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#138623 09/16/03 04:49 PM
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 7,520
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pauluk Offline OP
Member
Posted for Texas Ranger:

Quote
Here's finally some pics from my famous DIY book.

Pic #1: How to secure the loose strands of cloth covered flex.
[Linked Image]


#2: How to splice extension cords.
Step 1: cut conductors to appropriate length.
Step 2: Strip conductors.
Step 3: First connection, wrap with single strand.
Step 4: Solder connection.
Step 5: Wrap with tape, optionally pull a thin rubber hose over the
connection instead of a final tape wrap.
[Linked Image]


#3: How to hook up a light fixture
1 Mounting hook
2 Ceiling rose
3 Phase conductor of feeder wire
5 fastening screw of ceiling rose
6 metal pipe keeping the light fixture hanging straight and supporting
the weight of the shade.

[Linked Image]

As you can see there are just 2 wire ends sticking out of the ceiling,
no boxes or else.

Copyright 1958 Knaur publishing.

[This message has been edited by pauluk (edited 09-16-2003).]

#138624 09/17/03 07:27 AM
Joined: Dec 2001
Posts: 2,498
T
Member
Thanks for posting them Paul!

#138625 09/17/03 11:31 AM
Joined: Aug 2002
Posts: 1,691
S
Member
Ranger

Now I understand what you were talking about when you said fixtures got hung from a hook in the ceiling...

Looks neater than what I was imagining (no canopy covering the terminal block).

#138626 09/17/03 11:51 AM
Joined: Dec 2002
Posts: 1,253
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djk Offline
Member
I would have thought that's how all fixtures are hung ? Over here in ireland most heavy pendent fixtures are fitted that way. Particularly heavy glass/brass ones.

Normal cheap n' cheerful lampshades attach to the usual bulb holder ring and other lamps use various combinations of screws to hold them into the ceiling.

As for ceilng roses, they're not always used. Often a a choc block in a chocbox in the ceiling behind the fitting is all that's required but it's not unusual to simply have 2 cables coming to the back of the fitting and joining them with a strip connector.

Lighting is almost always individual cables here.

#138627 09/17/03 01:05 PM
Joined: Aug 2002
Posts: 1,691
S
Member
Well...the British use ceiling boxes just like we do for those regular up against the ceiling fixtures, i think. Except that I believe the fixtures sometimes have an integrated connector block, right Paul? Or is the connector block a part of the ceiling box?

This fixture is sold through one certain British electrical supply house:

[Linked Image from tlc-direct.co.uk]

The version sold in the States comes with pigtails coming out the top that get spliced into the wires in the box. Then machine-bolts passed through holes the tin canopy (that holds the lampholder) screw into threaded tabs in the ceiling box.

You certainly need a box for this most basic of fixtures:

[img]http://images.lowes.com/product/032664/032664192104.jpg?wid=158&cvt=jpeg[/img]

A long time back they used to sell shades that would clip to this sort of lampholder itself. I haven't seen these anywhere now. The only thing I've seen for them are those yellow plastic bulb cages (and the wire versions).

Now they sell also these cheesy things that have a spring-action clip that grabs the bulb itself.

Some chandeliers and ceiling fans hand from fan-rated ceiling box. These use a horizontal brace that attaches between two joists so it's stronger than a regular box with a bracket.

"Swag" lamps hang from a chain onto a hook and then the connections are made to a nearby ceiling box (covered by a tin canopy). I believe the same applies for heavy chandeliers.

One thing we don't have, that I LOVE are these cheezy things that you can attach these paper shades to:

[Linked Image from tlc-direct.co.uk]

Of course I could make one myself using a ceiling canopy, strain relief & cord grip bushing, stump of flex and a lampholder scrapped from a table lamp. [Linked Image]

Behold the finished product:

[Linked Image from tlc-direct.co.uk]

Sorry for all the pix.

#138628 09/17/03 02:32 PM
Joined: Dec 2001
Posts: 2,498
T
Member
Said hook is almost always there, cheapest way to get light is to take some flex, a lampholder and a choc block. Tie a knot into the cord and hang it over the hook. Then hook up the "fixture" with the choc block. Maybe add a chinese paper shade. In old houses you'll often find the hooks screwed into the plugs of the old gas lines. Solid as a rock because the gas lines are usually tightly secured to a joist. However, some time ago there were quite heavy fixtures. my aunt once offered us a few old ones that were nearly too heavy for me to lift (I guess around 50kg or so), and ugly as hell.
Fixtures that go directly to the ceiling are usually screwed to the lathes or drywall, connections are made inside the fixture (either a choc block or the feeder wires are sleeved with silicone tubing and hooked up to the light socket directly).
The last picture looks pretty much like an ordinary Ikea fixture you'd find in at least half of Vienna's houses.

#138629 09/17/03 03:21 PM
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Posts: 7,520
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pauluk Offline OP
Member
Quote
Well...the British use ceiling boxes just like we do for those regular up against the ceiling fixtures, i think.
In a good commercial system, maybe, but you won't find them in most domestic flush-fitting installations, I'm afraid.

Quote
Except that I believe the fixtures sometimes have an integrated connector block, right Paul?
Correct. The little 3-terminal "choc-block" connectors are found screwed to the upper side of some fittings, with the fixture wires already terminated in them. All you have to do is connect the cables from the ceiling.

The arrangement in the third diagram from the DIY book is pretty much what you'll see in British homes for similar types of light fixtures. It all seems very crude compared to American wiring.

The ceiling rose/flex/lampholder combination in Sven's post is the standard "el cheapo" light, as fitted on many contract houses where other lights have not been specified.

One problem that arises in modern houses is that the ceiling rose often acts as a loop-in junction box, i.e. there are three cables entering it: Power in, power fed through to the next light, and a switch cable.

When somebody decides to take down the original ceiling rose and install a fancier light fitting, they're faced with what to do about all the wires. The results are not always pretty, as I'm sure our other U.K. members will confirm.



[This message has been edited by pauluk (edited 09-17-2003).]


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