| Room | Footcandles | Lumens for 150 sq ft | 6" LED fixtures (1100 lm) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hallway | 5-10 | ~1,200 | 1-2 |
| Media room | 10 | ~1,500 | 2 |
| Living room / bedroom | 10-20 | ~2,250 | 2-3 |
| Dining room | 30 | ~4,500 | 4 |
| Kitchen (ambient) | 35-40 | ~5,300 | 5 |
| 首页 office | 60-70 | ~9,800 | 9 |
| Kitchen task / bathroom | 70-80 | ~11,300 | 10 |
For a 12x12 bedroom or living room with an 8-foot ceiling: four 750-1100 lumen fixtures in a 2x2 grid, about 6 feet apart and 3 feet off the walls. A 12x12 kitchen needs six to nine, because kitchens call for two to three times the light of a living space.
The classic rule: divide ceiling height by two for the maximum spacing that still gives even light: 4 feet apart for an 8-foot ceiling, 5 feet for a 10-foot ceiling. In practice most general-lighting layouts run 4 to 6 feet apart, tighter where task light matters.
Set the first row half of your fixture spacing from the wall, typically 2 to 3 feet. Closer than that creates harsh scallops of light down the wall; farther leaves the room's edges in shadow. To wash art or cabinets deliberately, place fixtures 18 to 24 inches from the wall.
6-inch fixtures are the general-lighting workhorse, especially on ceilings 9 feet and up. 4-inch trims look more tailored in small rooms, modern interiors and task zones. You just need a few more. Thin LED wafers install without a can and suit shallow joist bays.
Living rooms and bedrooms need roughly 10-20 lumens per square foot, dining rooms 30, kitchens 35-40 for ambient light with 70-80 in task areas, bathrooms 70-80, and home offices 60-70. Multiply your square footage by the target to get total lumens, then divide by your fixture's output.