The importance of good lighting in your laundry room

Good lighting in a laundry room is essential to help you check for spots and stains, measure detergent, operate the washer and dryer, fold clothing, and iron. A ceiling fixture that contains energy-efficient fluorescent tubes will provide well-diffused general lighting, but is usually harsh and creates shadows while you’re working. 
However, lighting sources such as natural light and layered lighting are simple ways to improve the look and feel of your laundry room. 

Natural lighting 
Natural light is ideal for any room. In a laundry room, natural light gives you the ability to easily assess how dirty or clean your clothing is. Unfortunately, the best source of natural light, windows, are not always an option in laundry rooms and cannot easily be installed.  

If your home doesn’t provide an excellent source of natural light, you can create some general ambient lighting through flush mounts, semi-flush mounts, and recessed lighting. Lamps that use a daylight color temperature of roughly 5500K will give you a precise view of what colors will look like outdoors. Not only will your space feel more comfortable, but you will be able to spot stubborn stains or discoloration much easier. 

Layered lighting 
The three layers of lighting are ambient, accent, and task. Ambient lighting generally comes from an overhead fixture by flipping a switch, allowing you to see your surroundings quickly. To establish ambient lighting in your laundry room, use two or three recessed fixtures, such as can lights. For a larger laundry room, fluorescent or LED troffers would create a beautiful look, while offering the light you need to see unwanted stains or discoloration. 

Accent lighting mostly serves as a decorative function and is not often needed in a laundry room unless you wanted to showcase a piece of art or highlight some of your shelving. On the other hand, task lighting can illuminate the areas where you need the most light on laundry day. Under-cabinet lights or table lamps are perfect to help brighten the sorting table or mending area.

Properly lighting a laundry room helps create a happy, easy-to-work-in environment that enables you to spot unwanted stains or discoloring. Need a new washer and dryer to help complete your laundry room? Find out what Appliance Warehouse can do for you!