Lighting your home on a budget

Good lighting is essential for comfortable living, whether you live in a house, a flat or a studio. Yet every room and every space in your home has its own lighting needs, and installation costs vary accordingly. The price of light fittings and of having them installed can quickly add up. That is why it pays to rein in some of your lighting needs and save money, for instance by making the most of natural daylight in certain living areas. To light your home without breaking the bank, follow the advice of our indoor lighting experts.

Work out what each room really needs

To light your home well and cheaply, start by working out how much light each room actually needs. Living areas will obviously need more light than other spaces such as the cellar, hallways or loft. To pin down a room’s lighting needs, consider three factors:

l   Light output: light output is measured in lumens. In a room designed for family time and socialising, such as the living room, you will need between 300 and 550 lumens. As a guide, a 25-watt bulb gives out roughly 230 lumens, while a classic 75-watt bulb produces 910 to 970 lumens. For task lighting, 260 lumens is plenty.

l   Colour rendering: colour rendering is expressed as a CRI (Colour Rendering Index) value. A bulb’s CRI determines how faithfully it reveals the true colours of your walls, decorative objects and so on. To keep your eyes comfortable and avoid eye strain, especially during long hours of study, a high CRI is strongly recommended as it closely mimics natural daylight. Choose bulbs and fittings with a CRI/Ra of around 80 or above.

l   Colour temperature: colour temperature is measured in kelvin (K). It describes how the light given off by a bulb, particularly an LED bulb, is perceived. Today’s bulbs offer colour temperatures ranging from 2,700 K to 8,000 K. For spaces that call for concentration and long working hours, such as a study or a waiting room, a cool colour temperature of 5,400 K or more is recommended. In places for relaxing and spending time together, such as the living room, dining room or bedroom, a colour temperature between 1,500 K and 2,700 K is ideal. Close to the light of the rising sun, this slightly yellowish white creates a familiar, warm and cosy atmosphere.

Make the most of natural light

To get the most out of your lighting, use natural daylight as much as possible to light your home during the day. For example, you can place your desk at right angles to a window to enjoy the best possible visibility during the day without any risk of glare. To maximise natural light, opt for light-coloured walls. This daylight will then let you work or study without needing an extra lamp in your study.

Dimmers: a money-saving solution

One way to achieve lighting that is both successful and economical is to choose dimmable light fittings. First, a dimmer saves you money by reducing the energy a light fitting consumes. Second, it lets you create different moods in a room to suit the people using it. A dimmer is therefore an ideal ally for lighting that is stylish, practical and economical.

A room’s main lighting

To light a room properly, you need a main light fitting. It should be powerful enough to light the whole room. Ceiling lights, pendants and chandeliers are the most common choices for this role. Think about the size of the room and what it is mainly used for, so you choose the right type of lighting and save money. In a small study or bedroom, a ceiling light fitted with an LED bulb is more than enough as the main light source. In a larger room such as the living or dining room, a chandelier with LED bulbs will do the job. You can also use indirect lighting to light your room effectively. Nothing beats track spotlights and adjustable recessed downlights for this. You will create a warm, cosy atmosphere while cutting your electricity bill.

Task lighting

Alongside the main lighting, every room should have one or more secondary light sources. Their main purpose is to light you while you read in the living room, study in your bedroom or carry out any other activity that requires focused light. The most popular fittings for this are floor lamps, wall lights with a reading arm, desk lamps and pendants. To stay within your lighting budget, choose a floor lamp with a reading light for your reading corner. Stylish, modern and practical, this type of floor lamp will save you money by providing excellent task lighting in any room of your home. Another equally affordable option is portable desk lamps, which make excellent secondary lights that you can move from room to room. Finally, clip-on desk lamps are the go-to choice for task lighting. Easy to fit, light and practical, these clip-on lamps will light your study sessions, and they are very reasonably priced too.

Ambient lighting

The final step to lighting your home well and economically is ambient lighting, which brings your whole home to life. Choose portable lamps or lanterns with LED bulbs to create a welcoming, modern atmosphere in every room. You can also opt for decorative candles for soft lighting during a hot-tub session or to set the mood for a romantic evening. Another innovation is illuminated furniture, which is appearing on the market more and more. Mirrors, garden armchairs, shelves, poufs and even parasols fitted with LED lights are all furnishing options that let you light your home and outdoor spaces with style and elegance, while keeping your wallet happy. You could also give in to the charm of fairy lights. Cheap and practical, they bring a cosy, snug feel to a living space while decorating it at the same time.

Choose LED bulbs

For several years now, LED bulbs have been the preferred choice for lighting our homes and outdoor spaces. LED bulbs have many advantages over fluorescent and incandescent bulbs. The first is energy saving: an LED bulb uses 10 times less energy than a fluorescent bulb and up to 90% less than an incandescent bulb. This saving comes from the way LED bulbs are made, from numerous electronic diodes. These diodes use very little energy yet give out a high-intensity light, enough to light an entire small room. Secondly, LED bulbs last much longer than other types of bulb. Their lifespan is around 40,000 hours, or nearly 5 years. Dusted regularly and cleaned properly, an LED lamp can even keep working for over 20 years. By choosing LED bulbs, you enjoy excellent lighting for years, which adds up to a significant saving on your lighting costs. Another strength of LED bulbs is that they suit any decorating style. From industrial to Scandinavian, classic to neo-retro, you will easily find stylish, on-trend light fittings powered by LED technology. What’s more, many ceiling lights, chandeliers, wall lights, portable lamps and floor lamps (both indoor and outdoor) come with LED bulbs. This gives you a wide choice of eco-friendly, economical fittings for the general, task and decorative lighting of your home.

In short, to light your home on a budget:

•   Assess how much light each room needs
•   Make as much use of natural light as possible
•   Choose light fittings with LED bulbs and dimmers
•   Where possible, install a main light, one or more secondary lights and a few ambient lights in each living space.

By following all these tips, you can be sure of having efficient, economical lighting for your flat, studio or house.