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Help with Bathroom Overhead Lighting

3 years ago

I'm remodeling our hall bathroom and need advice with overhead/recessed lighting. It is an interior room with no windows and will have two vanity lights (one over each sink) and our contractor has a recessed light/fan combo planned for over the tub - what else would you add? Another recessed light in the tub? One over the toilet? Help!


Comments (7)

  • 3 years ago

    Three lights feels like plenty for that space, especially with today’s modern lights. We added a solar tube to our interior hall bath and it made a world of difference to the room and the surrounding hallway.

  • 3 years ago
    last modified: 3 years ago

    It looks like your space is about 8' x 8'? We have two baths, one that is 6' x 8.25' with a tub and one that is 6.5' x 7.5' with only a shower. Both have sconces alongside the sinks and one general overhead Panasonic light/fan combo centered in the room. For the shower bath, that is the perfect amount and position of lighting. For the tub bath, I don't find the fan light bright enough to read by in the tub, but otherwise it is plenty of light. (The layout of that bath is such that I can use the vanity lights to supplement, which works out fine.) If I could, though, I'd do a fan-only over the tub in that bath and then have a brighter light in the center of the room. (The fan/light combo is limited in which bulbs it can take so there's much less control over the quality of the light.)

    My in-laws have recessed lights over the toilets in two similarly-sized baths and nobody ever seems to use them except by mistake when they're trying to turn the fan on. It doesn't seem necessary in a bathroom that size if you have good general lighting for the room. I'd think about who uses the room and how. For our main bath (used by two kids and by guests) half the time people who are coming in are only there to wash hands, use the toilet, or brush teeth, and they just turn on the main light. A center fixture works really well for that, but I'm not sure it would be enough light if it were over the tub--maybe you could add something in the middle of the room that would also serve to light the toilet area? Also +++ on the solar tubes if you have a ceiling that will accommodate them. They make an enormous difference for rooms with no natural light (and they have some now that have lights integrated into them, too).

  • 3 years ago

    The planned lights are adequate. No need to light up the top of someone's head when sitting on a toilet unless they like to sing in a spotlight. If you want a recessed light in the tub, then forego the light/fan combo or use a more expensive recessed light/fan combo (e.g. Fantech). Usually the tub light/fan selection is based on level of hou$e.

  • 3 years ago

    I'm going to argue a few things:


    - Rather than vanity lights over the sinks, I'd go with pendant lighting ... this would bring the light "down" so it's shining to the side of the user's face /not from above. This reduces shadows /makes everyone look better.

    - If you go with pendants, definitely put them on dimmer switches, as the mirror will "double" the light.

    - I'd want the light above the toilet (could be a part of a light/fan combo ... and I'd place the switch over by the toilet, so it wouldn't be turned on as people walk into the room. Why? It would cost little to add this "one more" light while you're involved in the project /have the electrition at your house ... but it could be useful 1) for cleaning the toilet and 2) if you develop medical needs that'll be, um, managed at the toilet. That extra bit of light could be useful.

    - I like to read in the tub ... will you have a light that would make this possible? You don't want one single light that'll throw shadows over the book.




  • 3 years ago

    if that is a closet, I would put a recessed can in the doorway above the closet.

  • PRO
    3 years ago

    I think that is adequate light for the size of the bathroom, just make sure that your vanity lights are non-directional, meaning that they diffuse the light outward into the space rather than upwards or downwards. So avoid opaque shades and opt for glass or fabric, something that allows the light to shine through.

  • 3 years ago
    • I just looked at a bunch of houzz bathroom pictures. Where the fan was visible, none were over the tub. I assume the fan is to rid the room of poop odors and shower steam. I'd center the fan/light on the room.
    • No light over toilet.
    • Vanity light(s), not pendants, over sinks. If you're going modern, the Tech Lighting Span is a cool fixture (24", 36", 48" long).
    • Optional light centered over bathtub. (I made the mistake of placing a light directly over a rain shower head which was installed later. Oops! The top of the shower head bounced light all over the room.)


    Tech Lighting Span 36