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Electrical Wiring Remodeling Lighting

Help on replacing recessed can light with flush mount

2 years ago

Looking for some advice. Im wanting to put a decorative flush mount fixture in place of this canned light. Problem is I can’t find an “old work” that will cinch down on the ceiling. I have no way of getting inside to add any 2x4 etc to add a box to. Any suggestions??

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Comments (4)

PRO
PPF.
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
I have no way of getting inside to add any 2x4 etc to add a box to.

No need to go inside. Remove existing fixture, slip 2x in from the bottom. It needs to span the hole with a couple of inches overlap.

Screw on each side of the hole (where screws will be hidden by new fixture) to hold the 2x.

Attach thin box to 2x. Attach new light to box.
Steve Grimes
2 years ago
PPF is right. Remove the recessed fixture and see if there are supports some distance to the left, right, front or back. Cut 2 x 4's to butt against any supports and then screw from below. You'll need to plan where the screws will go to accomodate the screws you need for the new fixture.
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Thanks Cheerpeople. :) I went out to the new house and they were painting, so it was looking like a "real" house now, which gave me a much better perspective. Armed with tape measure and my circle of cardboard, I determined the diameter is fine. But as justgotabeme was saying, what surrounds it makes a difference. The lights would be next to a short wall from the ceiling because the room behind it has pony walls and open walls. But the "pony" wall continues at the ceiling and comes down 17" ish. That means the semi-mount fixture would hang almost as low as the end of that wall, and I'm afraid it will look too crowded. So I think the flush-mount is the way to go. I really do like the semi-flush one, but this area is adjacent to the foyer, which is going to have two very large chandeliers, and I don't want it to be so completely busy with multiple conflicting hanging fixtures that compete with each other! Thanks everyone, I really appreciate all the help.
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IMO the most critical aspect of residential lighting design is the lighting of walls, kitchen counters and cabinets and the light quality and distribution of wafer and giant gimbal units is unfocused and disappointing. There are few affordable adjustable-angle and wall-washer recessed fixtures other than the small gimbal, elbow and eyeball fixtures that extend below the ceiling. Recessed lighting began with store displays and couched accent lighting is still its best use but today's open space designs and giant TV's have reduced the opportunity to create dramatic focus points in a house but that just makes those few opportunities more critical. For a tight budget the most affordable 4" retrofit adjustable LED I've found is the Nora Cobalt with a Haze reflector that matches the Cobalt Click 2 downlight. Its has a Cree COB LED and is Title 24 compliant for excellent color rendering at the price of a retrofit PAR 20.
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PRO
myricarchitect
2 years ago
Sorry I did not watch the electrician do this, but we covered up several 6” recessed lights from the 1980s with either flush mount large enough to cover the holes, and some replaced with pendants or semi-flush. It didn’t take the electrician long & was a non-issue supporting the new fixture and was not an unusual request for them.

I had some ”conversion kits” for recessed-to-surface mt on hand just in case, the electrician only used one where the new pendant fixture was smaller than the gaping 6” hole and it avoided drywall patching.
wdccruise
2 years ago
Westinghouse 0101100 Recessed Lighting Converter

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