How to get live wire to fan with only access through small downlight holes!?

[EFLImpudence]

Maybe - but then why would a Permanent Live be required?

 

[sparkwright]

Maybe - but then why would a Permanent Live be required?

True.

Doesn't make a lot of sense with the limited information.

 

[YorkshireMidge]

If you do find yourself having to cut through a nice ceiling, it's not as bad as it sounds if your ceiling is nice and smooth and flat, and preferably painted matt white!

This is one of mine where I had to cut a section out to do a C/H pipe repair - or have to rip out half the bathroom above it.

C/H pipe crusty and leaking

Just noticed a couple of small brown stains on the kitchen ceiling today, from our main bathroom above. I was expecting a leak somewhere, but not the one I actually found - which is a very crusty looking central heating pipe under the bathroom floor. I can't actually get to this from above as...

www.diynot.com

When you saw through from beneath using a plasterboard saw or similar, it will break away plaster on the other side, and also tear away the thick paper backing you get on plasterboard - and you can see this in the slightly messy edges to the trap I had to cut out.

But if you then cut all this damage back with a knife, and put some bits of wood across the hole, and secure it with screws, you will find you can then screw the removed section to it and end up with it absolutely flush as checked with a straight edge in the attached. Just make sure you pilot the screw holes and remove any damage on the back of the plasterboard where the screws have come through too.

Fill the screw heads and the saw slots (I use white two-pack filler to do this as it sets in around 15 mins and doesn't shrink so its easy to get it dead smooth). Touch in with paint and job done. You'd never know I'd taken such a large piece out.

Another handy gadget I have for jobs like this is a USB boroscope - which you can buy for between £10-20 on ebay. It is a tiny camera on the end of a USB cable with a circle of tiny LEDs around it - with the whole thing being around 5mm diameter. They usually come with a 90 degree adapter too. Plug it into a laptop (or some smart phones), drill a pilot hole, and you can have a good look behind the plasterboard before starting to cut blind.

 

[robodelfy]

No.
If the joists run across your run. You gave to drill the joists to run the cables. Choices are:
1. Chop large holes in ceiling so you can drill through the joists. There will be a joist every 40 or 60cm, so a lot of patching.
2. Take the ceiling down
3. Lift the carpet and floor above. There are devices so you cut a series of large holes and cover plates.

That’s for the cable being concealed in the ceiling. Other ugly solutions are available.

Ah ok, so it all really depends on the joists. I will check when I can

I dont like the sound of most of those options!

 

[robodelfy]

If you do find yourself having to cut through a nice ceiling, it's not as bad as it sounds if your ceiling is nice and smooth and flat, and preferably painted matt white!

This is one of mine where I had to cut a section out to do a C/H pipe repair - or have to rip out half the bathroom above it.

C/H pipe crusty and leaking

Just noticed a couple of small brown stains on the kitchen ceiling today, from our main bathroom above. I was expecting a leak somewhere, but not the one I actually found - which is a very crusty looking central heating pipe under the bathroom floor. I can't actually get to this from above as...

www.diynot.com

When you saw through from beneath using a plasterboard saw or similar, it will break away plaster on the other side, and also tear away the thick paper backing you get on plasterboard - and you can see this in the slightly messy edges to the trap I had to cut out.

But if you then cut all this damage back with a knife, and put some bits of wood across the hole, and secure it with screws, you will find you can then screw the removed section to it and end up with it absolutely flush as checked with a straight edge in the attached. Just make sure you pilot the screw holes and remove any damage on the back of the plasterboard where the screws have come through too.

Fill the screw heads and the saw slots (I use white two-pack filler to do this as it sets in around 15 mins and doesn't shrink so its easy to get it dead smooth). Touch in with paint and job done. You'd never know I'd taken such a large piece out.

Another handy gadget I have for jobs like this is a USB boroscope - which you can buy for between £10-20 on ebay. It is a tiny camera on the end of a USB cable with a circle of tiny LEDs around it - with the whole thing being around 5mm diameter. They usually come with a 90 degree adapter too. Plug it into a laptop (or some smart phones), drill a pilot hole, and you can have a good look behind the plasterboard before starting to cut blind.

Thanks all good advice, and it may come to this if the joists are not running in my favour!