Let there be light!!! Since I moved into my home in 2004, I have hated the fluorescent light box in my kitchen and have had different thoughts about upgrading to something else. However, I kept putting off doing anything about it. Well, 17 years later it is finally time!
A few things happened which led to it being done now (as opposed to next year when I plan to some work updating the kitchen). Let me paint you a picture: the light box uses 4 fluorescent tubes. For the past couple of years only two have (on the same side) worked and I just lived with it.
One day I asked my friend and her husband if they would come over and help me change out bulbs that had burned out and maybe help me figure out why all four wouldn’t work. I had gotten new bulbs and installed them but they didn’t work. Long story short, they were able to get one side functional. As we were fiddling around with the lights, I asked them their thoughts about converting the light box to a pendant light and to my pleasure they both agreed that it would be a fairly easy upgrade!! So I chose my light, ordered it and we were ready to go! Of course, it didn’t go that quickly but in about a month, we were ready to go!
BEFORE
You can easily see that one side is illuminated and the other is not. Before my friends showed up the following day, I needed to get the box frame taken down. I suspected that it wouldn’t be too difficult and I was right.
In addition to not liking the fluorescent lights in general, I also despised the light covers. They were flimsy and cracked really easily and I didn’t realize it at the time but they obstructed a lot of light!!
Pulling the frame and the clips down was super easy. I just needed pliers to pull out nails. I wish I had taken a photo of how poorly this frame was installed. The fixture called for 2-3 nails at each juncture. None of them had more than 1 nail. I guess it was fine because it stayed in place!!
They were all loose and then they were down. I just had to be careful to corral all of the nails and not get hit in the head by the frame!
MIDDLE
To the surprise of no one, the middle part of this process took the longest. My projects always have some kind of surprise and this one was no different.
Living in a condo means that my ceiling is right under my neighbors’ floor. It was necessary to find something screw the light into AND we had to figure out which of the electrical lines were the main one (the feeder). I say we because I was there but it was my friend’s husband doing ALL of this work! And then, we had to figure out how to center the light and the electrical. Drilling through one of the wood beams was the answer!
It of course goes without saying that it was necessary to cut holes into the ceiling. After doing work in my home, especially my master bathroom, I am no longer reticent about making holes in the wall. I always find it a bit fascinating (and scary) to see what it looks like when you open a ceiling or wall. It seems like it should be intricate but it’s usually pretty boring (& dirty)!!!
The ceiling is empty, the electrical has been stripped, wires twisted and capped. And finally, the light is ready for hanging.
FINALE
She’s in and she works!!! These lights are so bright that we could not look directly at the fixture. Turns out, the lights are dimmable!! Looks like the 2022 kitchen project just gained a new project (dimmer switch install). At one point I thought I might get two fixtures to run the length of the box. Thankfully, I nixed that idea.
Clearly, I will need to do something about the ceiling but it will have to wait. I’m in the middle of doing a refresh on my living room and I don’t want to get side tracked. I know many people would not be able to live with the ceiling in this state but I don’t mind. I might do something to cover the holes in the meantime or I just won’t worry about it. Honestly, I don’t really even notice them anymore. I don’t want to commit to anything in terms of ceiling design because I have not made any plans for my kitchen and I don’t want to do something and then undo it. I want to give myself the opportunity to design something fun and maybe a bit unexpected.
And here she is in all her cage light glory. The way I see it the ceiling holes represent what it took to get her into position.
Thoughts? Have you ever waited 17 years to change something in your home? Would you be able to live with the holes or no? Share in the comments.
