Types of residential lighting

Residential lighting refers to the provision of lighting in spaces used for day and night life. Living spaces can be detached bungalows, apartments, terrace houses or semi-detached houses. The lighting needed in a residential area is both day and night lighting.

Artificial lighting and natural lighting

Daytime running lights can be either artificial or natural. Artificial lighting is provided by lamps and other luminaires. Lamps can be chandeliers, ceiling lamps, floor lamps, table lamps or lamps. Natural light is provided by daylight capture through windows or skylights. Natural light is often claimed to be very superior to artificial light because it should affect the physical health of the inhabitants in a positive way.

Types of artificial lighting

When designing a home, it is important that you choose a large selection of lighting instead of just choosing one type of lighting. Task lighting, accent lighting and general lighting are different types of lighting that should find a place in your lighting schedule for a living room. Each of these types can enhance your living space in a unique way.

Task lighting is best used when you need a special task space lit. A good example of this is a work table or a stove. Ceiling lamps or table lamps are best suited for this, although floor lamps can also be used for this. An important aspect of work lighting is that it must produce enough light in the work area close by, without producing too much heat.

Accent lighting is primarily for decorative purposes and is used to highlight paintings and such wall-mounted art, or plants and other interior details or landscaping.

General lighting, also called ambient lighting, is used to illuminate an area without focusing on any particular space. Usually, luminaires hung from the ceiling, table lamp or floor lamp will provide general or ambient lighting.

Methods of lighting

The most common lighting method in living spaces is downlighting, which means that the light is thrown down, from the ceiling, either from luminaires or recessed. Another method is backlighting, which is much less common than backlighting. It is used to reflect light from the ceiling and downwards, to obtain uniform brightness and to minimize glare. However, it is not considered economical. Front lighting is another method, but it makes the subject appear without dimensions because almost no visible shadows are formed. Backlighting is also common and is mainly used for accents.