Changing light fitting

[OldKettle]

Hi,
I have a few light fittings like the one picture below. I think that the house was, at least partially, rewired back in the early nineties.

Could a new light fitting be connected to the wiring that is currently there? If not, what would need to be done first?

If no other work is required, would it be legal for a DIYer to fit a new light?

If legal, how complicated would it be?

Any advice would be much appreciated.

 

[EFLImpudence]

Could a new light fitting be connected to the wiring that is currently there?

Looks like it.

If no other work is required, would it be legal for a DIYer to fit a new light?

Apart from stating you must do it to ensure safety, the law doesn't come in to it.

If legal, how complicated would it be?

Very simple, but as you have to ask - ???

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Switch OFF the power at the fuse box or consumer unit and disconnect the wires.
The cable you can see is likely to be connected to at least two more cables in the ceiling.

This brown sleeve on the blue wire should not be there.

It does indicate that whoever did it did not know what they were doing so you may find some other surprises.

 

[jg321]

I did wonder about that brown sleeve. Did these things come with some kind of heat resistant covering as they could have previously had a 100 watt lamp in? That said, such an item is usually braided, rather than looking a lot like normal sleeving as you say.

 

[EFLImpudence]

I hadn't thought of that.

this one looks really odd -

 

[ban-all-sheds]

It's advisable to check that the earth works.

 

[SUNRAY]

They always supply heat resistant sleeving with these types of fittings which always appeared to be woven fibreglass? then it changed to white silicon which rapidly turned brown with the heat. I think the pics are showing before and after hot bulb.

 

[OldKettle]

Thanks for all the input. I'm going to give it a go, so will probably be back to beg for more advice.

It's advisable to check that the earth works.

What tool(s) would I need to do this? What is the best way to go about it?

I have a multimeter and have also just ordered a Fluke T90 Voltage Tester.

 

[Taylortwocities]

The earth conductor should be connected to the main earth in the consumer unit. The leads on your multimeter won't be long enough to reach!

You could: Check that a nearby socket is working properly and that its earth is in place (you can use your multimeter or a socket tester for that). then test continuity from the socket's earth to the light.

 

[JohnD]

a nearby socket

if not,

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Turn off the main switch in the CU, remove the N & E conductors for that circuit from the N & E bars in the CU (with care - there will still be live cables inside even with the main switch off) and join them together, then check with your multimeter for a near-zero resistance between N & E at the lights.

 

[OldKettle]

Thanks for the advice so far.

I've finally gotten around to taking the old fittings down and buying new ones. I haven't checked the earth yet, but will do so.

I've attached a couple of pics of the existing cabling and the new light fitting. The old ones were held in place with cavity anchors. Should I use the same approach this time around? (the new fittings are about 600g)

Is there anything else in the pictures that I need to do anything about? Can I just leave the existing cavity anchors in place?

Any thought would be much appreciated.

 

[Taylortwocities]

No comment on the wiring. Use the existing anchors if they are in the right place and are strong enough. Or make new ones.
That's just common sense.

 

[jg321]

Do you have access from above? If it were me, I couldn't help but wonder what was on the other end of that flex.

That said, if it's been OK for years and you haven't been swinging from it while changing the fitting, it's probably OK (subject to the earth being OK). I just like to see wiring that I'm "taking on" by changing the fitting on the end of it, but that's probably just "me being me".

 

[OldKettle]

No comment on the wiring. Use the existing anchors if they are in the right place and are strong enough. Or make new ones.
That's just common sense.

I hadn't thought that I would be able to use the existing anchors, but the screws from the old fittings do exactly fit the hole in the centre of the new fixing bar. So, perhaps, I can use that and then use the two screws that came with the fitting to attach the ends of the fixing bar just into the plasterboard, for a little bit of extra strength.

Do you have access from above? If it were me, I couldn't help but wonder what was on the other end of that flex.

That said, if it's been OK for years and you haven't been swinging from it while changing the fitting, it's probably OK (subject to the earth being OK). I just like to see wiring that I'm "taking on" by changing the fitting on the end of it, but that's probably just "me being me".

I do have access from above. I put my finger through the hole left by the anchor, and can feel the loft insulation. I've not gone up and had a look, but can do.

 

[jg321]

Post 8 in this thread https://www.diynot.com/diy/threads/fitting-new-bathroom-light.506715/#post-4192267 is the reason I ask! Might as well check while you're messing around with it.