How many spots do you need in a bedroom?

For a bedroom you work with roughly 100 lumens per square meter — less than in a living room, because there is nothing here that demands sharp vision. A room of 12 m² therefore needs around 1,200 lumens, which comes to three or four spots.

The sum

Measure your room, multiply by 100, and divide by the light output of the spot you have in mind. With the lumen figures from our range:

• 12 m² with the Vigo (320 lm): 4 spots
• 12 m² with the Marlo (350 lm): 3 to 4 spots
• 12 m² with the Quaro (400 lm): 3 spots
• 18 m² with the Ferro (600 lm): 3 spots

Round down if you are in doubt. A bedroom that is too bright is not pleasant to use in the evening, and you notice that every day.

Why a bedroom is different

In every other room you plan generously and add a dimmer. Here the opposite is wiser: plan tightly and fill in with separate lamps by the bed. A bedroom needs two modes — waking up and getting dressed on the one hand, reading or winding down on the other.

Ceiling spots are good at the first and bad at the second. A spot directly above your head is exactly what you do not want when you are lying in bed.

Where not to put them

• Not directly above the bed. You look straight into it when you lie on your back.
• Along the walls instead. Spots about 60 to 80 cm from the wall light the wall and make the room look larger.
• Above the wardrobe doors, yes. That is where you look for things, and that is where you need light.
• Not in a strict grid across the whole ceiling. That works in a kitchen; in a bedroom it feels like a waiting room.

Color temperature: go low

This is the room where 2700K clearly works better than 3000K. Warm light helps towards the evening and feels softer. If you choose a spot with a CCT switch, such as the Marlo or the Lesto, set it to the lowest position.

The Vigo with Dim2Warm goes a step further: it drops from 3000K to 2000K as you dim. For a bedroom that is the most pleasant combination there is — fresh in the morning, almost candlelight at night.

A dimmer is not a luxury here

In no other room is the difference between full and low as large as here. Fit a dimmer and choose spots with a dimmable driver. Without a dimmer you only have "on" and "off", and then you simply stop using the ceiling light in the evening.

Fill in with light at eye level

The 100 lumens per square meter cover all the light in the room, not just the ceiling. Two wall lights beside the bed count towards it and do more for the atmosphere than an extra spot.

The Edwin at €20.95 and the Tum at €30.95 are both G9 wall lights you can hang beside the bed. A Divo up-and-down at €15.95 throws light up and down at once, lighting the wall without you looking into the lamp.

In short

Three to four spots for an average bedroom, along the walls and not above the bed, at 2700K and with a dimmer. The rest of the light comes from lamps at eye level. The full range is in the recessed spotlights.