# Wafer lights and glare



## Camproadninja (Oct 14, 2020)

One of the problems I'm finding with installing and living with (I've got them in my house) is that while the wafer lights are amazing for light distribution, ease of install and how well they blend in with a ceiling I find that they are obnoxious on the eyes due to glare.

Does anyone else find the same thing and found a fixture that looks great and reduces the glare?

For more people they are fine with the glare as the cost and look outweigh the negative but I'd like to find a nice compromise of something that looks good and is easy to install but reduces glare for higher end homes and people that want a nicer light, especially in living rooms where people want to create a nice atmosphere to hang out in. 

Regressed LED lighting with baffles should reduce the glare but it's hard to convince customers to spend the extra money and even designers that I work with prefer the wafer lights just cause they look good on the ceiling and don't really care about how they function. 

Curious of others opinions on this and if they've installed lights to reduce the glare.


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## kb1jb1 (Nov 11, 2017)

I have the same opinion about the glare problem. RAB makes a 4 inch wafer that has a slight baffle and it is the same price as the others. I have been using these and I like them. I set it for the 2700K temperature.


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## wcord (Jan 23, 2011)

I prefer the regressed but as you said, customers don't want to spend the extra few dollars.
LED fixtures in general have that glare factor.
I think it's just the nature of trying to have as many lumens as possible in such a small footprint.
I definitely hate oncoming LED headlights while driving.


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## splatz (May 23, 2015)

Can you have the distribution / spread and avoid glare? It's like wanting it bright but not bright.


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## Mobius87 (May 20, 2019)

splatz said:


> Can you have the distribution / spread and avoid glare? It's like wanting it bright but not bright.


My thoughts exactly. 

Back before wafer lights, installing recessed lights always came with the caveat that they're good for direct lighting but your ambient lighting will be dark. No glare, but that is because you couldn't see the light source unless you were damn near underneath the fixture.

Wafer lights give good direct lighting and ambient lighting, because the light source is so close to the surface of the fixture. Of course, now that the light is visible from 120°, it is going to glare.

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## NoBot (Oct 12, 2019)

While meeting an owner today of a new house we're starting, that's exactly what I told him. Recessed with an LED trim will look better and have less glare than wafer lights. He agreed with my suggestion and we're only using wafers In closets and the laundry. Kitchen, family rm, master bedroom, master bath, halls, mud room and porches all will have recessed.


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## kb1jb1 (Nov 11, 2017)

One thing about the 4" wafer lights like the Lithonia is when the lights are off, they blend into the ceiling. But they do have a lot of glare.
Has anybody else used the RAB 4" product?


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## dspiffy (Nov 25, 2013)

I personally hate the new LED recessed lights. I'd rather have the older ones where you can change the bulb and baffle to your liking.


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## Camproadninja (Oct 14, 2020)

kb1jb1 said:


> One thing about the 4" wafer lights like the Lithonia is when the lights are off, they blend into the ceiling. But they do have a lot of glare.
> Has anybody else used the RAB 4" product?


Ya this is where I've butted heads with designers before. The wafers blend in so nicely when off that they don't care about the quality of light when on. They do have a point as it's very notice when in a house with the old style cans now



NoBot said:


> While meeting an owner today of a new house we're starting, that's exactly what I told him. Recessed with an LED trim will look better and have less glare than wafer lights. He agreed with my suggestion and we're only using wafers In closets and the laundry. Kitchen, family rm, master bedroom, master bath, halls, mud room and porches all will have recessed.


I think this is the way. Wafer lights for area lighting and recessed for anywhere you are going to be spending lots of time.


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## 99cents (Aug 20, 2012)

We have been trained to design for uniform light levels almost everywhere. It might be okay for a gymnasium but is it really desirable in a home? Sure, if you’re vacuuming the floor, you want to see in every corner but, personally, I like gentle light. Task lighting and indirect light are more comfortable.

As my mother got older, her eyes became light sensitive. She wore sunglasses in the house until I dimmed almost everything and put a floor lamp by her favorite chair.


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## mofos be cray (Nov 14, 2016)

99cents said:


> We have been trained to design for uniform light levels almost everywhere. It might be okay for a gymnasium but is it really desirable in a home? Sure, if you’re vacuuming the floor, you want to see in every corner but, personally, I like gentle light. Task lighting and indirect light are more comfortable.
> 
> As my mother got older, her eyes became light sensitive. She wore sunglasses in the house until I dimmed almost everything and put a floor lamp by her favorite chair.


I think dimmers are a necessity due to the amount of lights we put in houses now.


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## VELOCI3 (Aug 15, 2019)

99cents said:


> We have been trained to design for uniform light levels almost everywhere. It might be okay for a gymnasium but is it really desirable in a home? Sure, if you’re vacuuming the floor, you want to see in every corner but, personally, I like gentle light. Task lighting and indirect light are more comfortable.
> 
> As my mother got older, her eyes became light sensitive. She wore sunglasses in the house until I dimmed almost everything and put a floor lamp by her favorite chair.


Yes! I design size type and location in houses to take advantage of the room architecture. Mixing different levels with color transitions from 2800k to 3500k. Like outdoor lighting I like not seeing where the light is coming from. 

I hate these apartment buildings by me that put big LED floods around the perimeter of the building. It’s so blinding that it looks like a penitentiary from the street. 


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