LED and garden lighting
LED, interior and garden lighting in Westmere
Good lighting changes how a house feels more than almost any other electrical work. We plan and install LED lighting for Westmere homes, from a kitchen that finally has light where you chop, to living rooms, hallways, bathrooms and the garden outside.
Lighting a room, not just a ceiling
If your Westmere bungalow or state house still lights each room from a single fitting in the middle of the ceiling, you will know the result. It puts light where nobody needs it and leaves shadows on the benchtop, the desk and the reading chair. Modern LED fittings let you light each part of a room for what happens there and use far less power doing it.
Recessed downlights sit in the ceiling space, so the fittings we use are chosen to suit the insulation around them, and the layout is planned so the beams fall where they are useful rather than in a tidy grid. Old fittings come out properly too. WorkSafe asks householders to look for light fittings with damage, exposed wiring, discolouration, odd noises or smells; any of those is a reason to replace the fitting rather than just the bulb. If the lighting circuits themselves are old, new lighting is best done as part of rewiring the house.
Where lighting makes the biggest difference
Kitchens
Task lighting over the bench and island, under-cabinet strips and pendants over a dining table, each on its own switch.
Living rooms
Softer light from several sources, often with dimmers, which need LED fittings and dimmers that are made to work together.
Hallways and entrances
Two-way switching at each end of a long bungalow hallway, and a light by the door you can reach with your arms full.
Bathrooms
Fittings rated for damp rooms, and mirror lighting that does not cast shadows on your face.
Outdoor and garden lighting
Westmere is a harbourside suburb. The Weona-Westmere Coastal Walkway runs for 1.4 kilometres along its shoreline, and Westmere Beach sits at the end of Westmere Park Avenue and Garnet Road. Outdoor lighting here has to cope with wind, rain and salt in the air, so we use fittings with a weatherproof rating that suits where each one is going, and outdoor circuits with RCD protection.
Path lights, deck and steps lighting, a light on the garage or sleepout, or uplighting under a favourite tree all need cable run through the garden. WorkSafe's advice on working safely with electricity outdoors is to check for underground cables before digging, because the supply to your own property may run underground. It also warns that overhead supplies from a house to an out-building deteriorate with age; if yours looks worn, replacing it can be part of the same job.
Outdoor lighting is a common place for water to get in. If an RCD in your house trips after rain, our page on tracing electrical faults explains how we find the culprit.
Lighting questions
Can I just put LED bulbs in my old fittings?
Often you can, as long as the bulb is the right size and wattage for the fitting. Where the fitting itself is old, discoloured or damaged, or you want a different layout, new fittings are the better answer.
Do I get a certificate for new lighting?
New fixed wiring, such as new lighting circuits or added downlights, is tested and certified. Swapping an existing light fitting for a new one is maintenance, which WorkSafe notes does not need a Certificate of Compliance.
Can you add lighting without opening walls?
Often, in a house with a reachable ceiling space. Where cables must run down a wall, we plan the route to keep making good to a minimum, or time it with a renovation.
Can outdoor lights come on by themselves?
Yes. Outdoor lights can be switched by a timer, a daylight sensor or a motion sensor, so paths, steps and doors are lit when they are needed without being left on all night.
Do you do lighting for shops and cafes?
Yes. We do commercial electrical work as well as residential, including lighting for retail and hospitality spaces.
Talk to an electrician about your Westmere home
Call 021 156 4005 any time of the day or night, or send the details below and we will get back to you.
More from Westmere Electrician
House rewiring
Replacing worn or overloaded wiring in Westmere's bungalows and state houses, room by room or the whole house, tested and certified.Switchboard upgrades
Old fuse boards replaced with modern circuit breakers and RCD protection, with the inspection arranged where the law requires one.Fault finding and repairs
Tracing tripping circuits, dead power points, flickering lights and hot sockets to the cause, then repairing it.24/7 emergency call-outs
An electrician on call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for power loss, burning smells, storm damage and anything unsafe.Heat pump installation
Heat pumps installed by licensed electricians, with the circuit, isolation and outdoor unit planned around your house.Oven and cooktop repairs
Electrical repairs to ovens, cooktops and waste disposals, from failed elements to tripping circuits.Enquiries
Contact us
Call 021 156 4005, or tell us what is happening and where, and we will get back to you.
021 156 4005- Auckland
- Call-outs 24 hours a day, 7 days a week