If Shakespeare was installing ceiling lights, I’m sure the first question he’d have asked is “To use recessed ceiling lights or not?” (Okay, I agree there were no recessed lights back then, but just play along, would you please?).
Many people thinking about a new home project or remodeling their homes ask the same question. I’ll share my advice for recessed ceiling lights in this post.
So continue reading…
No Doubt, Recessed Lighting is a Great Choice for Ceilings
Recessed ceiling lights are perhaps the most popular choice for ceilings—and it’s not hard to see why.
Recessed lights are inherently elegant, have a low profile, and add the perfect ambient—all good things that you may want in a ceiling light.
On top of all this, they offer calculated lighting, which means occupants focus on what is being illuminated, not the lighting fixture itself.
Most people love recessed lighting for its low-profile design. Apart from a small amount of trim, everything else is concealed within ceiling.
However, since a wide range of trim types are available, you may have to do a bit of research to find the best fit for your home.
Here are the most common trim options and the difference between them.
- Baffle Trim
More popular than any other trim type, the baffle trim features a ribbed interior. This helps reduces glare from the LED light bulb. If you wish to reduce glare further, we recommend selecting black or any other dark colored trim.
- Open Trims
They are similar to baffle trims, the only difference being the absence of a ribbed interior. Since there are no ridges, you get brighter lighting from them.
So if you want bright lighting, open trims might be perfect for you. However, keep in mind these trims aren’t as effective as baffle trims when it comes to preventing glare.
- Shower Trims
Specially designed for wet and damp conditions, shower trims are perfect for bathrooms, showers, and other high-humidity areas.
A shower trim features a tempered glass fixture cover, which protects the LED bulb and also keeps out moisture.
- Eyeball Trim
This trim type pairs the same exterior as open trim and baffle trim with an adjustable interior fixture. Eyeball Trims are most suitable for accent lighting.
That said, some types of eyeball trims may look a bit tacky since the bulk of the trim is visible. For this reason, choose a color that goes well with the rest of your room.
- Well Wash Trim
A fusion of eyeball trim and baffle trim, the well wash trim is an adjustable ceiling light fixture with a half shield. Because of it, you can use the trim to evenly focus the light on a specific item—like a painting—or a certain feature of your home.
But There are Other Good Options Too
Track lightings, flush mount lights, cove lighting, fiber optic lighting, and pendants can all be good options for ceiling lighting, depending on your needs.
Track lightings
Do you want to accent specific areas of your room, such as display units and object d’art?
If yes, track lights may just be what you need. They are also extremely suitable in rooms where you require lot of light in a specific area to work under.
Pendants
Pendants create bright focused light that’s directed downwards. As such, they are perfect in spaces where you need the working surface to be well light.
Pendants are commonly used in kitchen and bathrooms, but you can also use them solely for decorative purposes.
Flush Mounts
Unlike chandeliers and pendant lights, flush mounts are ceiling lamps that don’t hang down dramatically. You can use them in the kitchen to eliminate shadows and light the work surfaces from top down.
In addition, they can work seamlessly well with modern-style spaces, particularly if your priority is to add a little visual interest or gallery-like interest.
You can also use them in place of pendants over an island. Like pendants, they add focused lighting on a workspace. But unlike pendants, they don’t hang down to your eye line.
Cove Lighting
Cove lighting is a form of indirect lighting built into recesses, valances, or ledges in a ceiling. You can use it for aesthetic accent or as primary lighting. This type of lighting is popular because it provides extremely even light and the fixtures aren’t visible.
Fiber Optic Lighting
Want to turn your ceiling into a starry sky?
Then fiber optic lighting could be your answer.
They are equally suitable when you want to deliver natural light into spaces deep in your home. So if you want to bring day lighting into your hallways, bathrooms, and other spaces, you should definitely consider fiber optic lighting.
Lastly, Pick the Right Light Source
So what it is going to be—recessed lighting or some other lighting type?
Either way, we’re sure you’ve made the right decision. So now there’s only thing left to decide. The kind of light source you should use—CFL, Halogen, or LED?
Here’s the thing. LEDs cost more upfront, but they lasts 8 to 10 times more than halogen bulbs and roughly 5 times more than CFLs. Also, among the three, LEDs are far more energy efficient. Plus, they provide the most balanced light, particularly CRI90+ LEDs.
The long and short of this is LEDs are a far better option than CFL and Halogen bulbs. However, not all LEDs are created equal. If you don’t want to compromise on quality, go with CRI90+ LEDs.
At LiquidLEDs we offer only quality products and hence all our LEDs are CRI90+.
Conclusion
Recessed light is the most popular choice for ceiling lighting. However, there are several other viable options available as well. That said, whether you use recessed lighting or some other type, make sure the bulbs are LED. That’s because they give you the best bang for your buck in the long run.