disadvantages of recessed lighting

Recessed lighting can be used to get a favorable style and mood for a room, and is ideal for spaces with low ceilings or where hanging fixtures are too obstructive, like kitchens, bathrooms or stairwells. Recessed lighting is also largely used to highlight work areas and elements like paintings and architectural features.

But recessed lighting has also limitations, and involves difficulties and disadvantages that should be taken into account.

Preliminaries

Recessed lighting requires adequate wiring and ventilation. Non-insulated ceilings, or cement ceilings, may collide with recessed lighting, and there are several issues that should be addressed. Pay attention to details concerning your house construction (like the ceiling and its fixtures and insulation) before deciding on recessed lighting...

Local legislation may also require building permits to upgrade or install recessed, and a qualified electrician is often indispensable.

Existing buildings

Recessed lighting requires some pre-conditions to be cheap and easy to install.

It may demand drilling holes into the drywall, an adequate spacing to get ventilation and a proper sealing and a snug housing, which is often difficult to achieve in existing buildings.

Special features and architectural details of the ceiling - molding, ornate plasterwork… - may also make recessed lighting problematic to implement. Drilling holes and wiring may collide with those existing features.

The ceiling

Ceilings without adequately ventilation and ceilings of concrete or with sophisticated details can pose problems to the implementation of recessed lights.

In these cases there are cheaper and easier solutions - wall sconces, chandeliers… - namely if there are suitable electric boxes in the ceiling.

Cost

The initial investment and running costs demanded by recessed lighting are often higher than those of other lighting solutions, namely when upgrading from a different type of lighting.

The cost of recessed bulbs may also be higher, though depending on the system.

Changes

Recessed lighting systems are difficult to change, once installed. Contrary to track and other lighting systems, changing the layout of a room with recessed lighting will become more challenging.

Safety

Due to its nature, recessed lighting raises legitimate concerns over safety, associated to excess heating: recessed lighting involves lights and a housing closely contacting with home insulation or other materials...

LED (Light-Emitting Diode) lights do not pose such a problem (since LEDs do not create heat), but other types of bulbs do...

Adequate ventilation, adequate materials and a certified electrician may be required to avoid safety hazards.