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How many watts per sconce?

12 years ago
The bathroom I am redoing is about 5.5 x 7'. I will have a 36" wide recessed medicine cabinet on the 5.5' wall. If the sconces on either side of the medicine cabinet are the only light source, how bright do they need to be? Thanks.

Comments (5)

  • PRO
    12 years ago
    Depends on fixture style...is it open, closed, glass...etc. Ideally 100W each...but 60W each would be ok, if you could add at least one recessed can on center. for the recessed, you would want it installed just above where you would stand to do make up, shave, etc...you don't want it too close to the back wall or you stand to get some glare off the mirror. Bathroom is small, so with the 2 sconces and the addition of 1 (either 4" or 5") incandescent recessed can, there would be plenty of light. If recessed is not an option, you may stick with a sconce that has at least 100Ws. Some of the more linear style sconces have 2 x 60W bulbs per fixture. I would also stay away from anything with a paper/fabric shade as this will absorb much of the light and be very dim.

    You also want to make sure that the sconces are installed at eye level...which differs for everyone, so make sure it's your eye level and not the electricians! LOL! Typically, they get installed too high and then there is not enough light. You want the light to frame the face, so think about that when considering install location.

    Good Luck!!!
  • 12 years ago
    Thanks! I've seen some 2 or more bulb sconces that would give a total of up to 120 per sconce, and I was thinking along those lines. But what about LED or halogen? Do you know what the guidelines for these would be?
  • PRO
    12 years ago
    Depends on the LED fixture type, and brand...There are some good LED fixtures for bathrooms out there now...but beware, because the color temperature/rendering of some LED's is not ideal for a bathroom. with LED's, you get what you pay for. If you don't pay attention to the details on an LED, you can very easily end up with very unflattering light. Ideally you want a 3000K-3500K color temperature and a color rendering of 85+.... This information should be readily available on the fixtures spec sheet. It will also tell you the lumen output, which can be compared to a regular 60W-100W bulb. If all that information is not available for an LED...then I would look at a different fixture.

    Halogen is a more intense light that is very crisp and clean, so great for make-up... I would follow the same wattage guidelines. BUT they do get VERY hot, so I would be weary of framing your face with those in a small space...and they can quickly heat up a room that small. And the bulbs are usually expensive, hard to find and a pain to replace. There is always a sacrifice, right!
  • 12 years ago
    Thanks so much for your guidance, this really helps!
  • 12 years ago
    You need to look at lumens, not wattage. Each manufacturer and type is
    different. This is approximately what standard incandescent bulbs are.
    40-watt, 450 lumens; 60-watt, 800 lumens; 75-watt, 1100 lumens; 100-watt,
    1600; 150 watt, 2600 lumens. Do not believe the package that says "60-watt equivalent" for example. They lie. Most LED bulbs that say that are roughly half the lumens of an older halogen bulb. Strangely enough, the newer halogen bulbs that are packaged as more energy efficient are now putting off less lumens per watt than ten years ago.