Kitchen lighting options

The kitchen is a place to relax, as well as a work area. That is why it is important that the indoor lighting was above each functional area and was in accordance with all the requirements of the family. Worktops, kitchen island, interior parts of cabinets should be illuminated. You can also add a chandelier above the dining table to add style to the kitchen.

Lighting in the kitchen can be functional or decorative

Organization of kitchen lighting

You need to start with the rational lighting of the working area. Recessed spotlights or narrow lamps are mounted in the lower part of the kitchen cabinets, and the wires are held behind the rear wall of the furniture.

A significant drawback of such a backlight is that it conceals the interior space of wall cabinets

Cons that can be encountered with this method of highlighting:

• Badly selected lamp sizes. If the lamp is not flat enough, it will bulge and spoil the general appearance of the product. To solve this problem, it is better to order furniture with special gutters for lighting.
• The second minus is a complicated installation and installation, it is necessary to remove all the wall cabinets to hide the wires.

If the furniture will change, it is better to use LED strip for this method. The main advantage of LED strip is its flexibility and ease of installation. That is why it is used not only to illuminate kitchen cabinets, but also other elements (ceiling, bottom of tables, bar table and so on.

Using an LED strip, it’s easy enough to solve the problem of illuminating work surfaces

The following illumination method can be distinguished - zonal or spot lighting. The bottom line is that small light sources are installed. There is a common illumination when bulbs are inserted into the design of a suspended ceiling, such an installation will easily hide all wires and communications. Fashionable in 2019-2020 will be hanging over the working area of ​​the lamp on a long cord with a monotonous ceiling or without it at all.

An example of zoning a room with pendant lights above a kitchen island

Pendant lights as lighting for the kitchen have been used for a very long time. From one chandelier in the kitchen, they slowly began to move to a more original solution of several chandeliers above each zone, for example, a separate lamp above the working area and one above the soft zone.

There is also such a kind of lighting as overhead lights for the kitchen. For ease of use and installation are located between spotlights and LED strip. They can be applied to absolutely any surface of the kitchen. They come in the form of a small washer and run on batteries, fastened either with Velcro, magnets or double-sided tape.

Battery-mounted overhead lights have limited power, so they must be placed close to the surface to be lit.

Indoor lighting can be used to illuminate cabinets and particularly dark corners of the kitchen. If you install the backlight in a cabinet with transparent or translucent doors, this will add a special zest to the kitchen design and help to present the dishes in a favorable light.

In decorative lighting, color plays an important role. For example, warm yellow light effectively emphasizes the beauty of natural wood texture

Functional ceiling lighting in the kitchen is gaining in popularity. Ceiling spot systems make it easy to control the lighting in the kitchen. These are lamps that harmoniously combine aesthetics and functionality.

Spots and track systems are interesting in that they can be used to direct light to the desired point.

Lighting with a single chandelier is one of the easiest ways to give your kitchen an interesting style. But this way of backlighting is less functional than the rest of the above because only one area is lit, and dark corners or cabinets will be left unattended.

For general lighting of kitchens in classical and rustic styles, chandeliers are often used, the amount of which is determined based on the area of ​​the room

What types of lighting and what should be the lighting

Today, even for the smallest kitchens, the following types of lighting must be provided:

1. The general.
2. Highlighting the work area.
3. Illumination of the dining area.
4. Decorative lighting.
5. The functional use of natural light.

You can do without decorative light, but with it the overall picture of the interior of your kitchen will be more complete and accurate.

“Polite illumination” of the cabinet interior turns on automatically when the door is opened

General lighting in the kitchen

It is difficult to manage without the main lighting of the room, which is why you can install a chandelier in the center of the kitchen or near the dining table. For a small kitchen, it is better to put flat lights, or integrate lighting into a suspended ceiling. You can also provide a rheostat to adjust the intensity of the light stream and change the atmosphere in the kitchen.

Warm yellowish light is suitable for traditional interiors.

Modern interiors use neutral white and cold light.

Dining area lights

This area should be with soft, calm and comfortable lighting that will illuminate the surface, but will not be very bright.

For comfortable lighting of a free-standing dining table, lamps suspended at a small height from the surface of the countertop are suitable

Such lighting depends entirely on the interior solutions of the room. Both wall sconces and height-adjustable pendant lamps may be suitable. For small kitchens, the general lighting and illumination of the working area are usually combined to avoid piling up with excess lighting.

Decorative lighting

It almost does not perform specific functions, but rather serves to decorate the interior of the kitchen. With such lighting, its functionality is manifested only when used to visually increase the room.

