Landing lighting and adding a light! Help.

[exharper]

Hi, im sure you have had this question before, but quiet find the exact issue i have.

I want to add an additional light to the botton of my landing. I currently have a light at the top of the landing with a single switch at the top of the stairs and one at the bottom of the stairs.

What is the best way to do this so that i can still use the existing switches to operate both lights. I have all the floor boards up and have located the appropiate wiring, just need help from here really to makes sur i do it the right way.

Can i just thread a wire from the top landing light pendant down from the attic and connect it to a pendant on the botton landing?. Will the switches still work for both lights and is this method acceptable? Cheers Dan

 

[1john]

yes. if burying the cable in a wall be sure to add rcd protection if you havn't got any.

 

[exharper]

Thanks for the fast response?

Is this technically just a light spur from the loop?

The consumer box has RCD protection, but i think it will just be routed down from the landing light in to the floor boards.

Cheers Dan

 

[1john]

it;s a spur from the switched live.

 

[Taylortwocities]

?

The consumer box has RCD protection, but i think it will just be routed down from the landing light in to the floor boards.

Two points.

You may have RCD protection but it is probably only on the socket circuits.
You would need RCD protection on the lighting circuits too, if you are to comply with regulations relating to buried cables.

The new cable that you add will need RCD protecttion if it is concealed (buried in a wall eg) less than 50mm from the surface.
You will need to route the cable from the landing ceiling to the hall ceiling. How will you route the vertical drop? If its in a cupboard, or a void (soil pipe, eg) or surface trunking then you dont need the supplementary protection from an RCD.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Make sure you use 1mm² or 1.5mm² twin & earth, not flex, and ideally not smaller than the size currently used.

If your existing wiring is red & black and they new cable is brown & blue you're supposed to put a warning notice like this on your CU:

This info on concealed cables may be of use:

• http://www.voltimum.co.uk/files/gb/attachments/niu/l/attachments/c5-43.pdf
• http://web.archive.org/web/20061110111450/http://www.niceic.org.uk/downloads/concealedcables.pdf
• IEE article
• IEE Article on 17th Edition requirements for concealed cables.