Adding Recessed Lights To My Walk-In Closet (Plus, My Workaround For My Phobia)

Right here’s the one single gentle on the ceiling fan that I’ve been working with till now…

Not solely is the lighting inadequate, however it’s additionally a yellow gentle, so it makes the cupboard a wallpaper colours look dingy. I can’t stand yellow lighting for that very cause. I like shade, and I don’t like my colours to look washed out, so I want white lighting.

My workday began off easily. I had the entire holes minimize for the lights by lunchtime.

This was fairly simple to do with this Mikwaukee adjustable hole cutter (affiliate hyperlink). It adjusts to chop holes from 2″ to 7″, and it comes with this plastic defend that catches the mud as you narrow.

It undoubtedly made the method quicker and simpler, but when I’m being trustworthy, I’d price it 4 out of 5 stars. Whereas the plastic defend caught about 95% of the mud, it undoubtedly didn’t catch all of it.

Additionally, these blades appeared to uninteresting pretty shortly. I used to be in a position to minimize the entire holes I wanted, however after about 4 holes, the cuts appeared to begin getting rougher and rougher with every further gap. And the blades stored coming unfastened, so I’d have to make use of an Allen wrench to tighten the blades after I minimize every gap.

I believe the device might use some enchancment, however it did the job. And it did it a lot quicker and simpler than every other device or course of I’ve used prior to now to chop holes for lights.

I ended up slicing holes for 2 lights on both sides by the cupboards, and one gap over every equipment.

I had somebody ask me why I didn’t plan on including three lights to every aspect within the cupboard space. The reason being due to this air conditioner vent on the left aspect which is correct the place I would wish to place a light-weight if I had added three to every aspect. And I didn’t wish to transfer a vent.

However I did add one further gentle centered on the doorway. So the closet cupboard space could have 5 further lights plus the middle chandelier when all is claimed and achieved. That will probably be loads of gentle.

Issues have been going so easily at this level that I anticipated to interrupt for lunch, after which come again and take about quarter-hour to climb up into the attic and run the wiring from every gap to the subsequent. In concept, this step ought to have been extremely easy. What I hadn’t realized is that the entire space from the pink line to the window wall was in that space that juts out from the entrance of the home, and the roof over that space is extremely low.

I had three wires that I wanted so as to add in that part, however as soon as I acquired up into the attic, I noticed that it wasn’t going to be as simple as I assumed. The truth is, it took me some time to even discover these two holes over the washer and dryer. I couldn’t even see them till I used to be taking a look at that space head on. After which I noticed that with a view to get to them, I’d should lie on my abdomen, shimmy into that space underneath the tremendous low roof about 10 toes, hoping that I might get all the way in which to the tip whereas dragging three wires in my hand, after which shimmying again with out having the ability to flip round. And, in fact, I’d should do all of that with out placing a foot or knee by the drywall.

So I ended up reassessing the state of affairs to determine how one can get the wires from gap to gap, round and above the entire ceiling joists and different framing. I lastly ended up having to chop three further holes that must be patched.

The excellent news is that patching these holes will probably be fairly easy as a result of I’ve all of those excellent little circles of drywall that I can use to fill them.

Anyway, these are the lights that I’m going to make use of. They’re not technically recessed lights. They sit flush to the ceiling.

And since they’re only one/2-inch thick, they usually’re LED in order that they don’t get sizzling, you possibly can put them just about anyplace, even instantly underneath a ceiling joist.

That is the model I take advantage of. They’ve 5 totally different temperature settings, and I all the time set mine to the 5000K (daylight) setting.

So by the point I acquired all of that achieved, I used to be just about worn out each bodily and mentally. You possibly can see the holes that have to be patched right here.

Additionally, by the point I acquired all of that achieved, I virtually talked myself into leaving the middle gentle proper the place it’s. The problem right here is that the wire that comes from the swap is simply too quick to maneuver that junction field again six inches.

I attempted to make myself be okay with it, however about an hour later, after my nerves had calmed a bit, I made a decision that I’m simply not okay with it. You possibly can see how off-center it’s with the middle sections on the aspect partitions.

So I went forward and eliminated the junction field. I assumed that might be fairly easy, however it was a little bit of a problem getting it off because it had these aspect areas that jut out with the nails.

I mangled the drywall a bit getting these out of there.

Happily, I’ll be capable to minimize a six-inch gap after which use one of many circles of drywall that I’ve to patch that space.

So ultimately, I’ll have 4 holes that I have to patched.

However patching 4 holes in drywall is a small value to pay for avoiding getting caught on my stomach in my attic in a full-blown panic because the low roof closes in on me and having to name 911 to rescue me. 😀

It’s not how I had hoped this undertaking would go, however a minimum of the wires are in place. And I ought to have the entire lighting put in by the tip of the day. It’ll be good to see what this room appears to be like like with correct lighting.