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Post by Tumbleweed on Sept 12, 2007 1:05:16 GMT -6
The one thing I totally hate in my kitchen is the ugly fluorescent light. It is probably the cheapest one they (previous, previous owners) could find. Well, it died today and I can't say I'm sorry. I tried new tubes but no luck. I really, really don't want to replace it with another fluorescent light. I want recessed lighting but I am pretty sure putting them in this old house would be difficult and expensive since it is plaster. Gosh, I wish I was better with electrical things. I know I can put a new fluorescent light fixture in but cut holes in the ceiling through plaster and plaster boards for recessed lighting and then thread the wiring correctly. Nope, I don't think so.....
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Post by barb on Sept 12, 2007 9:34:40 GMT -6
Can't you just use the wiring for the florescent fixture once you take that down? I realize you couldn't do recessed unless you only did one light, but what about those strip lights that now come in cool shapes? Chandeliers are popular for kitchens now also.
You could contact an electrician to find out what would be involved and what he would charge. That isn't something I would want to mess with. I don't mind changing a light but rewiring is scary to me.
This is just a thought but would you put the lights in the same area as the old one so you only had to go between one set of studs? Maybe you could attach the new wires to the old one you are pulling out and it would string them for you, then you could just put the holes where you want them and pull each individual wire down through it?
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Post by Tumbleweed on Sept 12, 2007 12:19:31 GMT -6
Barb, If I am to do recessed lighting I need at least 4: One above the stove, one above the shorter expanse of counter, one above the sink and then one on the longer run of counter on the side of the sink, I think..... The blue long rectangle in the picture is where the current light is. I know I can't afford a electrician to do it right now. Oh, how I wish I was brave enough to attempt the recessed lights. I did have an electrician take a look at one time and he said he wasn't sure he'd be able to do it without making a mess of holes trying to find the studs not to mention plaster tends to crack and crumble. But you do have me thinking....maybe there is a pretty little chandelier out there somewhere that would look O.K. with the kitchen nook chandelier. Or maybe just a pretty light provided it will put out enough light. I do have under-the-cabinet lighting so that helps. Who says it has to be a fluorescent? Thanks Barb. You got me to think about this a little differently. I was just thinking it had to be recessed lighting or ugly fluorescent. I think I'll be venturing to Home Depot to see if they can help me with a solution.
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Post by Tumbleweed on Sept 13, 2007 0:07:11 GMT -6
Is this a good thing? I was working in the kitchen and all the sudden the light came on. Now this makes me very nervous. Do I have a short somewhere?? Or did God just perform a miracle because he knows I'm poor as a church mouse. I flicked the switch several times and it is working perfectly. By the way I finally got the light to come on but it was flickering and very dim when this happened. And I had been working in the kitchen with the dim light for about 15 minutes. Very odd.
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Post by misty on Sept 13, 2007 8:10:36 GMT -6
Not so strange for fluorescent lights to do that . HeeHee...no miracles I'm afraid! Fluorescent lighting often will flicker, dim , etc & just when you think its a lost cause they will suddenly come back full force!
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Post by Tumbleweed on Sept 13, 2007 8:43:46 GMT -6
I didn't know that. I mean I know that sometimes it takes a moment for it to come on all the way. But I didn't know it could just stay dim for a while and then boom, it is on. It was doing the dim thing right before it totally quit which is why I bought new tubes. Sometimes, before it totally quit, if I just turned the switch off an on again it would come on all the way but finally it just stopped coming on completely. This gives me more reasons to hate that light. LOL
Hey, I should of posted this in lighting.
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Post by misty on Sept 13, 2007 11:03:55 GMT -6
Fluorescent lights give me a headache & sore eyes if I spend too much time under them. Not sure why, or if its pertinent to this thread, but just thought I'd tell you.
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Post by Tumbleweed on Sept 13, 2007 17:30:34 GMT -6
Me too Misty. Which is why I have to get in and out of grocery stores fast. Certain stores just have the worst lighting. They give me a headache, put me in a bad mood, and make me strain my eyes.
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Post by barb on Sept 13, 2007 23:26:43 GMT -6
Fluorescent lites bother me too, especially when one is about ready to go and it flickers constantly. Did you know they have a fuse in the base? Maybe your fuse is going since new bulbs didn't work either.
I'm all for you getting a light fixture you like in there so justify it by saying better safe than sorry, just in case there is a short. wink wink
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Post by Tumbleweed on Sept 14, 2007 0:09:16 GMT -6
Oh Barb, the new ones are working. They just popped from dim to working perfectly and have been working perfectly since. I think it rather freaky but Misty says it can happen with fluorescent. I didn't know. LOL
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pdoo
Junior Member
Posts: 69
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Post by pdoo on Sept 28, 2007 20:34:06 GMT -6
Fluorescent lights give me a headache & sore eyes if I spend too much time under them. Not sure why, or if its pertinent to this thread, but just thought I'd tell you. Florescent lights actually flicker very fast and you can't see it, but your brain can. When my son was tested at school for Scotopic Sensitivity Syndrome (sensitivity to light and color) the teacher told me Florescent lighting was bad for this as well as ADHD kids because of it's affect on the brain. It also puts out different rays of colors than ordinary incandescent lighting and I think is also bad if you have SAD, the seasonal depression thing because of lack of sun light.
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