Recessed Lighting

For those who’ve experienced this scenario, you might already know what recessed lighting kits are all about. Imagine this. You’ve seen pictures of those wonderfully lit living room or kitchen and you’re keen to replicate that with your own house. You may have even tried calling a contractor for some quotations. But that may have dampened your spirits a bit. After all, remodeling your space to incorporate recessed lighting isn’t really that cheap. Your research further points you to the option of buying and installing your own recessed lighting to save money. Enter the reasonably low priced recessed lighting kits.

Well, as the saying goes “you get what you pay for” and it’s relatively true in this situation. Though recessed lighting kits aren’t really all that bad, getting to know what you’re getting into is important. Let’s drill into the pros and cons.

Recessed lighting retrofit kits are an off the shelve production by light manufacturers to cater to the DIY crowd. Such kits comes with its own set of compliant components such as the integral captive nails, transformers connectors, and several other good to have features such as sturdy hanger bars. Because such kits tend to be mass produced, they’re able to transfer the economies of scale back to the consumer by lowering retail prices. For example, during our research, some recessed lighting kits can cost as little as USD 10! The downside of this however, is that the variety in the models they offer tend to the limited. Hence, if you’re planning for a major revamp of your living space, you may find your creativity hampered by the sheer lack of choices.

And if you’ve noticed, the cheaper kits are usually made of plastic. Such materials are often more vulnerable to heat and hence questionable when it comes to durability. Lower cost plastic kits may also include lower wattage bulbs to prevent damage to the housings. More often than not, this light may be considered too dim for certain accent and task lighting requirements.

Also, since such recessed lighting kits require a DIY installation, if you’re someone who’s not really a handyman or handywoman, you may find it a great challenge getting these lights up. The redeeming factor, however is its ease of installation. Most of such retrofit units comes with specific instructions and even stenciling templates which helps you outline and obtain an exact size of the opening for the installation. Even then, some wiring knowledge would still be required and if you are not sure how to handle that, paying a professional can give you a greater piece of mind but may add on to your bottomline costs.

That said, does it mean recessed lighting kits are not useful at all? Not really. More often than not, such kits are compiled together with the components that are perfectly compliant. And if you’ve a particular space that goes well with dimmer lighting, for example, the walkways or corridors for general lighting, such kits can come in handy. The plastic materials are also easily replacable so in the event that your light gets damaged over time due to usage, you can always find a low cost parts replacement. Manufacturers are also coming up with optional recessed lighting covers trims selections that goes with a particular series of recessed lighting kits so that you can have an added variety. So, where can you get such recessed lighting kits?

Many brick and motar retailers carry different brands and models of such kits. For a start, you can make a trip down to Home Depot and look at the variety of options available and make your selections carefully. Some major online retailers such as Amazon offers great discounts to entice customers to buy some of these products. Amazon even have real customer feedback that you can read through before considering buying the recessed lighting kits.

As recessed lighting becomes popular, a greater variety of recessed lighting trim styles and designs are also introduced by manufacturers to cater to different needs. Some of these are functional. Such as the standard baffle which incorporates the baffle functionality with the trim. Others are decorative and stylish. But how do you select the recessed lighting trim that complements the interior style and function you’re going for? And what are your options?

To help you with this, let’s take a look at some of the common recessed lighting trims available :

(1) Baffled Recessed Light Trim

Baffles are basically used to redirect bright light in a particular direction and slightly lessens the intensity of the lighting. When merged with the trim, the baffled recessed lighting trim essentially look like ribbed interior rings. You will find concentric circular grooves inside the cones that holds the lamp. Since it is great for creating a soothing architectural atmosphere without the glare, many home dwellers tend to prefer this over the other designs, making it one of the most popular choices. It is also used in commercial offices.

(2) Eyeball Gimbal Ring

If you need a focused, precise light beam effect for highlighting your art display, signboard or a specific part of your building, the eyeball gimbal ring may be be your choice. Equipped with an adjustible swivel, you can easily adapt the light to where it’s needed. Sometimes, this type of trim may also be used for task lighting. For example, a reading light effect over your bed is something you can achieve with this. If you’re planning fo this function, remember to choose a lamp with a very tight beam so that you will not disturb your partner sleeping beside you.

(3) Reflector / Multiplier Lighting Trim

Such trims contain an interior reflector surface that optimizes the lighting while hiding the source. Multipliers are commonly used to manage the light flow of “A”style incandescent light bulbs and fluorescents. Best suited for task or general lighting functions, as they tend to give off more light. Also, if the recessed lights is the only source of lighting in the room, this may be a suitable option as well.

(4) Decorative Recessed Lighting Trim

As the name suggests, such trims are clearly for asethetic purposes. Different decorative designs, ranging from colourful glowing art glass to contemporary stylish finishes are available to suit all kinds of interior settings. Believe it or not, but one such trim can transform your seemingly unintrusive fixture into a beautiful chandelier! If you prefer not to draw any attention to the recessed lighting fixture, going for trims that matches your ceiling’s colour and texture is a wiser choice.

(5) Lens / Louvred Trim

Lens / Louvered recessed lighting trim diffuses the light, making it soft and soothing. Awesome for space that looks good in a gentle douse of light, it’s common to find such trims used in showers or even closets. The lens also have the added function of protecting the lamp and hence is commonly used for lights in wet areas such as bathrooms.

(6) Wall Wash / Pin Hole Trim

Both the wall wash and pin hole recessed lighting trim has a small partial opening where light is allowed through. The main difference between the two is that the latter doesn’t have any spill over effect.

The light beam from the wall wash trim tends to be asymmetrical and hence great for getting rid of the common “scalloped light effect”. This type of trim is commonly used to accent vertical areas such as the wall, fire place, drapes, fire place, etc. with light. Some people also use this to highlight art displays, even though the effect is not as precise as the eyeball gimball ring trim.