Many hotels employ prefab or poured concrete building techniques, making installing ceiling lighting difficult. Since the installation needs receptacles, the cost of changing some is expensive. Furthermore, some hotels adopted an electrical code where ceiling boxes, drywalling, and ceiling lights are unnecessary.
There are various causes why hotel rooms do not have ceiling lights. For example, constructing a structure by pouring concrete walls without concern for lighting, room walls, etc., is quick, inexpensive, and uncomplicated.
Budget is vital for profit-making developers. Because removing the ceiling lights frees up funds for other crucial systems for your comfort and health, such as:
- HVAC systems that use less energy, saving you money
- Better ventilation and filtration systems safeguard respiratory health
- Longer-lasting and better-performing kitchen appliances
- High-efficiency windows save energy and keep you comfortable
- Security systems to protect you and your property
Ceiling lights would be at the bottom to prioritize your apartment needs.
To elaborate, consider the building’s value per unit length and height. Less ceiling height implies more floors (and hence rooms) per vertical unit length. Also, the design eliminates the need for cable runs between levels.
Marking where the lights will go in each room also limits the flexibility of room arrangement in terms of space layout and furniture placement.
For these reasons, it leaves a disappointingly low possibility of finding a reasonably priced hotel room with enough ceiling lights.
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Why Do Hotels Not Have Normal Lights?
Many hotels worldwide are slowly moving away from standard light bulbs for their lighting fixtures. High-pressure sodium lamps are more efficient, with a longer life span. They also consume less energy and emit less heat compared to incandescent bulbs.
There are many reasons why hotels don’t have standard lights, and here are some of them:
- Lighting is a complex topic, and the cost of maintaining a massive inventory of light bulbs can be significant for a hotel. The more light bulbs there are in storage, the higher the maintenance costs. Maintenance costs can include replacing light bulbs every day or every few days, significantly increasing costs.
- Some guests might not like having traditional lighting fixtures in their hotel rooms -they may prefer softer lighting or different colors; LED lights can change colors or dim.
What Are Those Lights in the Ceiling Called?
Knowing the designs and styles of ceiling lights will help you determine the kind of ambiance you want in a specific hotel. There are three basic types of ceiling light designs that you can find in a hotel; if you are very particular with light styles, ensure to ask or verify them during the booking so you won’t get frustrated when you get there.
These basic types are recessed, flush, and suspended lights. Since there are so many options, here’s an overview of the most common ceiling light styles and designs you can spot and consider when having a reservation.
- Recessed Lights
- Flush Lights
- Suspended Lights
As the name implies, recessed lights are installed into a room’s false ceiling. Recessed lights can give both direct and indirect lighting, depending on how they’re put. Recessed lighting is typically for rooms with low ceilings. So if you prefer rooms with high ceilings, this is not ideal.
Standard Recessed Lights
Standard recessed lights are ideal when you prefer a small space with a low ceiling and require light without seeing the source. These lights are often utilized in a grid pattern or conjunction with a central hanging light or cove lights. These are now used as ceiling lights in most hotel rooms with false ceilings.
Most hotels use this type as a spotlight, which is ideal for showcasing art or creating tiny reading places. The small and hardly noticeable light can brighten the whole room rather than simply the center. It also allows them for more ceiling space, making your area seem and feel larger.
Troffers
Troffers are best for workplaces and labs, and if your reason for accommodation is to get all jobs done, this light design is worth considering. It will give you an ambiance similar to offices.
To picture, Troffers are rectangular light fixtures that fit into a grid ceiling system, a modular drop ceiling grid. These can be used with either regular fluorescent tube lights or LED lights. But, sometimes, they are dimmable too.
Troffers give you bright light, comfortable, glare-free, and properly dispersed light required in office areas. These lights are strong enough to satisfy everyday lighting demands without causing any interruption; they are necessary for greater visibility, productivity, and ambiance.
Gimbals
Recessed lights give consistent direct lighting in all directions. Gimbals are adjustable recessed spotlights that you can focus on a specific region. Gimbals are better for task lighting in places like kitchens or as focal lights above paintings than they are for ambient lighting.
Cove Lighting
Cove lighting is excellent when you want to give a space a pleasant glow or draw attention to a separation produced by a lowered ceiling. The light source is hidden behind a coffered light recess, out of sight from every aspect. The light is directed upwards and reflects off the top, creating a lovely warm glow throughout the space.
Flush mount lighting is a kind of lighting that sits flush against the ceiling and directs light downward. Flush lights come in various styles, from plain to decorative, and can be matched to many interior types. You can mostly see these lights on a ceiling height of no more than 10 feet. Because these lights are light, they perform well in spaces with a false ceiling.
Full Flush
Flush light fixtures come in various styles, from primary and modest to extravagant. It has no space between the ceiling and the spout with full flush fittings.
You can observe this type on a ceiling height of fewer than 8 feet.
