False ceiling with flush mounted spot lights.

[Pinnacle]

I need to fit a bunch of flush mounted spots in my kitchen.

I'll be stripping the wire all the way back as the wire is very old and brittle.

I can wire up notmal lights but never really played around with spots. I'm looking at about 12 - 14 spots in total.

Any advice on the sort of equipment I will need and the best way to wire themup ?

 

[Steve]

I'll be stripping the wire all the way back as the wire is very old and brittle.

What does it looks like? A clear photo will help us. What does your "fusebox" look like? Again, a photo would be nice. I suspect your installation is past its sell-by.

 

[Pinnacle]

I'm at work at the moment so can’t get any photo's

The fuse box itself is a failrly new one, 3 years old. It's the trip type rather than the wire type.
It's split into different sections, for 16amp lights ground floor and 16amp lights 1st floor, then you have the kitchen appliances on another trip and 4 - 5 others.

The wire itself is brittle because someone fitted flat lights to the ceiling and probably over powered them with 100w bulb, when I removed them because they had stoped working I noticed what looked like a burn mark under the base of the light, the plaster was cracking and crumbling due to the heat and the wire had no flex it it at all and was brown rather than white/grey colour, again I imagine due to the heat.

It's the old type wiring rather than the new type and I would imagine it's been there since the house was built in the late 30's.

 

[Chri5]

Lights tend to be rated at 6 a for 1.0mm TE and sometimes 10 a for 1.5 TE.

16 amp is a wrong fuse size for a lighting circuit.....

I would suggest that 12-14 x 50w GU10's (700w / 230v = 3a) should have the rest of the circuit lighting wiring pre checked to make sure:-

* existing circuit cable can handle load
* That the total lighting load (add up all the bulbs on circuit and divide by 230v for amps) is acceptable for the fuse size you intend to provide when you change the 16 a fuse

Although expensive 3w hi power LEDs for GU10's are now available (about £12 each). These would reduce the load to 14 x 3w / 230v or less than 0.2 a and save buckets of cash come electric bill time.

All lighting circuit cable should have twin and EARTH / cpc conductor and many installation do not. Check at existing light switches and roses to confirm if cpc is present.

If not then it's a full rewire of the lighting circuit. This become crucial if you have any metal lamp fitting and / or metal faced light switches.

As you (should know) light switching is via a switch live wire, so in essence pick up line / live, neutral and cpc from existing circuit run to 1st fitting. At this point you need the switch cable.

Then it's a straight forward job of linking all the lights via daisy chain and at the 1st fitting taking the line / live of the circuit down to the switch and back. Live /line switched wire should be the blue core of the switch cable over sleeved with brown sleeve.

Work in kitchens is notifiable under Part P

 

[Pinnacle]

Thanks Chris,

I'm liking he sound of those 3W led's.

I'll get all the wiring checked out and have a good read of Part P.