When we begin renovations, we start with big dreams, a general idea of what we want to achieve, and a budget. Whether you want to be hands on with your reno to save some money on labour, or hand it off to the professionals, you should put consideration into the not so obvious elements that can make or break your design. You want your home to look it’s best after undergoing the tricky road that is renovation, and lighting is a great way to emphasise or enhance a space and create a luxury feel, increasing your property value.
So before you get started, what do you even know about lighting installation? Here’s some tips on planning your lighting design for your renovation, before you call the electrician.
Make a plan for your home lighting installation
Lighting design can be understated, create a wow factor or be highly functional, but anyway you look at it – it really impacts the feel of the room. Knowing how to plan your lighting from the planning stages of your renovation gives the lighting installation a chance to make a real change to your overall space. Thinking practically about where to put light switches, power points, feature lighting and function lighting early on in the piece ensures you have the right wiring in the right place when it comes to installing light fittings.
When looking to renovate your home, electrics aren’t normally considered imperative unless walls are moved, something is broken or there’s excess in the budget allowed from the get go. It’s important to stick to what you can afford to achieve, but changing lighting can often be an affordable way to upgrade a room! Without moving any power points or planning wiring for future upgrades, installing new light fittings can still freshen up the look and feel of a room.
Decide where you will renovate your electrics
Sydney has a wealth of wonderfully ageing property that are in a flurry of renovations. Though these beautiful old homes have stood the test of time, they may be experiencing some tired wiring. Wiring is often left in properties for decades and only tended to when there’s a real issue. When looking at increasing lighting output, moving or adding power points and installing fans and other smart home electrics to increase value to your property, it’s important to consider where rewiring will be required.
Have you decided to become a greener home and save money on your power bill by installing LED bulbs? If you haven’t done the math already, use our handy LED calculator to see how much you can save per year (not the mention the favour you’d be doing for the environment). LED lighting and other green initiatives add value to your property as new homeowners experience the savings to their utilities.
Where will you spend the bulk of your money?
Deciding where to spend money in the home can be made easier by doing a lighting break down room by room. When you have what you would like to do in a specification style document, you can fast see where the expensive rooms are, and whether that matches up to your end goal. You lighting installation should enhance the best features of your home with functional lighting and mood lighting each in it’s rightful place.
Sticking to your budget
When planning a renovation to add value to your property, it’s easy to get lost in the goal and not pay attention to the reality of right now. Sticking to your budget is paramount to achieving the end result – adding value only equates to added value if you haven’t re mortgaged to achieve it. Speak to your electrician about places you might be able to supplement lighting for cheaper alternatives, and consider any government initiatives that support your using LED lighting installations to have a greener home.
If you get stuck at any of these points when planning your lighting plan for your renovation, you’re welcome to call us for advice. We see renovations all the time and are up to date with the latest in technology, so are happy to help and offer quotes for your home upgrade. We want you to achieve the best result possible.