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#180049 08/10/08 11:50 PM
Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 60
C
Charles Offline OP
Member
I have a bit of an issue... I fried an eighteenth century rococo crystal chandelier and had to take the whole thing down. Picture spending two hours taking crystal off of a six foot long frame, lowering the chandelier down from an eighteen foot ceiling with two guys holding a rope and then twelve dishwasher loads of crystal.

I have rewired the chandelier with three tiers on separate switches. Top tier on blue, middle tier (candles) on red and bottom on black. Originally three mangled lines of lamp wired snaked down to this chandelier... from inside of the ceiling. I am going to have to find the source from which those conductors come in order to deactivate and remove them.

We are going to run 12/4 to the chandelier but there is no room within the chandelier to make the connections and a box cannot be installed without destroying the original plaster ceiling and medallion, although it is not that difficult to fish to that location. How do I make these connections without a fixture box? The chain is bolted to a stub through a very, very small hole and there is no flush canopy. The chain has a silk sleeve over it.

Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 9,923
Likes: 32
G
Member
Can you extend the Romex down inside the chandelier somewhere and splice it there?


Greg Fretwell
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 7,381
Likes: 7
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What Greg said above embelished:
MC/NMC (depending on wiring method required) secured to the side of the chain, which the silk cover conceals; to a splice point within/on the chandelier. You may have to hunt for a suitable (decorative) splice box thru a fixture specialty shop. I had a similar situation with a antique French chandelier years back, and used that scenario succesfully.



John
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 138
P
Member
how about a remote control, like a ceiling fan controller, low, med, and hi would be three switch legs to the lights sets.

Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 60
C
Charles Offline OP
Member
Greg;

Romex cannot be extended down into the chandelier to make connections. There are two main hubs and you cannot access one without taking apart the whole chandelier (which can't be done while hanging) so the wiring has been extended up to the top.

John;

This is what I was hoping could be done. There is a large inverted crystal bell at the top of the chandelier that could house a splice box.

PE;

We don't want to do anything with remote controls, etc. They are always difficult to troubleshoot in this place because we have steel I-beams in this place as well as a huge (lead!) water tank above this room which makes cell phones and wireless devices useless.

Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 40
J
Member
Originally Posted by Charles
..well as a huge (lead!) water tank above this room which makes cell phones and wireless devices useless.


Can you get at the floor of this room? I was thinking that maybe you could install some sort of a junction box in the floor directly above and terminate your 12/4 in there.

Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 7,381
Likes: 7
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Charles:
I've seen a few crystal bells, etc., used as splice cans. Some use the crystal 'hub' to splice the arms together. If you're against the ceiling & the crystal has enough space, & fits up tight....go for it. Plaster ceiling? Firecaulk the opening around your cable penetration. Then again, with the water tank upstairs....


John
Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 60
C
Charles Offline OP
Member
JC;

The room in which this chandelier is located is about 2.5 times longer than it is wide. Above it are three rooms each occupying about a third of the length. The chandelier is below the middle room, which is finished, and the tank room is the end room.

Opening the door to the tank room, there is about a foot and a half between the tank and the door and the tank has a small ledge in front of it that you have to shimmy across while holding on to the tank to traverse the width of the area. There is no way to reach the chandelier because the area is too tight to get down in and travel under the middle room to install a junction box. Plus, the plaster ceiling is historic and is done in the rococo style, which means tons of decorative arabesques, vines, flowers, cherubs, etc. It cannot be cut into. There is also three feet of construction in some areas so it is not worth cutting through the original third floor hardwood to access this hole with a chain going through.

John;

The chandelier is about six feet long but the ceiling is over sixteen feet up. The upper bell is nowhere near the ceiling. The chandelier hangs about four or five feet down from the ceiling.

Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 40
J
Member
Charles,

You mention that the fixture was originally wired with lamp cord, but where did the lamp cord terminate to the building's branch circuit wiring? Is the lamp cord ran through the walls and ceiling to the switches?


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