Floor lighting: the nuances of choice (22 photos)

In most cases, floor lighting is associated with large shops, a holiday or sophisticated design decisions. But in fact, there is a place for it in the most ordinary apartment - it will come in handy if necessary:

• provide spectacular obvious zoning;
• provide soft diffused light for night illumination;
• highlight individual interior details and divert attention from others.

However, in order for the floor lighting in the apartment to look good and function normally, you need to make considerable efforts to choose and to begin to figure out what aspects are important, what you should pay attention to.

Step One: Locate

Many important nuances depend on where the floor will be highlighted.

Bathroom

Highlighting the bathroom floor can look extremely impressive and create a pleasant cozy atmosphere, but it is imperative that the fixtures are insensitive to moisture and temperature fluctuations. It’s good if they are made of plastic, not glass.

Hallway

Here, decorative lighting can both hide the irregular shape of the room and emphasize it. At the same time, it is important that the lamps are resistant to moisture (shoes in winter and autumn can not do without it) and mechanical damage.

Children

Here, floor lighting fixtures can be especially appropriate - their soft diffused light affects the eyes better and creates a more relaxed atmosphere than the light of a conventional lamp. The main thing is that all communications must be hidden so that the child cannot reach them.

In whatever room the LED floor lighting is made, it must also be resistant to fire in order to prevent fire, properly insulated to prevent electric shock and not emit anything harmful to the environment.

Step two: select the appropriate category

There is a wide variety of devices with which you can equip the room illumination: from the simplest light bulbs in miniature shades to complex LED structures that can be arranged as you like.

Spotlights

Most of all, they look like the most ordinary small bulbs. Among their advantages are usually called:

• Flexibility. Unlike LED stripes, spotlights can be positioned as you like - the distance from each other, the resulting patterns, symmetry or asymmetry - it all depends on the owner’s imagination. They can be placed around the bed or around the perimeter of the room, you can highlight them with a closet or highlight a bath. Some may be yours, others below - everything that a design will require can be easily implemented.
• Aesthetics. The plafonds in which such lamps are installed can be made in very original styles, and by themselves can serve as an excellent decoration.
• Reliability. Most spotlights are not sensitive to mechanical damage, moisture and can work for many years, especially with timely and proper care. More often made of hard plastic than glass.
• Saving. Economical light bulbs that consume a minimum of electricity can easily be used.

However, there are downlights and cons:

• To build them into the floor, you will have to spend a lot of time thinking about how the wires should be arranged in order to provide energy to each light bulb.
• From time to time, the bulbs will have to be replaced, which requires additional effort.

Otherwise, spotlights are a good solution. Usually they have a yellowish or white light.

Neon lights

From the side they look like luminous tubes. The basic equipment also includes wires and a special device that allows the tubes to be connected. They have their advantages:

• Long time work. The manufacturer guarantees that by installing a neon lamp on the floor, the buyer will not be able to remember it for ten years.
• A wide variety of colors. Neon can glow with any light: yellowish, reddish, greenish. You should choose depending on the main gamut of the room.
• Nice light. Neon lamps glow with a pleasant diffused light that does not hurt the eyes.

But there are also disadvantages:

• Cost. Compared to spotlights, neon lamps are very expensive.
• Fragility. You can’t even look for resistance to mechanical damage in neon lamps, they break easily, like glass.
• The difficulty of installation. Due to the fragility and difficulties with the connections of the lamps, it will be problematic to make the backlight on their own. It would be wiser to call professionals, but this will add additional costs to the cost of the lamps.

In addition, the lamps can only be placed around the perimeter of the room due to the peculiarities of the shape - they do not bend and are not divided into separate small lamps.

LED strip

They look like ribbons with many small bulbs inside. Unlike neon lamps, they easily bend and are often used as additional illumination in tandem with spotlights. They have several advantages:

• Easy to install. This kind of floor lighting is easy to do with your own hands.
• Variety of colors. It’s easy to choose the right one for a specific design.
• Long warranty period and reliability. The manufacturer indicates ten years of operation. In addition, the tapes are insensitive to mechanical damage - they are made of plastic, much less fragile than glass.

But there are also disadvantages:

• High price. Tape will cost no less than neon lamps.
• Lack of opportunity to save. All tapes have standard brightness.

In addition, not all people like the light emitted by ribbons - some find it too bright and too directional.

Flexible neon

Reminds all the same LED strip, but emitting neon diffused light. It has the advantages of:

• Easy installation and flexibility. It is easy to lay neon of this type with your own hands, without resorting to specialists, moreover, this can be done not only horizontally or vertically, but also with whimsical bends that the same glass will not allow.
• Long service life. It can serve up to ten years.
• Large selection of colors and nice looking light.
• Ecological cleanliness and reliability. It does not burn, is not susceptible to moisture, cannot be damaged mechanically, unless, of course, you try to cut it with scissors.

There are also disadvantages:

• High cost, which, however, is somewhat offset by the possibility of self-installation.
• The need for constant care. Dust settles on neon ribbons, which must be constantly removed so that the light does not become less.

However, in general, this type of lighting outperforms neon lamps.

Light floor

By this phrase we mean luminous tiles embedded in the main floor. The pros include:

• High reliability. Resistant to moisture and mechanical damage.
• Originality. To illuminate the walls and floor in an apartment, such a solution is rarely used. More often it can be found on the street or in clubs. All the more interesting you can beat him in an ordinary residential building.
• Variety of colors. You can choose them to your taste.

In addition, the light floor has a certain flexibility: it can be fit into any interior, lay out a geometric pattern or use as decoration.

Step Three: Select Motion Sensors

Illuminated glass floors, LED strips, glowing tiles - they all have one thing in common: it’s much easier to put a motion sensor than to look for a switch every time in the dark. Firstly, it looks modern and original. Secondly, it frees hands and thoughts.

The main thing is to choose a motion sensor so that as few failures as possible occur in its operation. Wanting to figure out how to do this, you need to decide what kind of sensors there are.

Infrared

They are considered the most modern and most comfortable, they will not respond to the movement of a cat who ran by accident, they do an excellent job at night. The principle of operation is simple: the sensor sends infrared waves and they are perceived by a special receiver. When the waves are interrupted, the sensor turns on the light.

Ultrasonic and microwave

For the most part, they cope no worse than infrared motion sensors, but can cause inconvenience to pets - unlike infrared, they send not light waves, but sound waves. A person cannot hear them, but for a cat or dog they will be obvious and can irritate or irritate the animal.

In addition, you can do without motion sensors at all, but then every time you have to look for a switch.

In any case, no matter what the illumination of the floor is made of, whatever its color, it can diversify life and make the house more comfortable. The main thing is to check before buying whether everything works as it should.