Light Up Your Kitchen!
Imagine it’s early in the morning, and you’re up early, trying to be a good parent and have a wholesome breakfast pulled together for you and your kid. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and you're sure the cereal isn’t the best start. It’s dark outside, and you’re tired, but you’re determined to have omelets with sort of fresh vegetables. But it’s so dark, you mistake your finger for a mushroom and end up feeding our kid cereal anyway while you debate whether or not you need stitches.
If your kitchen were properly lit, you wouldn’t have as great a chance for accidents. Lighting is one of biggest ways you can improve the function and comfort of your kitchen, not to mention upgrading the style and overall value of your property.
There are several different kinds of lights you can have installed in your kitchen.
Pot Lights/Recessed Lighting
These are sleek and smooth looking; they are little light fixtures tucked up into the ceiling of your kitchen. They’re very modern and look very elegant.Recessed lighting is best installed during a renovation because the electrician will have to open up your ceiling to install them. Make certain to check with your electrician when picking out the fixtures to find out if you need IC or Non-IC fixtures. 'IC' means “Insulation Contact” which is an important fire safety concern.
Under-mount Lighting
Usually, these kinds of lights are attached to the bottom of your cabinets and help light your counters and sink. You can install these yourself. They are sold in the hardware store and only require you to screw them into the cabinets and plug them into the outlet. But now you’re using a valuable outlet for our lights instead of appliances, and the cords look tacky too. If you have an electrician install them, they are going to be more costly, but increase the usefulness and value of your kitchen in the long run.
Overhead Lights, ceiling fans, and chandeliers
This is where it’s really time to flaunt your style. Picking out overhead lights doesn’t require much technical knowledge or advice, except that you need to know the wattage limits on your electrical system and on the fixtures themselves. Opting for chandeliers makes a great visual impact, but might provide more of a challenge for your electrician. A ceiling fan can help keep heating and cooling costs down but doesn’t look as nice. Don’t forget that installing a new ceiling fan in a spot which hasn’t had one before requires a permit and inspection in Phoenix and Tucson. Pendant lights are a lot like chandeliers in the style department, but are more likely to use normal-sized bulbs, and give off more overall light. These are the ones that look so great over the breakfast bar and make it possible for your kid to see her cereal.
A few extra notes
Once you pick out your fixtures, you need to consider what kind of bulbs are going in them. The most cost effective option on the market is LED. They’ve got the longest lifespan of the available bulbs, and run on the least amount of electricity.
Also, each of your built-in lighting systems should have their own switch. Your pot lights should be on a separate circuit from the under mount lights and ceiling fans. You’ll love having a bright, beautiful kitchen. Ask your electrician any questions you might have about your kitchen and keeping it bright.
