ESSENTIAL CEDIA

CASTING A LIGHT

Luke Crutcher from CEDIA Member, Living Home Tech, one of the authors of CEDIA’s RIBA approved CPD, ‘Introduction to Integrated Lighting Design’, talks through some of the common challenges to watch out for when fitting integrating lighting as part of your project.

Getting the mains dimming specification right is key to a successful installation. Make sure you check the lighting control manufacturer’s list of compatible luminaires and lamp types before specifying. If there is no information on a particular fitting or lamp, then we would strongly recommend bench testing over a period of sufficient time to test the dimming range and performance. This will allow you to assess any problems with lamp flicker and the smoothness of the dimming process, so that you don’t have any issues when on site. The last thing you need is problems with untested GU10 LED lamps juddering through the dimming transition - or pulsing because of unforeseen issues with current leakage through the control system.

It’s also important to make sure you use sufficient lighting circuits for an installation. Too many and it can overwhelm the client, too few and you will struggle to achieve the WOW scenes that professionally integrated lighting can create. Using a lighting control system eliminates confusing and unattractive grid switches in busy areas, so at the touch of a button the client can transform a room simply with light.

In our view, there is just not enough lighting control used in some projects, and, sometimes, it’s seen as something that can be easily cut from a project when budgets are tight. For example, the adverse impact on wiring, room aesthetics and ease of use when trying to control 12 different circuits with a single grid switch in a kitchen is huge, especially if some circuits need to be dimmed whilst others are just on/off. Sometimes it makes far more sense, and has fewer ramifications, to simply lose a couple of AV zones in a property rather than remove the lighting control.

Consider the different types of light your client needs and make sure you understand how they use their home when taking the brief. Task lighting for everyday jobs, such as, food preparation and cooking, ambient general lighting for everyday use and accent lighting, where you wish to highlight a particular feature, such as, artwork all have a part to play.

The colour temperature should be considered for every room. You may use warm white (2700-3000K) in the main living spaces, but in the key task areas, such as utility rooms you should opt for day light (4000K+). Be careful though not to mix colour temperatures with different fittings or circuits. Lighting contributes to the client’s sense of comfort and wellness in their home and combining warm white fittings at 2700K and an LED strip at 4000K in the same space is going to jar and create discomfort rather than a mood of relaxation.

We’ve found using fibre optic lighting to create an atmospheric, low level glow in home cinemas is a big winner. In these spaces, take care when using pathway lighting to direct the light across the floor and not into the client’s face when they’re seated.

If you’re working with a developer, then, professionally integrated lighting control can make all the difference to selling a property. Creating a welcome scene for the agent to use where, upon entry, one button can control all the lighting circuits with pre-sets around the home is impressive and a powerful marketing tool.

One final piece of advice. If the project budget permits, a high-quality LED fitting should always be specified. The negative impact on colour rendering when using cheaper LEDs can be pretty dramatic. Be sure to select LEDs with a high CRI output – we use 98 CRI fittings where we can. In the long term, your client will not regret it!

Living Home Tech livinghometech.co.uk

Luke Crutcher from CEDIA Member, Living Home Tech

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