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Selecting Lighting for Your Home - Page 1

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Introduction
So you’re shopping for lighting . . . possibly for your new home or some renovated or redecorated areas in your current home. We know how stressful this may be for you.

There are so many questions . . . so few answers!

Kichler would like to make it easier and less stressful for you by providing useful information that can help you make confident, anxiety-free lighting decisions.

Of course, we recognize that in all cases your choices will reflect YOUR taste, YOUR décor, YOUR budget, YOUR home. The information we provide should help steer you through the potential pitfalls that can be associated with selecting lighting.

Let’s get to it!

1. GENERAL LIGHTING FORMULA

Professor

Q – How much light do I need in an area to light it properly?
A - Glad you asked. There’s actually a proven formula for calculating the proper amount of general light (usually expressed as the number of watts) you should have in each room or area of your home . . . and it’s not difficult, just some basic arithmetic.

Multiply the length times the width of the room. Then, multiply that number times 1.5. That gives you the amount of wattage you need to light the room properly for general illumination.

Example: A room is 12 ft. x 16 ft. (12 x 16 = 192). Then multiply 192 x 1.5 = 288 watts. That means an 8-light chandelier using 40-watt bulbs would give 320 watts, which is even more light than needed.

For specific task lighting in areas where stronger light is needed, multiply the area’s square footage by 2.5 rather than 1.5 to find the needed wattage. A kitchen work island or a desk area where schoolwork is done are examples of task areas in your home.

These same rules apply to every room or area in your home.

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