New light fixtures

B

billy-bob

Registered User
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115
Can anybody who's done it before tell me what involved in putting in new light fixtures?

I hate the ones left by the old owners, and want to replace them. I have a leccy coming round next week to look at some other things, would it be worth my time and money getting him to do it, or is it a fairly easy job, bearing in mind my reticence with anything electrical?

Also, when looking at fixtures, is there anything I need to know about the wiriing or fuse box in my house that would stop me from buying any old fixture they sell?
 
It's a fairly easy job but if you are reticent about doing electrical DIY jobs then leave it to the experts. If you do try it then make sure to switch off at the fuse box and use a mains/phase tester (screwdriver with a live wire detector light in the handle) to check for lives before touching anything! Also keep tabs on what way the (live/brown and neutral/blue) wires are looped before removing existing fittings and adding new ones. However if you are in any way unsure about what you are doing then leave it to the sparks.
 
I changed all the fittings in my place as well.

A quick tip. Take down one of them before purchasing new ones (following safety stuff above), and see how they are currently fixed to the ceiling.

The easiest thing to do is to get fitting that are fixed to the ceiling in the same way - for example, the distance between screws is the same so you don't need new holes etc.
 
To follow in from the above post, if you remove a light fitting and the new fitting does not appear to line up with the old holes, if you have to make new ones try and get the screws into the joist above, this is a much more secure method , especially for heavier fittings.
 
I forgot about the holes for the screws, but I don't think it'll be an issue; the ones that are currently up are chandelier types (small base) which is why they're coming down. I'd prefer something more in the track lighting kind of arena, so I suspect there will be a lot more holes involved.
 
I didn't want to start a new thread but at the same time couldn't find an already existing one that answered my question.

Simply, where do people go to buy light fittings? I have a tight budget and am looking for a centrepiece and two wall fittings for a living room. Have tried woodies, B&Q, Homebase etc. but to date have not actually seen very many actual light shops??

In dublin by the way - any suggestions?
 
Roches stores also have some nice ones, not a huge range but you might find something you like
 
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