Fibre optic ceiling lights

[Davisss]

Greetings everyone. I have a customer who is hell bent on having fibre optic lights in the ceiling in his bathroom but there will be no access from above. I haven't fitted them before but have looked into it and it seems you need to get above to poke the lights through. Also the light source would need to be accessable which it won't be in the ceiling.
Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Dave

 

[ipf]

Tell him to put a trap door in.

 

[Silly Sausage]

He's got 2 choices, I reckon...
Rip the existing ceiling down and refit with optics, or
a lower 2nd one.

and a plasterer.

 

[Guitarist]

I fitted 180 of these in my daughter's bedroom ceiling so she could have proper stars.
Looks great but 180 x 1mm holes drilled, fed, and connected up took quite some time

Btw, yes, you need access from above or a false ceiling to create access from above...

 

[topquark]

Think it was on one of the DIY shows (DIY SOS?) I saw it done with a suspended board from the ceiling. Looked quite effective, not good in a bathroom though!

 

[ipf]

I fitted 180 of these in my daughter's bedroom ceiling so she could have proper stars.
Looks great but 180 x 1mm holes drilled, fed, and connected up took quite some time


That's what I call spoiling. lol!

 

[johnboy6083]

Fibre optic lights look the dogs. I've fitted them in water features, as the light source can be located in a remote plantroom.
In this instance, does the heat generated by the light source not cause problems. The ones I've used had integral fans and could not be enclosed.

 

[JD6400]

I fitted 180 of these in my daughter's bedroom ceiling so she could have proper stars.
Looks great but 180 x 1mm holes drilled, fed, and connected up took quite some time

Btw, yes, you need access from above or a false ceiling to create access from above...

Have got exactly the same in my daughters bedroom , It took two attempts to get them right as i originally spaced them far to close .
I put them in to make a big swirl and then got a local artist to paint a swirling multi coloured Galaxy around them , i have also put them on a remote controlled ceiling fan controller so they can be turned on and off from this , as well as having the ability to now dim them it also allows speed control of the motor that makes them change colour or twinkle .

As for the OP I would say that a false ceiling is the way to go and definitely allow enough space for heat dissipation as the one i have has a standard 12v halogen down light lamp in it and it does throw out a lot of heat , and I would not recommend them as the only source of light as they are not that bright .

 

[ipf]

First time used fibre optics in a top restaurant about 15 years ago. Cocky demonstrator came in suited and booted to show us how to terminate. Completed it using a small blowtorch then picked it up and ended up with it welded to his palm. I'll give him his due, he kept on smiling amidst the tears, but shot off pretty sheepish. Top notch effect with the colour changing fibre though.

Agree with the false ceiling btw.

 

[nickblake]

if any one has been to clinton cards in the trafford center the fibre optics look cool there i didnt put them in but did the maintainance on them had a projector for them so they changed colour well cool they also had them in the floor to which i did install took for ever

 

[Guitarist]

Have got exactly the same in my daughters bedroom , It took two attempts to get them right as i originally spaced them far to close .
I put them in to make a big swirl and then got a local artist to paint a swirling multi coloured Galaxy around them , i have also put them on a remote controlled ceiling fan controller so they can be turned on and off from this , as well as having the ability to now dim them it also allows speed control of the motor that makes them change colour or twinkle .

As for the OP I would say that a false ceiling is the way to go and definitely allow enough space for heat dissipation as the one i have has a standard 12v halogen down light lamp in it and it does throw out a lot of heat , and I would not recommend them as the only source of light as they are not that bright .

Very nice dp. The kit I bought uses a bank of 4 LED's which can be set to alternate, creating a twinkle effect if you place the fibres correctly. The beauty of the LED systems over the motorised lamp units is obviously that they run cool. I used a pullcord feeding a socket in the loft (for lighting only) which I plug the transformer into. I like the Galaxy effect you mention...my effort was a more modest affair. I did consider placing the fibres in constellations, but it would have been far too involved for the time scale I had

 

[JD6400]

The led option sounds a lot better !
If I get a chance when i am back from work latter this week I will try and upload some pic's .

 

[Guitarist]

The led option sounds a lot better !
If I get a chance when i am back from work latter this week I will try and upload some pic's .

Please do, I would like to see that

 

[Davisss]

Guys, thanks very much for your feedback. As i thought he is gonna need some form of ceiling access to make this work. It will be an interesting conversation as he is pretty rich and used to getting his own way!

 

[Guitarist]

Guys, thanks very much for your feedback. As i thought he is gonna need some form of ceiling access to make this work. It will be an interesting conversation as he is pretty rich and used to getting his own way!

Stand your ground. They only get their own way because people feel intimidated by money and back down. State what you are willing to do and be confident. He will respect you much more afterwards (unless he orders you off his land)