Bathroom lighting Guiding LIGHT

DON'T GET LEFT IN THE DARK WITH CONFUSING ELECTRICIAN JARGON AND COMPLEX WET-ZONE RULES. WE HAVE ALL THE BATHROOM LIGHTING KNOW-HOW TO HELP ILLUMINATE YOUR PATH

- REBECCA HOOTON

Picture this: you have a shiny new bathroom with carefully chosen tapware, tiles and joinery. It's everything you ever wanted in a wet space. You could soak all day in your deep new tub or double shower. Then, you wake up in the middle of the night for a toilet trip and turn on the light - the glare is blinding. Or you go to put on make-up in front of the mirror and realise the shine from overhead casts shadows on your face, making it impossible to see what you're doing. Your new bathroom might be beautiful but, without the right lighting in place, it's not so practical or functional.

Taking the time to think ahead in the planning stages will make a major difference to your day-to-day life. Not to mention speeding up the approvals process if you're doing a new build - one wrong pendant position and your move-in date might be set back.

We speak to several industry experts who share the most common bathroom lighting mistakes people make, the best positions to place lights, electrician lingo and what's trending right now. Whether you're enlisting the help of an interior designer or managing a reno yourself, being equipped with this knowledge will help you make informed decisions now so you don't wake up with glaring regrets later.

IN HOT WATER

Every bulb and light fixture has an Ingress Protection (IP) rating that explains the level of protection it has against water. Lights with the highest IP ratings are required in areas closest to water (the top level is safe to submerge in water), while lower IP ratings can be used as you move progressively out from wet zones. The same goes for voltages. "You can't have 240 volts hanging in an environment where you can grab it near a wet area," says electrician Bradley Thomason from Visual Effects Electrical. "If you fell and grabbed the light near the bath, it'd be dangerous." A 12-volt converted pendant would be better.