Reply With QuoteNearly all gu10 down lights now come with the fire rated can built onto the back
Im about to upgrade the loft insulation as its only 100mm thick. So just in the preparation stage, and trying to get things in the correct order. Im also considering fitting ceiling lights (GU10 6w halogen) do I need to fit downlight covers like 'Thermahood' so that I can lay the insulation over the top? or is this not required?
any help would be most welcome, cheers.
Nearly all gu10 down lights now come with the fire rated can built onto the back
Is there any reason you are fitting halogen instead of LED downlighters? I've been fitting 5W LEDs which are IP65, fire rated & can be covered by 300mm of insulation. They run (almost) cold so you can easliy hold them in your hand.
I was about to same the same. When I fitted the halogen down lighters in our house, c. 10 years ago, I put hoods on the ones in the top floor to stop the roof insulation causing an issue. If I was doing this now it would be LED so not really a problem.Originally Posted by Mr Pointy
Id avoid Halogen. LED is the way forward. Almost all energy goes towards producing light as opposed to the heat generated by halogen
Good point on LEDs, I just automatically thought Halogen as the kitchen lights are these.
So if I go for a 6w LED I wouldn't need any form of cover at the back between them and the insulation?
These are the bulbs ive just googled for instance....https://www.chingfordelectrical.co.u...3000k-gu10-6w/
My shop sells about 250 downlights a week nearly all are led type
Our most popular is a 5 w led fire rated downlight in chrome I sell it for £6.99 with 3 yr warranty
If you need any help or advice pm me
These are only 38 degree beam width. My advice is get wider angle bulbs. I tried LED bulbs ten years ago before going for halogen and the big problem was narrow beam width. However things have improved now.
e.g. dimmable and 60 degrees
https://www.downlights.co.uk/aurora-...-gu10-led.html
Last edited by solwisesteve; 11th September 2018 at 13:07.
Yes as above, LEDs all the way. I have 38 degrees myself and seem fine, do not give a spotlight appearance.
I suppose it depends upon the height of your ceilings and the spacing for the lamps.
Out of interest is it easy to replace halogen with LED lights? My house is 11 years old and some of the ceiling lights are failing. Rather than replace them as I go along with halogen lights can I easily replace them with LED ones? They're (presumably) standard size ceiling lights.
"A man of little significance"
if you want to dim LED’s then you should get a proper leading edge driver/dimmer to give the correct load and stop flickering. the varilight v-pro ones are very good.
Just going through this procedure.... Varilight are okay BUT I've sent two out of five back because they failed - symptom is the light goes to full on and won't dim or turn off - one even did this in the middle of the night! Also they very occasionally respond to the remote control for the telly - I have the flush fit ones with the built in remote control. I'll probably stick with the varilights though because their support has been excellent.
You might find that the quality of light (the "warmth") is a bit different but yes, you'll be able to get LED bulbs to replace them of the same general shape & size.
LED’s are available in daylight 5500kº, traditional incandescent 3600kº and in-between 4000kº i changed every lamp to 4000kº as i don't like that sickly warmth of traditional bulbs and how they change the colour of the walls and pictures on them. some people like the warmth though i prefer to use the colour of paint to do that and keep the light reasonably consistent between day and night.
In general the answer is yes, but it depends on a couple of details. If your existing lights are supplied from a transformer then there may be a bit of wiring work to replace them with direct connected 240v LED types. LED downlighters come in a couple of types: those that use a separate lamp fiting & bulb (the GU10 type) & those where the whole unit is in one piece (no separate bulb) The second type are becoming popular beacuse a single unit can easily be fire rated, IP65 (good for use in bathrooms) & insulation coverable. The properties of the GU10 type depends on the lamp fitting & may not be fire rated, for instance. This is an example of the integrated type:
https://www.downlights.co.uk/aurora-enlite-e8.html
The second issue is the size of the hole in the ceiling. Many need a 70mm hole but some ranges have reducers available:
https://www.downlights.co.uk/accesso...onverter-plate
See may post above about LED lamp types. You may need a hood if your fitting requires it.
Thank you! Time to do some homework...
"A man of little significance"
Thanks for the info.......so how about a terracotta plant pot as a hood? or is this utter bodge-ness?
As long as it's inflammable & big enough I'd say it was fine. You just need the cheapest method of spacing off the insulation really (the hole in the bottom might stop it counting as a fire hood though!).
https://www.downlights.co.uk/spot-cl...over-caps.html
That looks great and can be fitted post installation, cheers
Fire rated led gu10 units - job done. Light output is identical to a traditional bulb.
Id like to thank everyone for their input, cheers!
Fire rating isn't the issue in hand though - the question is about covering them with insulation. Many modern light fittings don't need spacers to keep the insulation off them.
My point is most led units don't require a cover, but insulation can be a pain of it gets into the open led units. Fire rated units are bout much more and are very convenient for thst reason.
I think you're conflating two different proerties of the light fittings. Fire rated fitments are sealed & are used to control smoke & fire propagation & yes they do prevent the insulation fibres dropping down. However, that doesn't necessarily mean you can lay the insulation on top of them without the lamp overheating, hence the need for spacers to create a void. Many modern fittings have much better thermal magagement which means the LED stays cool even if the insualtion is laid directly on top. Since it's temperture that kills LEDs, this is important for avoiding premature failure.
If the lights you are using are not rated as insulation coverable, then yes you need to use a loft cap (or Spot Clip depending on the design) if you cover them. This is true not only for halogens, many LED lights have the same requirement. Similarly, many LED lights are rated to be insulation covered as is. Some light fixtures may not perform well, or last well under one of these caps. The manufacturer for each fixture will specify the appropriate measures that need to be taken for ventilation/insulation in its product spec. The best approach is to follow it.
Here is some more detail.
https://www.downlights.co.uk/faq-can...wnlights-.html
https://www.electricalsafetyfirst.or...-downlighters/
One thing from my experience, if changing to a different type of lamp do every one in a room at the same time. Different GU10s can give an odd effect with different coloured light.
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