Planning natural light: check the places between the windows

Start with something you want to do

I would make a short list of daytime activities and put each one on the plan. Be specific: reading a recipe at the preparation bench, sewing at the spare-room table or using a laptop in the living area. Add when you expect to be there and whether that position is fixed or could move.

For a renovation, try the same exercise in the existing house on an overcast day. Note where you choose to sit, where you turn a lamp on and where the view outside makes the room feel bright even though the work in front of you is difficult to see. Treat those observations as briefing notes, not a measurement of compliance.

• Which task matters most in this room?
• Where are your eyes and the surface you are looking at?
• What do you like about the light in your current home?

Separate a sunny patch from useful daylight

BRANZ's Level guidance explains that daylight comes from the sky as well as direct sun and reflected light. A room can therefore receive daylight without sunshine falling across its floor. I would describe the experience you want rather than simply ask for more sun.

In a hypothetical home office, you might enjoy a sunny seat for a break but prefer gentler light at the computer. Mark both places. Ask how the proposed glazing and shading will serve them, and what happens when a blind is lowered. A solution that suits one activity may need adjustment for another.

Follow the light into the middle

Level also notes that daylight reduces with distance from a window, and that higher openings and rooflights can help distribute it further into a room. That gives us options to investigate, rather than a reason to enlarge every window.

I would ask the designer to explain the route daylight takes to your marked working surfaces. Include the proposed veranda, neighbouring buildings and trees, plus internal partitions and tall cupboards. If the middle of the plan is difficult, compare a change to the room arrangement with a different opening position.

The published California House design uses clerestory windows and skylights alongside openings towards internal gardens. It is a useful example of bringing light in at different levels. For your project, I would still ask which particular part of the room each opening is intended to serve.

• Could the activity move closer to an existing source of daylight?
• Would a higher opening or light from another direction help?
• What roof and ceiling changes would that option involve?

Keep the comparison honest as the design develops

I would request a daylight comparison with the assumptions written beside it: sky conditions, surrounding obstructions, glazing and internal finishes. Ask whether it is an illustrative image or a calculated assessment. If there is uncertainty about a working position, ask what further assessment would help resolve it.

Keep your marked activity plan through the later design stages. A new bank of cupboards, a deeper covered terrace or a different glazing specification is a reason to revisit the discussion. Record which locations the team has checked and which still need attention.

• Keep viewpoints and assumptions consistent when comparing options.
• Show the furniture and cabinetry you intend to use.
• Agree which unresolved daylight questions need answering before the design is fixed.

Bring the places you want to spend time

Bring a plan and a few notes about where daylight matters to you to an initial conversation. We can discuss the parts of your home that need closer investigation and turn a general wish for brighter rooms into a useful starting brief.