Examine options for supplementary lighting

Well-placed fluorescents provide great overall lighting. But you'll want additional light over such places as your workbench, bandsaw, and finishing area.

Standard incandescent bulbs work well for task lighting, LeMay-Madden says. They cast more shadows, which can highlight contrasts and make blades and layout lines more visible. To get better lighting quality, replace an incandescent with a "halogena" lamp. Compact fluorescent lamps work in any fixture that takes a standard screw-in bulb.

They operate more economically, but don't offer quite as much contrast as an incandescent or halogena. We recently discovered a new halogen fixture that offers promise for shop lighting, above far right. It's a cinch to install thanks to adhesive backing on the power strip. The fixtures clip onto the strip so you can move them to exactly where you need lighting.

For the ultimate in lighting convenience, add motion sensors such as those at right. Use one to simply turn on a single light to illuminate your path when you enter the shop, or to flip on all of the lights.

Try putting one over your lumber rack so you can better examine boards, or above your mitersaw station. You'll have light every time you cut, without having to flip a switch.