Blue Horizon Estate (Lot 105, Wattleridge Crescent, North Kellyville) Our Build Progress Blog: http://light487.wordpress.com/ A survey must’ve completed by a certified surveyor. This form part of every DA requirement 3 226353 I work with owner, he/she is my man on the ground and I instruct them when to visit the site and take photos and I have other tools in the bag. 4 16447 1000000% definitely add insulation. I have in my home and it makes a big difference minimising sound transfer. Insulation is pretty cheap and definitely worth it 2 6861 |