Outdoor lights install

[MugabesDeadCat]

I've supposedly got an electrician to be coming to install 8 outdoor down lights on the walls around the house, running conduit between them.

He made no mention of lifting floors or cutting ceilings. Anyway, he's been giving me the run around so I got another electrician to give me a quote for it. The second one says he will need to get a neutral to the outdoor lights as it's likely there's none in the light switch, and said he'd need to lift floorboards or cut a channel in ceiling to run a neutral from the living room light to the switch which will mean chasing the wall down to the switch in the living room.

This got me wondering about the first electrician, and is it possible for him to wire them without the neutral or will he definitely need one? As in, is it possible he is going to to a hatchet job and leave me with a potential issue? I'd rather bin the first guy off if that's going to be the case.

 

[Murdochcat]

Unless either of these sparks investigated the switches and / or lights we are only guessing

You won’t have any lights without a neutral

Maybe get another spark round to take a look in the new year ?

 

[MugabesDeadCat]

Unless either of these sparks investigated the switches and / or lights we are only guessing

You won’t have any lights without a neutral

Maybe get another spark round to take a look in the new year ?

I've changed the switches in living room and recall there's only a com and L1 in the light switch. Sparkie number two did say he didn't think it would have one given the age of the house.

Sparkie 1 now says he can come at weekend but I'm worried he's going to bodge something

 

[Murdochcat]

Sparkie 1 now says he can come at weekend but I'm worried he's going to bodge something

working at the weekend at Xmas - sounds iffy to say the very least - is this a cash deal?

 

[andy_nufc]

I've changed the switches in living room and recall there's only a com and L1 in the light switch. Sparkie number two did say he didn't think it would have one given the age of the house.

This is the key. I know in my own house that the upstairs lights are like yours, with only a line and switched line in the lightswitches, and everything is looped in the ceiling roses, including the neutrals. Instead in my downstairs, the looping is done behind the switches. My theory as to why they differ is becuase all the upstairs light wiring is accessible via the loft just by moving things and without having to saw through the ceiling/floorboards.

 

[mrsplodge]

Could be that the first was going to run a new outdoor lighting circuit from the consumer unit and the second was going to take the feed of the existing downstairs circuit. If the lights are going all around the house, then it's possible there'd be an easy way to get a new circuit from the CU as it'll probably be on or close to an external wall. Or it might have been possible to run a feed from the upstairs lights, through the eaves and down the wall. Talk to the first electrition and ask if they're installing a new circuit or where they are taking the feed from.

 

[MugabesDeadCat]

working at the weekend at Xmas - sounds iffy to say the very least - is this a cash deal?

I say weekend, I meant Friday

 

[MugabesDeadCat]

Could be that the first was going to run a new outdoor lighting circuit from the consumer unit and the second was going to take the feed of the existing downstairs circuit. If the lights are going all around the house, then it's possible there'd be an easy way to get a new circuit from the CU as it'll probably be on or close to an external wall. Or it might have been possible to run a feed from the upstairs lights, through the eaves and down the wall. Talk to the first electrition and ask if they're installing a new circuit or where they are taking the feed from.

Yeah the CU is under the stairs in the centre of the house. Though there is a route outside because I had an EV charger fitted a few weeks ago.