Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Lights and Outlets

     Something to think about when building your home is where you may need additional lights and outlets. Think of it before it is too late, and you'll never be sorry.

Lights:

Do not take the standard kitchen lighting or basement lighting. You will be disappointed. Greatly. If you don't believe me check into it and make sure you know what you are getting. You really should go ahead and get the recessed lighting in these spaces.

We added light rough ins to each bedroom and each room which did not have lighting already, including the living room and office. 

We added recessed lights the alcove in the bonus room and in the large closets. The large utility closet on the 2nd floor got a recessed light. At some point it may serve as a small craft area or office area. (I wish I had also put an outlet in that closet). You may wish to ask for a recessed light toward the front of any large closet, including the pantry. 

And sincerely, as I sit here now I would definitely go back and put at least one outlet in every closet in the whole house, including the pantry. 

In the finished part of the basement we put in recessed lighting, but we also thought of the storage areas, how they would be utilized, and where we would need additional lights. 

We put in dedicated outlets for the freezers and the range in the basement. 

We added an outlet in the garage, and I wish I had added three more. two outlets on each side wall, in addition to the one which Ryan places near the light switches would have been perfect. At least one towards the front of the garage would be a help with Christmas lights, etc. As it is we are running an extension cord from the back wall. Not a huge issue, but it would be nice to have an outlet where the control for the driveway light is. 

In the master bedroom I would have added an outlet exact middle of the headboard, and also asked for a light switch for the big overhead light near the bed. 

We put a switched outlet above the mantel and above the kitchen cabinets. I wish I had added outlets at the bottom of the stairs and in the half wall for the purpose of Christmas lights. 

I also wish we had placed an outlet on the stair wall of the entry hall. It's the proper place for an entry console and there should be a lamp right there as well. It's also one of the largest blank walls in the place, and just ought to have an outlet. 

I would like one near French doors we had put in, to do decorations around them as well. Since they normally do not do French doors in the kitchen, for many people it may be a non-issue. 

If you have any other lighting/electrical ideas, feel free to leave them in the comments. It's great to see this stuff as you build!

  *To read more about our Ryan Homes Ravenna click the "Our House" button at the top of the page.    

5 comments:

  1. This is an great post Tammigirl!!

    I tried to put outlets in those non standard places too. My only regret is not getting additional dedicated outlets on the outside or inside the garage for Xmas lights. I knew I wanted recess lightening in the basement so this was a no brainer; however, I am so glad I went with that option because when I saw the mounted lights they remind me and look like boobs. Even if you get them in ORB which I chose for the main entry and upstairs hallway, they still look like boobs. Of course, in the model they are totally different which is misleading. I highly recommend anyone new to building get the recess lightening package in your basement or be prepared to have boobs in your basement. If you do get or have the boobs you may be able to use the kit from Lowes to change them out to recess lightening. For now the boob lightening will have to do in the entry foyer and upstairs hall until I change them to the mounted lights of my choice that I found on lampsplus.com.

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  2. Seriously my biggest regret is no lights in closets! I'm thinking about having an electrician come in for a quote.. Maybe I'll get those stick up lights!

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  3. Yep, outlets in the closet would be nice. I never thought of that because usually you live with what the house has but if you are building your own house it can be changed.

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  4. I forgot to mention that one of the many places for the additional outlets are located in both our closets plus the laundry room upstairs that will be a inspiration studio and added a dedicated circuit in the laundry room in the basement for ironing.

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  5. I wish I could have had some say in which switches worked which lights (I asked about the at the pre-con meeting and he told me it was the electrician's choice). Some of our switch-to-light combos make absolutely no sense and I still can't get used to it!

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