How difficult is it to install recessed lighting?

Question

We want to install recessed lighting in our kitchen ourselves and I am going back and forth regarding doing it ourselves or hiring someone. My brother in law will be assisting my husband if we go at it alone and while he is good and has experience at doing stuff himself (mainly construction), he admits he has never dealt with electrical stuff but he and my spouse insist they can figure it out. We have a seven year old home, the attic is above the kitchen and there is an exisiting light source. Any opinions??

Answer 1

Having access from above (with the attic being above your kitchen) is very helpful.



You also said there's an existing light source: I'm going to assume there's a power source in the ceiling. If so, you can probably handle doing the job yourself.



First, you'll need to turn off the power for the area you are working on. Use a drywall saw to cut openings for the recessed lights (a drywall circle cutter is a very helpful tool for this as well - especially if you are installing several fixtures).



Make sure to locate the ceiling joists before you cut the holes - you need the recessed lights to go between the joists. An electronic stud finder can help with that. Be careful that you do NOT cut through any existing cables in the ceiling.



Here come the electrical connections: You'll need to insert the cable from your ceiling into your recessed fixture's junction box and fasten it with a cable clamp. This is where your product installation instructions will come in handy. Remember to match the colors: the fixture's black wire should be connect to the black wire in your ceiling; the white wire should be connected to white, etc.



Installing the housing, baffle and trim are a piece of cake once you have the electrical connections set up: consult your manufacturer instructions for this.



Good luck! You can always call an electrician if it gets to be too much to handle, but sometimes it's fun to try the DIY route.

Answer 2

Easy Recessed Lighting

Answer 3

Follow these procedures: 1. Make sure there is enough room between the kitchen ceiling and the bottom of the roof deck for the recessed fixture to fit. 2. If you are installing the fixture in insulation, make sure you buy and IC rated fixture. 3. Locate all the studs in the ceilings. 4. Mark all of the recessed light locations using thumbtacks located between the studs. 5. Use a template to mark the holes you will cut. If you buy 6" aperture downlights, then it will be a 6" diameter hole. 6. Cutting the holes with a keyhole saw, always do the cutting on the upstroke because if you cut as you pull the saw down toward you, you will pull ceiling texture down with it. 7. The lights will come with stud hangers, so when you install them, spread out the hangers and nail them to the joists. The rest is wiring. If your ceiling is 10-12 feet, you should space your lights at about 10 feet on center. A good lamp (bulb) to use would be a 100 watt R20 on a dimmer. You may also consider an equivalent 26 watt QuadTube dimmable compact fluorescent.

Answer 4

Hey there Newmomcs! I’m Blake from The Home Depot. I love recessed lighting because it really adds to the décor of the room and it is generally easy to install. In my store I have helped plenty of people with this project.



If there is already an electrical fixture in the ceiling it is (normally) just a matter of daisy-chaining your cans off of that single source. You will of course have to check the draw on that lighting circuit to see how much amperage is available.



However, if your husband has never dealt with home electrical perhaps he should do some research before diving in, we have a wiring 1-2-3 book in our stores that is very informative and would give him a strong foundation to work off of. Or perhaps your brother in law has worked with an electrical contractor in the past that would be willing to come over and help if there is a free dinner involved (that has worked on me a few times).



As always before you start any lighting project where wiring will be changed behind the walls you should contact your local building authority for approval on your design, and to see if there are any local code issues that you might run into.



I hope this helps Newmomcs, good luck with your project!



-Blake

Answer 5

This Site Might Help You.



RE:

How difficult is it to install recessed lighting?

We want to install recessed lighting in our kitchen ourselves and I am going back and forth regarding doing it ourselves or hiring someone. My brother in law will be assisting my husband if we go at it alone and while he is good and has experience at doing stuff himself (mainly construction), he...

Answer 6

Do some research first for the electrical part and then you can follow these step by step instructions on how to install recessed lighting in a kitchen: http://www.miconstruguia.com/en/how-to-install-recessed-lighting/

Answer 7

Personally I wouldn't fit recess lighting as they have to be vented into the roof cavity and thats a source of heat loss.I have lived in a house with recess lighting and it was very hard to keep warm in the winter.

Answer 8

It's not terribly hard. First you have to cut out the sheet rock in the ceiling, but be careful not to cut into any wiring that may be above it. There is usually a template or instructions on how big to cut the hole. The fixture should have a bracket that you can nail or screw into the ceiling joists to hold it in place. Then, it's just a matter of wiring it in. It's messy just because of all the sheet rock dust, but again, not really that hard.