How To Add Natural Light To Your Home Regimen
Spring is here, which, across the country, means more sunny days and fewer clouds and darker weather. This adds for a lot of potentials when it comes to getting more natural light into your home. Some people may be on the fence when it comes to taking the time to change their home. However, there are a surprising amount of benefits to getting this type of light. Here are some of the key ones, as well as what you need to know to start putting them to use for you.
General Benefits
One of the foremost benefits of using this type of light over an artificial alternative is that you are helping reduce the overall energy imprint of your home. This not only helps to preserve the environment but also helps create a cleaner space for all who use it. Even those who aren’t necessarily eco-minded may be able to take advantage of a variety of benefits, particularly financial.
If you’re skeptical, note that on top of the money you spend to keep artificial options on, an average of 47% of all energy used in the home is for space conditioning. This includes both lighting and temperature controls. External light actually helps you double down with these types of savings by cutting down on the heating and air conditioning expenditures you need to make. In some cases, adding this type of light to a home can cause energy costs to drop by as much as 75%.
Health Benefits
Perhaps the most interesting use for this type of light, though, stems from the relationship that it has with our health. For example, it has been shown that natural light can help people to be more productive, happier, and calmer on average. This lighting (or lack thereof) also affects our relationship with our circadian rhythm. This regulates feelings of sleepiness and alertness. For people who spend most of their time inside, the alignment of these two elements can be thrown off by hours, causing a heavy sleep debt.
There are other health benefits as well. For example, people who spend a lot of time working on computers or in front of other screens can deal with eye strain. However, natural lighting helps cut down on this eye strain, making it easier to see. Another thing that bears mentioning is Vitamin D. This nutrient has a variety of different benefits such as helping with immune system regulation, maintaining body weight, and even controlling symptoms of asthma. As things turn out, the primary way to get vitamin D is through exposure to sunlight.
To cap things off, there’s also the aesthetic value of sunlight. While it may not be paramount for a lot of people, it is worth mentioning. Sunlight not only adds an appealing visual effect, but it’s also often commonly used to help spaces appear larger and more illuminated. Many architects will actually add ways for light to take advantage of these benefits.
Practical Tips
So, with all these benefits to reap, what’s the easiest way to get all that light into your home? Depending on where you live, simply remembering to open the blinds and windows during the day and closing them at night can make a pronounced difference. However, there are other things you can do as well. These include putting shiny surfaces on some of your walls or focusing on wooden, ceramic, or stone floors with polished finishes.
Along with these changes, you also want to make sure that you alter areas outside your home to help improve the amount of sunlight you bring in. Take some time to trim any trees or bushes that may be growing around your windows and creating some unwanted shade. You should also take a look at any windows and glass doors that you have. In some cases, if a layer of dirt or grime has the chance to build up, this could cut down on the amount of light you could be exposed to.
Bigger is Better
For those who are willing to make a larger investment for their budget, there’s a lot more that you can do in terms of increasing the means for light to get into your home. For example, putting in new large windows and doors can provide more means for sunlight to enter the home. Bi-folding doors are particularly useful for this as they can help you turn an entire wall of your home into the equivalent of a glass setup. This allows for more light levels, not to mention additional aesthetics.
If you are looking for further light implementation, a skylight replacement is well worth it as well. Also, modernized daylighting systems can help capture light from the outdoors and help funnel it indoors. This reaps the benefit of increased sunlight without having to worry about some of the common issues associated with skylights. For example, an older skylight has a sizable risk of developing major leaks. Over time, these leaks can end up causing you to have to spend more month by month on utility costs. This could end up neutralizing a lot of the savings you made by trying to get more sunlight in the first place.
Overall, to get the most natural lighting possible, you need to be willing to put a combination of different techniques to work. It’s going to be a mix of both practical lifestyle changes as well as modifying the way your home is designed that helps get you there. The good news, though, is that there’s a lot of positive payoff when it comes to your work here, for your health and wallet alike.
To speak to an expert on improving the daylight in your home or requesting a free in-home consultation, contact us at either of our locations. For our location servicing San Diego and South Orange County, call 619-319-9426. For representatives at our Los Angeles and North Orange County location, contact 323-886-2271.