Natural lighting is one of the most important aspects of home planning.
Fresh air and light ensure a good mental state for the occupants and help in saving energy by reducing the number of artificial lights needed during the day.
Lighting and ventilation can make or break a home. Because, the well-being of the individuals living there is directly proportional to the amount of light that enters a house. It improves health, and concentration, it reduces stress and has several other proven positive effects on people.
1. More Windows, More Light!
There are several ways to increase the natural lighting in your home, the most obvious way is to increase the size and number of windows. Windows provide both light and ventilation to residences. There are several types of windows, and each of them serves a different purpose. They increase the architectural quality of the interior exponentially.
Even if it is just one wall, adding a sliding door or a glass wall to a back-patio space can increase the value of the house. It expands the house into the environment around it and creates a room that is indoors, yet connected to the outdoors.
Placing windows across each other creates cross ventilation which is a must for all houses and all rooms in the house.Windows facing east lets in the cooler morning rays of the sun while keeping out the hotter setting sun.
Larger window sizes maximize the light in a house, use of sheer or translucent curtains instead of fully opaque ones can partially block the light reaching through the window. This keeps the interior of the house well-lit and airy.
Heard about Clerestory windows before?
The introduction of clerestory windows and fixed glass is another alternative to openable windows in areas where windows cannot be opened due to dust and insects.
A clerestory window is one that sits above the normal lintel height of a building. It is placed just below the roof slab and can be fixed closed/fixed and permanently open.
Permanently open clerestory windows are used for stack ventilation. They may have permanently open fixed louvers or grilles so as to ensure security while also letting in air and light.
Clerestory windows are a very useful element in architecture. Their placement can create an elevation feature also which can be highlighted and used to create a beautiful elevation for your building.
2. Make the best use of Courtyard spaces.
Another way to provide well-lit homes is the introduction of courtyard spaces and pergola roofs. The courtyard space in any interior creates a focal point for the entire residence.
The courtyard is as an area to keep indoor plants and lawns. It also acts as an indoor garden, and when lit by skylight or pergola roof it gives the plants adequate sunlight for optimum growth. Use it is as a decorative area to provide light to the interiors.
Therefore it can be another open room which can incorporate rooms such as living rooms, dining rooms and prayer areas in it. In this type of planning, the courtyard doubles up as a multipurpose area that provides light to the surrounding areas and it is an open room in itself.
3. Enhance Interiors with Lighting.
Cluttered and congested interiors can make even the most well-lit houses feel like it is a negative space. The interior color scheme should be neutral, pastel shades, and light as much as possible. Lighter paint makes spaces seem bigger and airier as opposed to darker colour schemes.
Fabrics used in the interior decoration like heavy velvet and embroidered textures can make the room feel smaller and darker, use pastel shades with cotton or linen and sheer curtains. Venetian blinds can also help choose what amount of light enters the room.
Light wells, light tubes and glass ceilings can be incorporated into the interior scheme of the house. Use Light tubes in passage roof to provide light during the day. It reduces the need for artificial lighting and the passage will not feel congested and/or small.
Glossy highlighter walls and flooring can reflect the light that falls on it. A well polished wooden flooring will provide a glossy feel to the floor.
What you shouldn’t do?
Hard and soft elements in surrounding landscape, tends to block light.
Gazebos, patios free standing decorative monoliths etc. can be restricting if the site is not sufficiently big enough to incorporate them. Trees and shrubbery surrounding the residence can block the light that enters the window opening. This is both a blessing and a curse, in the sense that in hot areas, the filtered light will ensure that direct sunlight does not reach the window so that the heat is reduced.
Blocking the sunlight completely can be counterproductive to having windows itself. Trim and maintain the plants in and around at regular intervals. In conclusion, light is to a home as eyes are to the face, it brings up the quality of the house and creates an energy-efficient solution to interior lighting.
Natural lighting also makes the space and its design elements look more beautiful as opposed to artificial lighting. It makes it seem like the space is bigger than it really is in the case of small budget homes. Natural sunlight is the best way to ensure the detoxification of interiors as sunlight kills a vast variety of microbes.
If you have any natural lighting ideas to add, please let us know in the comments section. Let’s educate and grow together!