Old light fittings

[thornton_chris]

Hi,

We have aquired some very old light fittings. I am going to re-wire them but the main problem is how do I attach them to the wall!

They all come with this funny small hole poking out the back but they look like they need some sort of hook on the wall to attach to.

They are all roughly the same so am I missing the brackets, or, are all old fittings like this and I need to buy some sort of hook?

I have attached a picture but it is not very good so I have tried to draw on what the bracket looks like!

Untitled

• thornton_chris
• 28 Nov 2012
• 1

Many thanks,

Chris

 

[SaladFingers]

It certainly looks like some form of bracket is missing.

 

[clifford1]

I have had similar fittings, and tried various methods of attaching.
A lot depend on how heavy it is, and whether it is vital that it is clamped firmly, vertical, or whether it can simply hang a bit off-straight on a picture hook. Obviously if it incorporates a switch or a pull cord it needs to be especially secure.

In the end what I did was make/find a simple metal L-shaped bracket, such as the kind used for mending cupboards, and add an extra 90-degree bend at the end, pointing upwards, to engage in the slot in the fitting.

This takes some experimenting to get the dimensions right. I filed down the final lug so that it was a taper fit inside the hole, and locked tight when hooked over and then pulled carefully down the wall the final fraction of an inch.
Obviously you keep the dimensions so that the bracket and its screws are entirely concealed by the light fitting.

An alternative might be to mount the bracket on a carefully crafted piece of wood, and then screw the wood to the wall.

 

[Chri5]

You will need to construct a earth tab for them, as a metal based unit the 2012 rules means it needs one.

Might be worth while hunting down someone who could weld in a small bracket with a lug attached for the earth point.

Although its not a must, could you let me see the whole unit. That will indicate the size, rough weight and the bulb type / volume that will be used.