Sanity Check - First Floor Lighting

[leeweedon]

I've just mapped out the lightingfor the first floor of my house.

(Apart from the mess I posted in the other thread, it all looks okay.)

Does this all look reasonable and okay?

Lighting Setup

• leeweedon
• 2 Jul 2013
• 1

 

[EFLImpudence]

Yes, the route doesn't really matter with a radial circuit.

One of the lights has no supply.

Not exactly sure what you are asking.

 

[leeweedon]

Yes, the route doesn't really matter with a radial circuit.

One of the lights has no supply.

Not exactly sure what you are asking.

I was just checking my loft isn't a fire waiting to happen! (o:

The light with no supply is connected to the downstairs circuit.

I was just a little taken back that it's not a complete loop...

Thanks for the reply.
Lee

 

[EFLImpudence]

No, that's fine, only socket circuits in Britain are loops (rings).

 

[riveralt]

I was just a little taken back that it's not a complete loop...

Not sure why - you will learn a lot from wiki about lighting circuits.
Start here:
//www.diynot.com/wiki/electrics:lighting:lighting_circuit_layouts

So as said your lighting is a radial circuit.
Your sockets will probably be a ring final circuit - but they can be radials as well.

 

[sparkwright]

Be sure to use 3 core and earth cable between the two 2-way switches.

Intrigued why you want the landing light on the downstairs circuit, possibly you wish to avoid having two circuits connected at the same switch position.

 

[leeweedon]

Be sure to use 3 core and earth cable between the two 2-way switches.

Intrigued why you want the landing light on the downstairs circuit, possibly you wish to avoid having two circuits connected at the same switch position.

Well, it's not how I want it, but the way it is set up... There is a switch at the top and bottom for the stairs for the landing light.

Thanks

Lee

 

[phatboy]

Be sure to use 3 core and earth cable between the two 2-way switches.

Intrigued why you want the landing light on the downstairs circuit, possibly you wish to avoid having two circuits connected at the same switch position.

Well, it's not how I want it, but the way it is set up... There is a switch at the top and bottom for the stairs for the landing light.

Thanks

Lee

Makes sense to me. If the upstairs circuit blows at night time, the landing light still works so you can see to get down the stairs safely.....

 

[RF Lighting]

What if the downstairs circuit blows at night time?

 

[leeweedon]

What if the downstairs circuit blows at night time?

How is it meant to be wired? What is standard practice?

 

[EFLImpudence]

What if the upstairs circuit blows at night time?

I agree with phatboy.

 

[phatboy]

What if the downstairs circuit blows at night time?

Light spilling from a bedroom will light the stairs enough to carefully go downstairs......

 

[seasickstevie]

As I understand it (don't know what reg.ref.) it's now a requirement - or perhaps just a recommendation - that lighting on each floor should not be limited to one circuit, so as to provide some lighting if a circuit trips out.

Seems sensible to me.

 

[JohnW2]

As I understand it (don't know what reg.ref.) it's now a requirement - or perhaps just a recommendation - that lighting on each floor should not be limited to one circuit, so as to provide some lighting if a circuit trips out. Seems sensible to me.

The requirement is to have an installation divided into circuits so as to 'minimise inconvenience and danger' should part of the installation be lost. It is no more specific than that. Many people feel that compliance with that requires the lighting on different floors to be protected by different devices (and ideally devices {particularly RCDs} different from those protecting the sockets on the same floor) - but I have never heard a suggestion (such as you have made) that there should be more than one lighting circuit per floor - no matter how 'sensible' it would be.

In the context of what was being discussed, I tend to have two-way switching (upstairs and downstairs) for both landing and hall lights (which are on different circuits, and different RCDs), so that one can always switch on some lighting of the stair area, whether one is upstairs or downstairs, if one circuit is lost (or one RCD trips).

Kind Regards, John

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Emergency lights are also sensible.