Imagine my horror when I took the module set to the most recent exhibition, only to discover that the scenic work I'd done was completely the wrong colour under proper lighting conditions. So much for 'making do' with what I had.
Installation of two single fluorescent fixtures, equipped with daylight tubes, over the modelling bench in the shop has revealed exactly what I suspected; namely, that it's a miserable dark pit. I'll need at least one more single fixture to provide ambient light just for the bench area.
The daylight tubes certainly render much better colour than the mishmash of incandescent bulbs which were in the track lighting that I tore out. In addition to the overheads, there are two daylight incandescent swing arm lamps pointed directly at the bench's work surface which are the all-important task lighting part of the equation. There's no sense in mixing colours from the various bulbs in the shop itself so I'm trying to install all 'daylight' sources regardless of fixture.
A tawdry chandelier (? = don't ask) still has to be removed, and three or four more fluorescent fixtures will have to be installed to provide ambient light the lathe & mill end of the shop. Proper task lighting will still have to be situated at each tool to brighten the jobs at hand.
It may seem like a lot of bother to swap out light fixtures and add a bunch of goose-neck or swing arm lamps but, in the end, if you can't see what you're doing the jobs will be that much harder to complete.
2 comments:
What color is the ceiling in your shop? Do you have a drop ceiling or rafters overhead? Even if you paint the rafters and underfloor white, you should be able to make the shop area brighter.
The ceiling is "wood" colour; just the joists and plywood subflooring above. I'm not planning on adding any covering just yet. It will be zero-clearance drop if anything.
The cement floor is covered in poorly applied battleship grey latex (ugh) which would have to be scraped clean before I could epoxy.
The walls are cheap wood grain panelling - which I would like to paint white when I have a chance.
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