LittleTyke
DIY
- Reaction score
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My house, built 2004, is fitted with over 30 downlights upstairs and downstairs. When I moved in, all the lights had halogen bulbs. Several years ago I replaced them with 3.4W LED bulbs and the cost saving was noticeable over a few months, especially in winter. However, the LEDs required LED drivers as the old halogen transformers were not suitable. I purchased enough LED drivers and set to work. To replace the transformer with the driver you must remove the downlight body from the ceiling. Each lamp body pushes into a 65mm diameter hole in the plasterboard. They are easy to pull out. When you pull one out, the cable comes down, too, and it is very straightforward to swap the devices. MAKE SURE YOU HAVE THE RELEVANT MAINS CIRCUIT ISOLATED AT THE CONSUMER UNIT!
This is a simple job for all downlights except one. This pesky exception is 4.5m above the stairwell and is inaccessible without a tall ladder. But a ladder would need to be rested on the stairs somehow. Potentially very risky, especially if you're doing the work on your own. But this lamp IS accessible from the loft! You just need to clamber up into the loft and your "rogue" lamp is sitting there in the plasterboard. You can push it downwards and out of the 65mm hole. Once out, the cable is long enough to reach the bulb and driver from the landing. Then you can replace the bulb, transformer or driver easily.
The problem comes when it's time to push the lamp body back through the ceiling hole. Can't be done! You don't have a long enough reach from the landing!
It's because of the (in my opinion, rather stupid) design of these downlights (see upper photo below). Each downlight is equipped with two butterfly springs. Each spring has a long leg and a short leg. The principle of the design is that you push the lamp through the hole and the short legs spring back against the hole to hold the lamp in position. On the other side of the hole the long legs collapse down onto the plasterboard and the whole ridiculous design is now firmly in place. But you have to push very firmly on the lamp body, because you're pushing against the short legs of the springs, which are quite strong. Without being directly beneath the lamp, e.g. on a precarious ladder, you cannot push the lamp back in!
My solution is as follows. Get a replacement lamp body with modern, single-legged spring clips (see lower photo below). These spring clips are of a different design and simply spring down again the plasterboard to hold the lamp. Then you can assemble the lamp body and cable - it's dangling down out of the ceiling hole, remember! - go back up into the loft and gingerly pull the cable upwards and the lamp body with it. You will already have drawn the two spring clips together and put a cable tie around them to keep them vertical as the lamp is slid through the hole. As soon as the lamp is seated against the plasterboard, grab your sidecutters and snip though the cable tie. Immediately the spring clips spring down against the plasterboard and you can breathe again! The lamp is secure. First thing then to do is switch the power on to check that the lamp lights up.
The top photo shows the existing fixture with the butterfly spring clips.
The lower picture is the new fixture with single legged spring clips.
Final thoughts: Some ceiling holes (in other houses) are, I'm told, larger or smaller than 65mm, so you need to check in your particular case. Note, too, that the single legged clips do not hold the lamp as firmly in the ceiling, but these GU10/MR16 downlights are very lightweight.
This is a simple job for all downlights except one. This pesky exception is 4.5m above the stairwell and is inaccessible without a tall ladder. But a ladder would need to be rested on the stairs somehow. Potentially very risky, especially if you're doing the work on your own. But this lamp IS accessible from the loft! You just need to clamber up into the loft and your "rogue" lamp is sitting there in the plasterboard. You can push it downwards and out of the 65mm hole. Once out, the cable is long enough to reach the bulb and driver from the landing. Then you can replace the bulb, transformer or driver easily.
The problem comes when it's time to push the lamp body back through the ceiling hole. Can't be done! You don't have a long enough reach from the landing!
It's because of the (in my opinion, rather stupid) design of these downlights (see upper photo below). Each downlight is equipped with two butterfly springs. Each spring has a long leg and a short leg. The principle of the design is that you push the lamp through the hole and the short legs spring back against the hole to hold the lamp in position. On the other side of the hole the long legs collapse down onto the plasterboard and the whole ridiculous design is now firmly in place. But you have to push very firmly on the lamp body, because you're pushing against the short legs of the springs, which are quite strong. Without being directly beneath the lamp, e.g. on a precarious ladder, you cannot push the lamp back in!
My solution is as follows. Get a replacement lamp body with modern, single-legged spring clips (see lower photo below). These spring clips are of a different design and simply spring down again the plasterboard to hold the lamp. Then you can assemble the lamp body and cable - it's dangling down out of the ceiling hole, remember! - go back up into the loft and gingerly pull the cable upwards and the lamp body with it. You will already have drawn the two spring clips together and put a cable tie around them to keep them vertical as the lamp is slid through the hole. As soon as the lamp is seated against the plasterboard, grab your sidecutters and snip though the cable tie. Immediately the spring clips spring down against the plasterboard and you can breathe again! The lamp is secure. First thing then to do is switch the power on to check that the lamp lights up.
The top photo shows the existing fixture with the butterfly spring clips.
The lower picture is the new fixture with single legged spring clips.
Final thoughts: Some ceiling holes (in other houses) are, I'm told, larger or smaller than 65mm, so you need to check in your particular case. Note, too, that the single legged clips do not hold the lamp as firmly in the ceiling, but these GU10/MR16 downlights are very lightweight.
