'66

Week before last I had to convert three recessed cans into surface mount chandeliers. The house is an 1879 Queen Ann lake "cottage" complete with turret, so the medallions used to cover the old six inch openings harken back to the plaster ceiling detail that may very well have been over the original gas lights. The owner had selected twelve pound brass chain hung units that also carried the gas light motif.

I took the recessed trim and the lamp housing out, complete, but left the j-box and pan in place. I removed the cable from the recessed j-box and reconnected it to a deep Reiker fan brace box. I nipped away enough of the positioning feet to allow the j-box to drop down flush with the finished surface of the medallion, screwed the brace into the joists and finished it off.

I also keep two or three copies of every depth plaster ring that I can lay my hands on. In a pinch, I'll drill and tap a ground screw in the throat of it to bond it if I'm extending off a plastic box.

If my customer gives me a medallion that doesn't fit the canopy of the fixture they supply, I bill'em for the time it takes to coax a fit out of the hardware that'll suit them, or else have them get the right parts.

As for the Kichler unit, whoever thought up that assembly, never installed one. [Linked Image]

Al Hildenbrand