You don't always have to go to a professional to carry out small electrical work at home. Fixing a chandelier is one of them. And this is especially true when there is already a hook on the ceiling. We will show you how you should go about it.
Take time to prepare
As with any operation, you will first need to have all the necessary tools to carry out the operation . A stepladder will be part of this, as will the electrician's screwdriver, the current tester, the wire stripper, the cutting pliers and the electrician's screwdriver.
And, since a hook is already in place, you probably won't need dowels and a hanging hook. Don't forget, however, the chandelier and its bulb.
Remove the old chandelier
Your life is worth more than anything else. So, even if you are used to small electrical jobs, avoid working without having cut off the power. For this cut, choose between removing the fuse in the room where the installation will be carried out and interrupting the general power supply by activating the circuit breaker .
After checking the effectiveness of this interruption, you can move on to the next step, that of uninstalling the old chandelier and its bulb. The electrical installation and the hook should, however, be left as is, because you will need them for the rest of the operation.
Easier to install when there is already a hook
If you have come to this page, it is very likely that a DCL box is already in place. This suggests that your installation is more recent. It should be remembered that connecting ceiling lights to DCL center boxes or lighting connection devices is a requirement of the NF 15-100 standard.
This requirement mainly concerns construction and major renovations. On this box there is a special terminal block dedicated to the connection of the light fixture. It is associated with a self-locking cover which is responsible for securing the assembly. You will not need any screws or holes.
Installation begins by opening the cover and removing the DCL socket. It will then be necessary to unhook the connection plug and open the plug housing. The wires will then have to be slightly exposed before connecting the luminaire to the intended terminal block.
This connection must be made in full compliance with the conventions: phase in L, neutral in N and earth. Since the subject that interests us mainly concerns recent installations, we find it useful to recall the essentialness of the earth connection, while this is not always the case for old installations. The connection of the wires is made in the plug.
The operation ends with:
- Clipping the DCL socket plug into the housing cover before closing.
- Hanging the chandelier.
- Connecting the plug.
- Reassembling the cable cover to hide the wires.
Wiring and installing the bulb to finish it all off
At this stage of the operation, you have done most of the work. The actual installation has been completed. The device will still not be able to fulfill its main purpose without the installation of a bulb. The latter is available in different powers on the market.
There is, however, a ceiling that should not be exceeded when it comes to chandeliers. Be sure to respect it when choosing your bulb. Also make sure that the latter is adapted to the purpose and use of the room to be lit.
Respecting this power ceiling is also a way to avoid damaging the base or even causing a fire. Bulbs that get very hot can be interesting for lighting, but are not suitable for a chandelier made of fabric, paper or other flammable material .
It may be that there is no electrical supply to the ceiling intended to support the chandelier . This should not cause you to abandon the project. In fact, a connection to an outlet or another light fixture is always possible. The cables can then be "dragged" under a duct to the intended location.
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