Ceiling-mounted lighting in an apartment
By chulleyI want to have a chandelier over my dining room table--floor lamps just don't give enough light where I need it: on the table--, but I live in an apartment so I can't run wiring through the wall to the ceiling. When I was a kid, we had a light which hung from a hook in the ceiling, then the wire (wrapped in a cheasy 1970s chain) hung down to the electrical outlet near the baseboard. I can't seem to find anything like this in the major stores. Any suggestions--i.e. online stores that sell these or laymen's instructions to convert a normal ceiling-mount chandelier into a plug-in version?
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thelivingbarbie
I have one of those Urban Outfitters light and they are nice.
But if you find a conventional light you want to mount it is pretty easy. I have done it a couple of times. If you get a new fixture it will come with a ceiling plate, if not you will have to be creatve. Here's what you need: wall anchors or toggle bolts (depending on ceiling material and weight of lamp), zip cord of appropraite length, wire nuts, a plug, a switch (get the one that attaches right to the cable, not the kind that goes inside the wall) and somecable clips that nail into the wall. Some nice person at your hardware store should be able to show you how these things work.
For tools you need: screwdrivers, wire cutters, wire stripper, hammer.
Split and strip one end of the zip cord and attach to lamp wiring with wire nuts (just twis together and screw on). Attach the plate to the ceiling with screws and anchors or toggle bolts then hang the light. Run the cord along the ceiling and wall and attach using cable clips. When you get to the appropraite spot, attach the switch. Continue to the outlet and attach the plug with a little slack.
Hope that is helpful!
hypoxicboy
hypoxicboy
Okay! I just found this site this morning, and I'm very excited I can help. I found a chandelier that plugs into a normal wall socket. It's from Urban Outfitters. I'm not sure where you live, but I know there are UOs in the UK, USA and Canada.
The Chandelier is here; very contemporary, might I add :)
http://www.urbanoutfitters.com/urban/catalog/productdetail.jsp?itemdescription=true&itemCount=8&id=12635769&parentid=A_FURN_LIGHTING&sortProperties=+product.marketingPriority,-product.startDate&navCount=3&navAction=poppush&color=11
The "Light kit" is here
http://www.urbanoutfitters.com/urban/catalog/productdetail.jsp?cross-sell=true&color=10&navAction=poppush&navCount=3&parentid=A_FURN_LIGHTING&id=12302139
Hope you like this :) The good news is, if you get sick of your chandelier, you can easily paint it and get new life out of it :)
- Ben
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