The garage is one of the funnier spaces in the American home. A combination of endless utility and the lack of furnishings make the humble garage a place everyone wants to visit, but rarely wants to stay in.
Projects can be assembled, cars can be parked, and more significant home developments can be prefaced with by storing essentials. Indeed, the very nature of the garage makes the space a popular, if divisive, part of any home.
Naturally, however, the greatest assets of the garage are countered by its most significant shortcoming -there simply isn’t enough space. All of that emptiness and less need to keep it clean means the garage is often overwhelmed with mountains of junk that either will never be used or simply has nowhere else to go.
We won’t even get into how unbelievably annoying it is to dig mindlessly under the stores of junk that make their home in the garage, looking for that one item you could have sworn was in there last time you checked.
Unfortunately, we don’t have a solution to that problem. But we do have an answer to another – lighting. Digging for treasure in your garage is already hard enough, but doing that with nothing but a half-working garage light is enough to make anyone sick of themselves. We’re here to help with that.
In today’s blog, we’re going to focus on how garage lighting doesn’t have to be a pain and how a bit of steel barn-style lighting can breathe new life into your garage, no matter what you use it for.
A Solid Foundation
The basics of lighting design and techniques are the key to optimizing your experience. If you don’t have a working knowledge, now is a perfect time because it’s essential! Proper lighting can be broken down into three distinct layers:
- Ambient Light – Ambient light is the base layer of light found in every room, and it aims to cover an area with even lighting so as not to make surroundings uncomfortable.
- Task Light – Task lighting can be used to make simple tasks more effortless and safer. This is accomplished with a focused beam of light that shines on one object at a time, which does not affect other objects nearby.
- Accent Light – Accent lights are often used to highlight the aesthetics of a space and create dramatic visuals. They can also be utilized for more practical purposes such as cooking or setting up light displays, but they primarily exist in art contexts.
Using these layers in conjunction with each other is crucial to success and will allow even the basic aesthetic of a garage pop while expanding its utility as well.
Light ‘Em Up
So, with that out of the way, let’s get something out of the way first – the odds are high that your garage is going to fill up with all kinds of useless stuff that you won’t know what to do with. That’s perfectly fine, by the way, and nothing to be ashamed of. But the nature of junk is that, when it’s stacked high, visibility becomes a premium, and finding anything of worth is made all the more challenging as a result.
The solution to this problem is found in the first layer of light mentioned above – Ambience. Most garages benefit from some pretty minimalist lighting solutions. This is usually a small light attached to the garage or a lone ceiling light that hangs pathetically in the middle of the room. Neither of these is going to help, so let’s have a look at something that can.
Garage lighting should be all about going as big as possible and lighting up absolutely everything. Visibility is safety, and there’s no better source of visibility than our mighty Manhattan light. Our largest farmhouse-style steel ceiling light is perfect for garages that need to have as much light as possible. With a gigantic 20” diameter, the Manhattan casts a wide cone of light that can make even the darkest dungeon sparkle.
Use this light, or our slightly smaller Carson light, in multiples to create a stunning blanket of clean, consistent light that never disappoints.
Workshoppin’
For some, a garage is a place not destined for junk but instead – industry. A lot of our favorite hobbies find homes in the quiet spaces of the garage. For that, a lot of our lighting needs will be different.
If you have a hobby that’s a little too hands-on for the study or inside the home, then there’s a pretty good chance it’s going to be happening in the garage. Most of the time, it’s because the work involved is either too dangerous or too messy. In either case, having the right kind of lighting can save you a lot of hassle while also keeping things as safe as possible.
For that, we recommend the best example of task lighting we have in our store – the Westchester. The Westchester is perfect for mounting above a workbench or over a shelving unit as a wall-mounted fixture. In addition, the bright, even garage lighting allows the Westchester to be a perfect companion for complicated tasks that require your utmost attention to complete.
Automation Station
Ok, so maybe you’re a fancy pants, and you actually use your garage for its intended purpose – storing your vehicle(s). That’s great! At least someone is doing it. Now’s the time to enjoy your achievement of organization and show off how cool your ride looks.
For that, accent lighting is going to be your friend. What’s the point of being able to store your car in your garage if you can’t at least show it off a little? A small garage light will simply not do! Instead, you need something that can show off the curves of your favorite ride, which you need – the Topanga.
Our Topanga steel light is the perfect addition to any garage looking to make the most of its most prized asset – your car. As a wall-mounted variation on our El Segundo light, the Topanga pumps out the perfect amount of light due to its 14” dome. When used in multiples along your wall, the Topanga can create a gorgeous blanket of light that issue to capture every detail of your vehicle.
That’s it for this guide on how to achieve the best garage lighting setup best using Steel barn-style lighting!
If you need help making the right choice of lighting for your home or business, then contact our friendly team at Steel Lighting Co., our friendly team of experts would be more than happy to give some advice and recommendations on what kind of steel barn light can best suit your home or business needs.
