Worked room · 12 × 18 ft
Outdoor room that dies at dusk
The garden holds until the light leaves.
A paved terrace with generous planting and no planned light path. By day it is a room. At dusk it becomes a yard you retreat from.
ReportedThose dimensions were declared for the example. They are not a tape in this room.
What Room Lab concluded
Buy nothing yet
strongLight · severepressure on its worst conditionLight looks like the governing problem. Open a route through the room — no money yet.
- Why
- Light is the primary friction at 86. Light scores 86. Daylight, artificial distribution, glare, dark zones. Function at 48 is real, but it is not the thing a body hits first. North screen sits on the primary walk. The route does not narrow — it stops and goes around. Addresses congestion with a derived cause behind it. It costs nothing, takes about 30 minutes, and is undone in a minute.
- Caveat
- Unnamed: whether the GFCI can take a string-light load; neighbor sightlines after dark.
- NextTest
- Nothing currently crosses this room without moving something, starting with North screen. Shift it far enough that a body gets through, then re-measure. What to watch: Tape the walk. It measures 0" now and must hold 36" with the door open.
This holds until: The “Open a route through the room” step is complete and a second reading shows what changed.
Driven by Light score (86). Strong — every condition scored, ranked, and clear of a tie.
Where the walk is blocked
Nothing crosses this room without moving something, starting with North screen. That is a barrier, not a tight squeeze — in a small store or closet it may be exactly what you intended, so check it before you treat it as a fault.
- Blocked walk
- Proposed walk
- Primary walk is blocked beside North screen: 0" where it needs 36".
- Social loop is proposed: 84" at its narrowest beside Dining table.
- Primary walk ≥ 36" is not verified.
Pieces on this plan
- Dining table6' × 3' 3" · Unknown
- Chair1' 9" × 1' 9" · Unknown
- Chair1' 9" × 1' 9" · Unknown
- Hedge west1' 6" × 14' · Unknown
- Hedge east1' 6" × 14' · Unknown
- North screen8' × 1' 6" · Unknown
Free moves first
Open a route through the room
Nothing currently crosses this room without moving something, starting with North screen. Shift it far enough that a body gets through, then re-measure.
How to tell it worked: A body walks it without turning the shoulders.
Then one reversible test at a time
One reversible split
Place a folding screen, a tension curtain, or a planted trough on the line between the two jobs. Live with it for seven days. Do not also move the bed in the same week.
What to watch: Can you do job A without seeing job B? Time the walk around the split — it must not pinch 36 inches.
Temporary light path
Two plug-in or battery lanterns along the planted edge, plus one at the table. Dusk to full dark. No shop light.
What to watch: Sit at the job 30 minutes after sundown. Can you read a page without the overhead?
Move the largest piece once
Shift the sofa, island, or bed off the crossing. Live with painter's tape marking the old footprint. Do not buy a new piece this week.
What to watch: Primary path ≥ 36". Conversation or work still functions.
Not worth buying yet
- Another rug before the walk is clear. Rugs do not fix circulation. They hide it.
- Hardwired statement fixture. Electrical is a watch or professional review is required. Prove the path with plug-in light.
- Decorative storage cubes for the pile. A lid is not a sort. Empty the pile first.