Why Good Lighting in Your Home Office is Important

With COVID-19 coronavirus keeping many of us working from home these days, it’s a good idea to make sure you benefit from the best possible daylight in your workplace. Be it a home office in the spare bedroom, a workstation in the garage, or a studio/workshop in the shed or garden building, giving your eyes and brain the best conditions you can make a great difference.

We’re still installing natural lighting, in line with government COVID guidelines

Fortunately, Solatube daylighting systems can prove to be a quick and cost-effective way to delivering lots of bright, glare-free daylight into otherwise dark rooms and workspaces. Whilst COVID regulations mean it’s important we observe social distancing, the rules do permit us to continue installing.  However, we would ask that homeowners consider keeping themselves in a separate part of the house whilst we undertake the installation (usually around half a day). And for our part, we will ensure we wear masks and gloves whenever we are in the house. So, if you need more daylight in your home, we are happy to continue installing Solatubes.

Is your workspace/home office bright enough?

Although you probably haven’t thought about it yet, the lighting in homes is often very different from in the office. The standard for good office light is 500 lux (the strength of the light on your work surface). This level of light aids concentration and minimizes the contrast between your computer screen and the surrounding working environment.

At home, we typically only have atmospheric light and the brightness of this often does not exceed 200 lux! Most rooms will have spotlights or just a single lighting fixture in the middle of the room. This may cause you to work in your own shadow or suffer from light glare from your computer screen.

What does lighting mean for your health?

Insufficient light, especially natural daylight, can lead to quite a few health issues and complaints in the long term, which is why it is wise to consider some of the following measures to improve home office and workspace lighting:

  •    Irritated and dry eyes
  •    Tension, stress and headaches
  •    Concentration problems
  •    Poor sleep patterns

A few simple tips to improve lighting in your home office or workspace

This is why it is wise to consider some of the following measures to improve home office and workspace lighting:

  •    Keep the décor light in color
  •    Ceilings, walls, floors, and work surfaces can all soak up the light if dark in color, so try to opt for a lighter option
  •    Workplaces (desks etc.) show be positioned closer to the window if there is too little light. Or perhaps move them further away from the window if reflection and/or glare is an issue from too much daylight.
  •    Set up computer screens so that the viewing direction is at right angles to the window. As a result, one does not look into the daylight (when your face is turned towards the window) and the daylight does not fall on the screen (when your back is turned towards the window).
  •    In the case of computer work, provide suitable sun protection that can block reflective daylight. Examples are sunshades, blinds, and tinted glass. Daylight from a Solatube natural lighting system actually avoids glare and reflections on computer screens ensuring you benefit from excellent levels of daylight without dazzling you.
  •    Take frequent breaks during activities without much daylight and/or take a short walk in between.

If you have insufficient daylight in your home office, please feel free to contact us. We have 30 years of experience supplying and installing Solatube daylighting systems and can advise on how to best maximize light levels in your work area.

For more information on pricing and installation, please fill out this form or contact one of our Solatube Home locations below:

San Diego County: 619-375-1629
Orange County: 714-694-7332
Los Angeles County: 323-649-6526