8/2/2020 Arranging Downlights for General Lighting

Arranging Downlights for General Lighting

Article Series: Working with Recessed Downlights

Choosing and Installing Recessed Downlights
Downlight layout tips for: General Lighting | Task Lighting | Wall & Accent Lighting

General lighting provides a uniform level of ambient illumination in a room or space. It doesn’t
highlight any particular aspects of the room; it just provides overall light that shines down and
illuminates horizontal surfaces. While perhaps the least visually striking lighting method, it is
required for the space to be functional, for circulation, and for egress. General lighting is the most
common use of recessed downlights in interior spaces.

Spacing
In order to lay out our downlight xtures, we rst need to know how far apart to space them.
Proper spacing of the cans will allow for even illumination throughout the room. This means the
cones of light coming from each downlight luminaire, which should be wider for shorter ceilings
and narrower for taller ceilings, will properly and smoothly overlap.

Spacing Method #1: Ceiling Height Rule of Thumb

A quick way to determine for how far apart to space your recessed downlights is to take the
ceiling height and divide by two. For example, an 8’-0” ceiling would have lights spaced every 4’-0”
on-center, and a 10’-0” ceiling would have lights spaced every 5’-0” on center.

Spacing Method #2: Spacing Criteria

The more precise method for determining how far apart to space your LED can lights is known as
the spacing criteria (SC) value. It is a number usually between 0.5 and 1.5 that is assigned by the
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manufacturer to a speci c xture, and can often be found on the speci cation sheet. The spacing
criteria value takes into account the speci c properties of that light to determine how close the
xtures need to spaced for proper and even illumination. The equation is as follows:

Spacing Distance = Spacing Criteria (SC) x Mounting Height (MH)

Mounting height is the distance from the ceiling to the oor or work surface. Which you choose
depends on the type of room. For a living room or hallway, the illumination of the oor is the
priority, so the mounting height would be the distance from the oor. But for a kitchen or an
o ce, the illumination of a work plane or counter is the priority, so the mounting height would be
the distance from the work surface.

Layout
Now that we know how far apart to space the recessed downlights, it’s time to arrange them in
the room. It is usually best to sketch out a plan of your room rst. (If you also know where your
ceiling joists are, it’s best to include them in the sketch, as you’ll need to install the lights between
them.)

1. Pick a starting point

Unless you have a speci c area of the room where you know you want a light directly overhead,
it’s usually best to start your layout in the middle of the room. This can mean placing a light
directly in the middle location or centering the surrounding lights around a middle point. From
here, arrange your lights outward in a grid according to the spacing determined earlier.

If you do have a particular object or area of the room that you want to highlight, you can place

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your rst light in that location and then spread out from that point.

2. Avoid edges and corners

Be sure to keep any downlights at least 2 to 3 feet away from the edge of the ceiling where it
meets the wall. This will help to avoid unsightly shadows. Plus, it’s a waste of light.

3. Watch out for fans

If you have a fan in your room, keep the downlights away from the spinning diameter of the fan
blades. Otherwise, this will create a icker effect in the entire room.

4. Keep at it
Odds are, the rst time you lay out your recessed downlights, it won’t be quite perfect. Don’t
worry. This is why we’re using a sketchpad. (Computer modeling works too, if you’re able to do
that.) Keep tweaking the arrangement and spacing until it works for your unique space.

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