Lighting designers look to nature for organic, eco-friendly and sustainable artistic inspiration. Whether they are planning for interior and exterior lighting installation, a healthy blend of natural elements is always in style.

Bring nature indoors and out and get inspired by shopping nautical inspired lighting designs at Capitol Lighting.   The sea is a wonderful, natural inspiration and Capitol Lighting has a huge selection of nautical lighting from which to choose –over 300 designs and unique accent pieces!

When it comes to nautical lighting, Capitol Lighting offers everything from outdoor wall lighting to kitchen island lights. You don’t have to live by the sea to appreciate the essence of nautical lighting design.  Trend-setting finish options and appealing blue hues incorporated into the latest nautical lighting designs.  These lamps and light fixtures are timeless and classic, and they add a casual charm to both the traditional and modern home.

Whether you are shopping for kitchen island lights, outdoor wall lighting or outdoor pier lights, find hundreds of nautical inspired lighting designs at Capitol Lighting online or in one of our retail showrooms nationwide.

Since 1989 approximately 1 billion feet of CSST gas line or yellow gas line has been installed.  Nearby lighting strikes can cause an electrical surge and puncture the CSST line.  Bonding is considered electrical work and should only be performed by a qualified electrician.

In new construction we bond all gas lines.  Currently about 500,000 new homes per year have CSST gas line installed in them.  However, CSST gas line is considered safe when properly installed in your home.  Part of the installed properly guidelines refers to bonding your CSST gas line, your local electrician can do this for you.  If your home is more than two years old we recommended you have a licensed electrician check for proper gas line bonding.  Many real estate transactions and inspections require the CSST line to be bonded prior to the sale.   A good source of information on CSST lines can be found at CSSTSafety.com.

“CSST should NOT be confused with flexible gas appliance connectors – the product that joins a moveable appliance to your home or building’s gas supply line. The difference is flexible connectors attach directly to the moveable appliance from the wall or floor. CSST is usually routed beneath, through and alongside floor joists in your basement, inside interior wall cavities and on top of ceiling joists in attic spaces.” CSST Safety.com

If you would like more information or to check to see if your CSST line is properly bonded please feel free to Contact us anytime!  We bond CSST gas lines in the Des Moines area and surrounding communities.

If you are planning on renovating or sprucing-up your kitchen, it’s probably a good idea to map out a detailed lighting plan as well. Most people find this a little strange as they feel that lighting in a kitchen isn’t something that needs too much of consideration or planning. It’s just a place where you cook and probably where you have an informal meal after all.

However, the fact is that it’s important to plan kitchen illumination well if you want to make optimal use of your kitchen spaces. Here, we would like to share some basic lighting ideas to create the right balance of functionality and aesthetics.

If you want to get a better idea about what type of lighting would work best for your kitchen, it’s vital to understand how your kitchen spaces relate to the different type of lighting. Let’s start off with understanding what type of bulbs you can use for the best effects:

These bulbs emit a yellowish light and you will now find many artistic versions of these on the market today.

These bulbs throw off a flat, cold light that has a bluish tinge, which lends a very harsh effect to the room.

These have a warm light that makes the place look very inviting and comfortable

These are the latest in light bulb technology and are available in a range of effects including white, cool daylight, warm light, yellow and a range of other colours and hues. Aside from this, LED bulbs are also 80% more energy-efficient than standard bulbs; and most property owners are now opting for these fixtures.

In addition to the types of bulbs used, the style of lighting or the lighting effects are what impact the ambience and appearance of a room. With this in view, here we discuss the different lighting effects that can be used in your kitchen:

This is one of the simplest ways to create the right lighting effect in your kitchen. This type of lighting is designed to help you move comfortably around the room. In most instances this type of lighting comes from grid-style can lighting, widely-spaced, wall and ceiling lamps, semi-translucent skylights or even the natural light that streams in through glass windows and doors. This is the base layer of any lighting plan.

In your kitchen, task lighting would be required to illuminate kitchen counters and food preparation spaces. Since you will be cooking in your kitchen every day, it’s important that the task lighting be planned and installed well. If you have only recessed lighting fixtures in your kitchen, you will feel the lack of focused light when you are cleaning, cooking or prepping in that space.

If you install one-dimensional lighting in the kitchen, it creates unsightly shadows in different areas of the room, while ceiling lighting is ineffective in illuminating spaces like sinks, under counter or cabinet areas etc. On the other hand, if you add special pendant lamps over the counters or even your kitchen island it can prove to be a more practical solution. Under-cabinet lighting can also help in illuminating the cabinets that are positioned there.

This effect doesn’t seem as necessary as ambient or task lighting does in a kitchen space, as the illumination it provides isn’t as functional as the first two. However, it can have a significant impact on the way your kitchen spaces look. If you want to enhance the appeal of your kitchen (regardless of whether you are getting it entirely renovated or are opting for a lighting upgrade), it’s important that you plan your accent lighting well.

A home inspection covers a number of areas, not the least of which is the electrical system. ElectricMan, a trusted certified electrician.

An electrical system inspection includes looking for any aspects that make the home unsafe. A good report features the following most common items:

With all of these points checked off the list, you know you have run across a home with a sound electrical system. It’s a great feeling knowing you’re moving into a home that won’t present trouble around every corner. That’s why it’s so important to have an inspection conducted by a qualified professional before you buy.

If you have any questions about the electrical system aspects of a potential new home’s inspection report, please contact a ElectricMan website, and don’t forget to ‘like’ us on Twitter.