Adding to a lighting circuit

[David Costelloe]

Hi, I would like to install as a single lighting solution, four LED panels with four drivers. So the load is quite low.

Can I intercept a lighting circuit feed to an existing light to power them. Is there any issue with having four feeds to the drivers. If so, how can I address that and stay within regs?

Physical options would be to run four cables from the existing supply in a star network to each driver or secondly to have a daisy chain - one feed from existing supply to the first driver, then connect the next driver up etc.

I'm simplifying this a bit, as I know that I will need a switched live too, to turn the panels off and on.

I will use an electrician, just want to check that there is a sensible solution.

 

[winston1]

Your electrician will know the best solution but both your options are feasible.

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

Whether you can, or cannot run from an existing lighting point, depends upon whether that point includes both live and neutral, if you want to have them able to be on when the 'point' is turned off.

The usual method is daisy, rather than star, because star involves lots of cables all terminating together in the same connectors.

 

[ericmark]

I hate the question "Can I" I have no idea of your ability, then I see "I will use an electrician, just want to check that there is a sensible solution." so I assume your asking how lamps can be controlled? specially with the "I know that I will need a switched live too, to turn the panels off and on." well I suppose that is no longer true, this lamp fitted for me by my son does not have a switched line as such, it has a pair of extra low voltage wires which go to a pair of two way switches so I can switch the centre lamp on/off at the wall, but the outer 4 lamps in the main are switched on/off with voice control using zigbee and Nest Mini's.

I have a relay inside the lamp in this case, but could also use smart bulbs, or even kinetic switches, the latter uses the energy of you clicking the switch to send a signal to the lamp.

There are so many ways today to control things, I would say a wall switch is a good idea, but not required.

Before the new lamp was fitted, we had a simple smart bulb, as we could not easy get to the down stairs switch, we could have used voice control, but we did in fact use simple timed on and off.

There is also the PIR many firms fitted these to save on power, so lights only one when room in use, at least it gave the occupants some exercise as they waved their hands in the air to turn light back on. I have thought about them for our living room when the smart switch failed, the number of times I have dozed off and woke in a dark room, I have set the display cabinet lights on a timer so I can at least see floor clear to light switch.

But this is a good point, anything mechanical at some point will fail, even the simple push on/push off switch, I remember my dad removing a bulb as switch stuck on. At least with a smart bulb easy to change. I have never tested to see if Nest Mini will still work with no internet, I do need the zigbee hub to work, and the router, and you have to decide how much you want to rely on smart devices.

 

[PaddyLondon]

What was behind my question was the incorrect belief that lighting circuits were like ring mains and might be subject to restriction on the number of spurs. Thankfully that is not the case.

Control is on my agenda - the LED panels come with a dimming, colour temperature changing remote. Ideally I'd like a controller that can adjust the brightness and colour by time of day. Rather than cutting into a reinforced concrete roof over a stairwell to create a sky light, I decided to use the panels have sky and cloud images on them to simulate a skylight. Not seen such a controller yet.

 

[winston1]

What was behind my question was the incorrect belief that lighting circuits were like ring mains and might be subject to restriction on the number of spurs. Thankfully that is not the case.

 

[winston1]

Rings are not subject to a restriction on the number of spurs anyway.