LED diodes can effectively highlight a glass apron

Additional lighting is placed in kitchen cabinets, on the space between the ceiling and the kitchen set, to highlight the bottom of the furniture (the LED strip is allowed almost above the floor). When installing additional decorative lighting, it is also necessary to install dimmers and take color LEDs, this will help to more successfully combine lighting and the main colors of the room.

For decorative lighting, it is advantageous to use RGB lamps that allow you to change the color scenario from the remote control

Natural lighting in the kitchen

The rational use of natural lighting is a great opportunity to save on electricity. If the windows are small, it is better to hang the most transparent tulle, and choose a light color for the walls. For the most productive use of daylight, the following points should be considered.

The main rule of decorating the kitchen window is that the darker the room, the lighter and more transparent the curtains should be

If the windows face north, then you need to keep them clean at all times, because pollution will pick up most of the incoming light.

There is a lot of light on the south side in the daytime, in such rooms it is better to put roller blinds with a medium-density canvas (they transmit about 40% of daylight).

A roller blind is the best option for a kitchen window if a sink is located in front of it

When creating a lighting project for a kitchen, the following requirements must be considered:

• Light should be positioned so that people do not cast a shadow on all functional areas.
  

  The absence of shadows provides uniform diffused light from several sources in different form factors. For example, to illuminate the working area, you can combine mortise LED lights and LED strip

• Light sources should not be too bright.
• Sources should not shout out each other, they should complement each other.
• It is necessary to take into account the lighting solution of the kitchen, light colors reflect 80% of the light flux, and dark 12%.
• Lighting standards for the working area of ​​100 watts per square meter, for the dining room will be enough and 50 watts per square meter.
• From the water source to the lamp should be at least 60 cm.

Proper lighting of the kitchen is the key to a good mood of the hostess

Which lamps to choose

There are many different types of lamps on the market. For the greatest savings and comfortable use, these lamps are suitable:

1. Fluorescent lamps are more expensive than a simple incandescent bulb, but they consume less energy and last ten times more.
2. Halogen lamps are economical and affordable, designers' favorites, due to the various forms and types, allow you to create and come up with unique design solutions.
3. LEDs are universal and long-lasting, the minus is that they give cold light. Easy to mount by yourself.

LEDs can solve the problem of lack of natural light or act as decorative lighting

Simple incandescent lamps are already obsolete due to low efficiency, they are more often used already in catering establishments since there are different original forms and with interesting incandescent filaments. In apartment lighting, they have already lost their relevance and are becoming less common.

In almost any kitchen, we can now see the LED backlight, due to the fact that it is cheap and easy to install without calling an electrician.

Self-adhesive LED strip does not require special skills for installation

Some recommendations for installing LED strip yourself:

1. Measure the required tape length and add another + 10% to the desired length.
2. The knife cuts the edge of the tape and expose the end by 10-15 mm.
3. Solder the electric cable to the exposed contacts.
4. Wear heat shrink tubing to protect and isolate the contacts.

The easiest way is to buy a ready-made kit that includes a reel with an LED strip, a power supply and a remote control

RGB tape connection diagram

1. Cover the outside of the profile with tape.
2. Place the LEDs on the inside of the profile without a protective film.
3. We connect the design with the adapter, it converts the energy from 200 V to 12 V required for the tape.
4. To the output of the adapter (output) we bring the tape, and to the input (input) - an electric wire with a plug.
5. The surface on which the fastening will be carried out must be degreased and wiped dry.
6. Glue on the double-sided tape the entire structure to a previously prepared surface.
7. Reduce all cables to the power supply and connect to the switch.

The LED strip is mounted on the bottom surface of the hanging cabinets in one or two rows depending on the required level of illumination

Polarity is indicated on the tape web by the corresponding icons.

Shortcomings that must not be forgotten:

• Deformation of the tape - this affects the quality of fastening.
• Shelf life of adhesive tape - it is better to take a double-sided glass, it is transparent and its shelf life is about 10 years.
• LEDs cannot be turned on after installation. It is necessary to wait at least one day for a full coupling of the adhesive tape and the tape itself. Otherwise, it will simply fall away.

LED strip - the best solution for hanging the kitchen working area

Thus, when planning a lighting project in the kitchen, all these nuances must be taken into account, then it will be practical, stylish and durable.

Video on how to independently make the backlight of the kitchen working area

Photo Gallery: Kitchen Lighting Scenarios