Taking into account the architectural and heritage value of the buildings in which we work is a fundamental point when starting a lighting project in a church.
By Alejandra García Vélez
Lighting creates spaces, environments and atmospheres, the location or tonality of a light can completely change the perception of a space. This is even more important in a church, where the lighting system must respect the structure, while highlighting the architecture and works of sacred art found in most of these buildings.
It is not an easy task to face the imposing ceilings, the small details that adorn every inch, the materials, the weight of taking care of a legacy. Working in a church is not limited only to assembling the electrical structure, or installing new luminaires.
Churches demand special attention to detail, requiring the installer to be able to strike a perfect balance between the use of new technologies and the preservation of a classical spirit.
Luis Carlos Rodríguez, Lighting & Automation Designer of the company Fasst Lighting S.A., has had experiences in this field and was one of the guests to talk about the subject. Rodríguez stressed that lighting projects in general and these in particular should be done with the accompaniment of an interdisciplinary group that includes, among other things, designers, an electrical engineer, and interior experts. "Having a qualified team is a guarantee of success for the final installation because all the details are foreseen from the design stage," he said.
In that sense, Juan Domínguez, architect of Lightcube, agrees and thinks that it is essential to have a person trained in the existing regulations regarding the renovation and remodeling of buildings classified as historical and cultural heritage, which is the case of many churches.
Precisely, one of the main difficulties that these professionals have encountered when facing this type of project, are the restrictions they encounter when working in buildings recognized as historical heritage. In this case it is necessary to avail oneself of the regulations established by Unesco, so as not to affect the structure of the church.
Lighting evolves
As for the devices used, the implementation of the different lighting sources only presents restrictions in the application in the case of elements that should not be modified so as not to affect the ornamental aspect. Sometimes lamps and sconces fulfill a decorative function and have a great value for their age, in this case the ideal is to preserve their aesthetic value but intervene them at the electrical level to reduce their consumption levels or change their components if they are deteriorated.
Juan Domínguez explains that the type of lights used in the churches has undergone an evolution, initially incandescent bulbs were handled, which allowed a very good chromatic representation that highlighted the stained glass, paintings and colors of the building. However, its high energy consumption led to the implementation of fluorescent lights, which although they were more efficient did not offer the same versatility "with fluorescent lights you lose that cozy and playful atmosphere generated by incandescent bulbs in the church," said Domínguez.
Finally, the technology that is being imposed at the moment is LED. This type of light allows you to find a balance between energy savings, while achieving the same effects that were had with incandescent lights.
The challenges
As expected, the realization of a project in a church is accompanied by special characteristics. On the one hand, the execution times are different; regular activities, such as the Eucharist and other church services are not canceled, so work must be done at times that do not interfere with them.
Another situation that must be handled carefully has to do with the structure of the building itself, usually these structures have very high ceilings that can make the installation more complex.
"The most frequent problems occur in the remodeling, since the electrical system in some of these sites has already completed its cycle, in addition its location does not correspond to the location of the lights that are going to be installed and this forces to execute new electrical work," explained Rodríguez.
In the same sense, he added that the installation can be very simple if the characteristics of the design are preserved and the electrical work is executed according to it; otherwise the execution times, and the results will be delayed and costly.
The process and the benefits
Before starting with the operation it is necessary to verify that the components are susceptible to being intervened, otherwise the idea is to install new devices according to the architecture of the place. In the case of lighting for the façade, the ideal is to choose the most appropriate source according to its useful life, efficiency and color temperature in relation to the material of the façade. It is also important to include a control system to save energy.
Finally, Juan Domínguez highlights that today LED lighting is ideal for churches, "many people are scared by the high cost of LED systems, but there are really applications that justify this price and projects for which it is much better to use them; it is not the same for a church to spend two million pesos (US $ 1,000) a month in consumption because it is a huge space to spend 300,000 pesos (US $ 150) because we are reducing consumption and lowering power by 70%".
