Attic: clever lighting tasks cleverly solved

Rooms under the roof are cozy, but difficult to set up. A well thought-out furnishing concept is in demand, because every corner wants to be optimally used. Especially important is the lighting in the attic.

The space at the top of the house has always been a popular development reserve. In a new building, builders can proactively ever all important supply lines for water or electricity in the attic lead, even if they initially think of an expansion. An old building, on the other hand, often presents a constructional challenge. This often applies in particular to the existing lighting conditions: an old dormer creates headroom, but its window seems far too small; or there is a larger gable window, but that unfortunately points north; or the monument protection does not allow to enlarge the time-honored, but tiny windows; or a tree will stretch where the new skylight window should provide more light.

Lay the cable under plaster

In short, many builders have no choice but to remedy the barren incidence of light in their attic with technical means. They go to work and discover that either no or only one electric line leads to the attic. If this is the case, DIY enthusiasts, preferably with the assistance of an experienced electrician, should look for ways to bring at least two new cables together to create their own circuit for lighting and power outlets. Sometimes this is only possible by detours. If the house is renovated anyway, it is advisable to lay the supply lines under plaster; but even a discretely mounted cable duct is often acceptable.

Light in the attic: LEDs need little power

In the best case, several cables leading into the attic (at least NYM 3 x 1.5 mm) can be connected to the fuse and distribution box of the house. In the worst case you have to make do with the only existing line. Then it is advisable to equip the attic in general with light-emitting diodes (LEDs). Although they are more expensive than most other bulbs, they require very little power and can last up to 50,000 operating hours - an investment in the future.

While it used to be said that a room is a light source (the chandelier on the ceiling), today it is estimated that there are about three to five luminaires over 25 square meters, if the room is not used as a whole but divided into different areas. Before you start to lay the cables in the attic, it is advisable to decide which requirements the lighting should meet. Basically, there are two concepts:

The room as a whole is to be completely illuminated:

For this, directly under the ridge or on one of the sloping walls, power rails or continuous bars (so-called light bars) are installed, which traverse the entire room. For this purpose, only a single power outlet is sufficient. The specialized trade leads for this numerous complete systems. Anyone who uses LEDs can electronically control their lights, play with colors and have no fear of overloading their lonely cable. Anyone who wants to illuminate a number of dark corners with LEDs will rather prefer spotlights because they can turn and be precisely aligned. If you like indirect lighting, you can even insert parallel recessed spotlights into the floor in the edge zones of the attic floor that will illuminate the room from below.

In addition to the complete lighting different areas of the room are each provided with light individually:

In addition to the spotlights are particularly well suited pendant lamps, but it is not always easy to hang them, because an attic now consists mainly of sloping ceilings. An alternative to this are floor lamps, but need a power outlet. Anyone who is afraid to install them in the wall slopes, can also lay them in the floor. However, special sockets must be used for this, which are then laid near the outer wall in the non-accessible area.