Glare Problem after Bathroom Remodel


  #1  
Old 01-12-07, 02:32 PM
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Glare Problem after Bathroom Remodel

We bought a house several months ago and have had it remodeled, including 2 of the baths. One of the baths has a terrible glare problem from the new light fixtures, and we need to figure out how to solve this. Originally, there was a dropped 7’ ceiling with fluorescent fixtures which we had removed and the ceiling raised to 8’. Two recessed cans were installed 59” above the countertop with the centers 12” from the wall over the vanity and a 40” x 48” decorative framed mirror is hung below the lights and over the vanity. The vanity is 48” W x 36” H with an Uba Tuba granite countertop. The glare makes it nearly impossible to apply makeup or shave … not good!

In our previous home, we had an 8’ W vanity with 3 recessed cans over it, a mirror glued to the wall right up under the lights which I am guessing were about the same height as these are (8’ from floor) as well as being about the same distance from the wall. The countertop was white marble, not dark as the Uba Tuba granite is. There was NO glare whatsoever.

The master bathroom remodel has a 120” W x 36” H vanity with professionally-mounted mirrors around them in “U” configuration and 3 light fixtures mounted on the mirrors with the lights in the “down” position in alabaster glass shades. There are a total of 7 bulbs in these 3 fixtures on a dimmer. From the fixture mounted on the mirror to the center of the bulbs is 3 ½” and 42” from the bottom of the bulbs to the countertop. The lighting in this bath is wonderful. It also has the same Uba Tuba granite countertop.

Another problem in fixing this is the location of the studs in the bathroom with the glare. There are an unusually large number of studs placed very close together so we were not able to center the recessed cans. However, installing another light fixture underneath the cans and over the mirror (40” H x 48” W”) seems as if it would look out-of-sync since it couldn’t be centered because of the studs. Would hanging 2 decorative pendants, placing them where the cans are, work? Not what I want, especially, but ... I need to find a solution.

Anyone have any suggestions? I would appreciate any and all.

Thank you.
 
  #2  
Old 01-12-07, 04:44 PM
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Glare

You will have to determine what is causing the glare.

Experiment by covering the surfaces one at a time with towels.
Include the sink(s) and fixtures. Include the mirror.

If none of this works, try some different bulbs in the recessed lights.

Good luck.
 
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Old 01-12-07, 05:26 PM
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Wirepuller38 -

Thanks for your suggestions. I'll try them tomorrow and post back with what I find.

It would be great if using different light bulbs would make a difference! I'll check into that, too.

Thanks again.
 
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Old 01-12-07, 05:27 PM
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There are also recessed lighting fixtures that provide low-glare lighting.
 
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Old 01-12-07, 05:43 PM
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twelvepole -

What makes low-glare recessed fixtures different from regular recessed cans? Ours have white baffles (I think that's what they're called, but I may be wrong about that.). Low-glare fixtures are something the electrician can easily get from an electrical wholesale company, I'm presuming?

Our contractor hired the electrician who did this work (it was a part of his contract), and he hired someone he had used previously rather than the company that we've used for several years. The other work he did seems to be okay ... I don't think this would have happened if the electrician who always does our work had been used, but he wasn't. So, we need to do whatever necessary to fix it.

Thanks for making me aware of low-glare recessed fixtures.
 
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Old 01-12-07, 06:29 PM
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Glare is a very difficult problem to resolve once the fixtures are already in place. The mistake that has been made here is that the light source has been place overhead instead of infront. Always in a bathroom the main source of lighting should come from in front of the viewer, ie, beside the mirror, etc.

Sounds like that you are stuck with your current layout. Low glare pot lights come in two forms.

A) A pot light with cross baffles (like a plus symbol if you were to look from below)
B) Pot lights with deeper alzak reflectors. Alzak refers to the finish, it is close to a frosted crome look. These deeper reflectors are engineered such that you cannot see the lamp unless you are nearly directly under the fixture looking right up into it.

I assume that you have a standard shallow residential pot light installed in your bathroom, the optics on the reflector are probably secondary to the appearance.

If it is possible I would replace the pots with better quality fixtures.

The best solution for this glare problem would be to move the pots away from the wall such that they are behind some one when standing at the counter. Then, use sconces, or like you mentioned pendant mounted fixtured mounted at eye level next to the mirror.
 
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Old 01-13-07, 07:43 AM
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Hooty -

Thanks for your post. We didn't see the glare until the mirror was actually hung on the wall which was after the wallpaper was up. The other thing I'm considering is putting a tall, slender buffet-style lamp on the vanity that might counter the glare.

It's not really my preference, but what about an overhead light in the center of the bath which would throw the light over the shoulders? Or would using bulbs with longer "necks" in the recessed cans be of any help? The existing bulbs are floods, but they are about 2 1/2"-3" inside the can which may be diluting the light.

I tried covering the surfaces as Wirepuller38 suggested to isolate the problem, but I could tell no difference in the glare level.

Thanks again for your reply.
 
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Old 01-15-07, 05:50 AM
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Can you not tell what the source of the glare in your mirror is? You should be able to easily see where it is coming from.
 
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Old 01-15-07, 07:01 AM
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Shadows rather than glare?

Hooty -

I have no clue where the glare is coming from ... and maybe I've used an incorrect word, glare, for this thread.

Actually, the problem is shadows on the face. As I mentioned earlier, we have had other baths with overhead recessed cans with no problems so I don't really understand why this is a problem in this house.

Maybe the problem can be solved by adding more recessed cans in that bath ... ??
 
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Old 01-15-07, 07:09 AM
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You need to get light in front of your face, not above it. Just think what professional make-up artists have; a mirror with lighting all the way around it.

Adding pots above your head will not improve your situation, it may even make it worse. The best thing you can do it to add lighting beside your mirror, or just above so that is shines light onto your face.

There is a multitude of methods to do this, and many different lights to choose from.

Would it be possible to install a fixture on the wall over your mirror or beside the mirror on each side?
 
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Old 01-15-07, 09:11 AM
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Hooty -

I believe there is room to add a 3 arm down-light fixture over the mirror. I can even lower the mirror an 1" or so, if necessary. In fact, the only reason we even went with the cans originally was that the electrician was here sooner than planned and wanted to get his work done ... and I hadn't shopped for lights yet. Thank goodness, the master bath gave me time to be prepared and shop for what I wanted!

Thanks again for your responses.
 
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Old 03-14-07, 08:07 AM
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Problem Solved!

Follow-up to my lighting problem .....

I bought a 4 arm downlight with clear shades and had it hung over the mirror with the shades about 1" above the mirror. I didn't have to move the mirror down at all which I had thought might be necessary.

The lighting is so much better now and is acceptable for applying make-up and shaving. I left the recessed cans where they were so they can be turned on if someone wants to do so. Both the recessed lights as well as the new light fixture are on dimmers (these are separate dimmers). As I didn't want to add another switch to the wall, I had the exhaust fan added to the switch for the tub/shower light.

Thanks again for your comments and suggestions.
 
 

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