We installed:

• Under-cabinet lighting, to light up the counters
• Toekick lighting, with makes it easier to clean but mosly it lightens up the space, making it feel fun and less heavy. I HIGHLY recommend getting this!
• Track lighting, ’cause you know you are going to want to move the lighting, over time and also be able to add color, change appliances.
• Recessed lighting, to lift up the ceiling and create a wide-open feel.

Kris, from Stafford home service is a freaking genius. Seriously, he has a great eye and comes up with creative ideas. He also is very careful about waste and wasted time. For instance, he would not install the countertop lighting until the counters were in place as he wanted to make sure the lighting was exact. I never would have thought of that.

Anyway, back to the mood: It’s important to think of how you are going to use the space, and how you like to live; then find a great electrician, like Stafford’s, and tell them what you have in mind, and have them discuss the options. You can do some research online, but I find I was a lot more successful having an electrician who has installed so many appliances he just knew how it would look and could explain it to me so I could make a decision that worked best for me.

Don;t take lighting for granted. It’s how we see and enjoy the world.

The first thing I thought was, Kris is great! –a really committed and hard-working electrician. Then, as I watched him go over every detail with the cabinet installers; discussing recessed lighting, in-cabinet lighting pucks, under-cabinet lighting, GFCI outlets, kick-plate lighting, wall ovens, cook tops, dishwashers and a myriad other issues; it occurred to me that his commitment to excellence and accuracy was also an issue of wasted energy and materials. While many electricians would think: “It’s no big deal if I have to redo some work, drill out some wood, replace a wire here and there, etc…” this kind of thinking is what fills our dumps (8,000 lbs of waste are typically thrown into the landfill during the construction of a 2,000 square foot home), wastes energy (the electrician has to drive), and pushes back timelines (which has a knock-on effect).

When looking for a great electrician. Don’t just consider the budget and reliability, look at accuracy, completion dates and a commitment to reducing waste. Your home renovation or new construction will be that much greener and eco-friendly!

Recessed lighting has a nice clean look and can be very effective at making small rooms feel bigger. Rather than installing chunky light fixtures, that take up room and clutter spaces, Stafford Home Service can install recessed lighting in your home for a simple, sleek look.

Recessed lighting can be installed in any room and is a great way to highlight works of art, mantels, photographs, or an interesting painted wall or Italian plaster feature.  Another useful way to use recessed lighting is for task lighting: Reading areas, desks, and various work spaces can all benefit from recessed lighting.  Imagine your desk free of hot, inconvenient lamps –with a flick of a switch your desk can be washed with focused light from recessed fixtures strategically placed for maximum effect.

There are four bulb options available for recessed lighting:

• Incandescent
• Halogen
• Low-emitting diode (LED)
• Compact fluorescent light (CFL).

Incandescent bulbs:
Incandescent lights are the standard lights with which we are all familiar. They have the least expensive up-front costs of the four options, are the least efficient, create more garbage and run very hot. They will also be phased out, according to federal law by 2012-2014 [http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d110:h.r.00006:].

Halogen bulbs:
Halogen lights are also incandescent, but they last longer and provide a greater quantity of light, per watt. They are a step up from standard incandescent but have all the same fundamental problems and will also be phased out along with standard incandescents.

LED bulbs:
If your looking for a Green lighting option, LED lights are the way to go.  According to energystar.gov, an ENERGY STAR qualified LED uses, at the bare minimum, 75% less energy than incandescent lighting and also reduces maintenance costs, by lasting 35 to 50 times longer (and more) than incandescent lighting and about 2 to 5 times longer than fluorescent lighting. LED bulbs also contain no mercury (which CFL’s do.) By using LED lighting you won’t have to replace bulbs more then once every several years (or more), which, in the long-term, is good for your pocketbook and the environment. (not to mention if you have limited mobility and have difficulty replacing bulbs)

Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs (CFL):
CFL bulbs are another green solution. An ENERGY STAR qualified compact fluorescent light bulb (CFL) will save about $30 over its lifetime and pay for itself in about 6 months. It uses 75 percent less energy and lasts about 10 times longer than an incandescent bulb.” (www.energystar.gov) Stafford home Services uses Energy Star qualified products. The toxic mercury contained in CFL’s is an issue, but is offset by the infrequency of replacement and proper waste disposal programs that are currently in effect across the US.

While LED or CFL recessed lighting fixtures are far more efficient than a standard incandescent fixture, they are a significantly higher up-front investment.  Keep in mind, If every American home replaced just one light with an ENERGY STAR light, we would save enough energy to light more than 3 million homes for a year, about $700 million in annual energy costs, and prevent 9 billion pounds of greenhouse gas emissions per year, equivalent to the emissions of about 800,000 cars.  (www.energystar.gov).

In conclusion, recessed lighting is a great option for any room in any home. With options for every price range the possibilities are endless. For your next renovation project, let Stafford Home Service install Energy Star qualified products in your home.

Three quick advantages with using dimmer switches:

• Reduced Energy Consumption, Dim your lights by quarter & save up to 20 percent Dim by half and save up to 40 percent.
• Increased Bulb Life, If you are dimming the light by just 10 percent it more than doubles the life of the bulb.
• Mood, A softer light is more comforting and sets a relaxing atmosphere.

We can install many different kinds of dimmer light switches. 3-way dimmable light switches are also available.

Call Stafford for more information on going green in your home.

Kris Thompson
Stafford Home Service
Office:   952.927.7194
Fax:      952.927.7192
Direct:   612.328.3989