Semi-Flush
Semi-flush ceiling fixtures feature a little space between the ceiling and the spout, usually no more than a few inches. These fixtures provide both direct and indirect lighting. The fixture’s design will determine the direct to indirect light ratio.
Suspended lights are those that hang down for longer than a few inches. If you prefer rooms with a high ceiling, this one is a good indicator since these lights are perfect only for high-ceilinged areas. On the other hand, Suspended lights have been employed as corner table lamps and bedroom lamps.
If you plan to book a larger room with a kitchen or other areas you can enjoy, you may want to consider these lights.
Chandeliers
The most well-known hanging lights are chandeliers. Chandeliers come in various sizes, styles, and bulb counts, but the most obvious advantage of choosing a hotel chandelier is its aesthetic value. Chandeliers illuminate your area and add to the room’s aesthetic vibe, giving you comfort and a luxurious feel.
Island Lights
Island lights are similar to chandeliers, except instead of being radial, they are linear. Above dining tables and kitchen islands, these are the most typical options.
Track Lights
A sequence of spotlights organized on a linear track quickly describes track lights. These lights can be angled to concentrate on different places simultaneously. The kitchen and gallery areas benefit from the track lighting.
If you plan to book a larger room with a kitchen, you may consider this design. This kind of concentrated illumination relieves a lot of eye strain and improves safety while cutting and preparing food since the task is much simpler to see.
Track lighting can also provide ambient light, advantageous since the warm glow it emits does not cause glare. Ambient light can create a friendly environment in a space, entirely changing the mood.
Why Do Hotels Have Dim Lights?
Hotels play a role in creating the perfect ambiance and relaxing atmosphere for their customers. They use dim lights to make sense of serenity and romance.
However, many considerations come into play when choosing to light for hotels. For example, how much light it needs? Is it too much or not enough light? What type of lighting would be best in the short term and long term?
Everyone has their concept about what makes a hotel stay comfortable and romantic. Some people might want an overwrought atmosphere, while others want something more low-key and subtle.
There are many reasons why hotels keep their lights dim. Some of them are:
- To save money on electricity bills
- To provide a cozy atmosphere for guests to relax and sleep
- Hotels can’t change their lighting settings without having to pay extra
- Many hotels have specific lighting settings that they want to stick to
How to Fix Dim Hotel Rooms?
To fix the dim hotel rooms, you have two options. It’s either you will file a complaint or use a brighter bulb.
Having to squint around a dimly-lit hotel room trying to read or conduct fine-detail work isn’t fun. Your eyes struggle to concentrate in dim light, so you need more light in your workspaces and homes as you age.
In theory, a hotel may save between a cent and a nickel per night by replacing regular wattage lights with low wattage bulbs and providing inadequate lighting in the room.
Extra light costs around a nickel with incandescent bulbs and a penny with CFL or LED bulbs if the space requires 75-100 watts of light and it has to be on for four or five hours. Yes, the hotel just took $100-$250 from you for a night’s stay, and now it’s affecting your comfort and convenience to earn another buck.
What can you do?
Complain
First, you should phone the front desk and request stronger lights and more light fixtures. Yes, a simple but frequently disregarded answer.
Make the hotel aware that you enjoy enough light in your rooms. If you can, ask the front desk why you have so much light at reception but not in your rooms. Don’t enable their terrible service by not complaining.
Use Brighter Bulbs
The second option is to replace the fixtures’ bulbs with brighter ones as needed.
The problem was that many fixtures couldn’t sustain brighter lights back when most only experienced incandescent lamps. It was too hot for the more glowing lights, which may have caused a fire.
It wasn’t easy to transport the enormous and delicate bulbs.
These issues are now resolved with tiny LED lights. So you can use a brighter LED bulb in any fixture without worrying about it melting, charring, or catching fire. They are also lighter and more durable, making them easier to transport.
You’ll need bright LED lights with narrow screw bases, plus slim to standard screw base adapters if you do this. So they work in any fixture.
Why Do Hotels Have Popcorn Ceilings?
The popcorn ceilings make it seem like the room is airy and welcoming. They provide a sense of well-being and an experience like no other when looking at them from the bed.
The popcorn ceilings in hotel rooms are a visual design feature that has been around for decades. The Housekeeping department in New York invented having a roof made up of corn kernels from the 1930s.
Popcorn ceilings may seem random, but they have been there to provide guests with a feeling of being at home while also offering guests all the comforts they would be expecting from a hotel room.
Why Are There No Ceiling Lights in the US?
The US has many ceiling lights but uses them significantly less than other countries. There are multiple reasons for this. One reason is the cost of installing ceiling lights. Another reason is that Americans like to work in well-lit rooms and offices because they believe it increases productivity and motivation.
The US doesn’t also have ceiling fans because the wiring in the US is in a grid pattern and can be unreliable in some areas.
The National Electrical Code prohibits placing electrical fixtures directly over the flooring, and the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) forbids electrical fixtures over combustible materials.