How to hang a chandelier

How to hang a chandelier

The chandelier may be the king of light fittings, the one that gives a room the greatest sense of grandeur, but it is probably also the one that gives the most trouble to anyone wanting to install one to bathe their living room in its majestic light. Chandeliers are usually rather imposing by nature, and their shape, as well as their weight, does not make them easy to handle. That said, by following a few rules you will be able to install your chandelier without the slightest hitch!

The tools you need

To install a chandelier you will need: a drill, a screwdriver, hooks and wall plugs, making sure they are suited to your ceiling and the weight of your chandelier (for a weight under 3 kg, use spring toggle fixings; for a weight over 3 kg, the chandelier will need to be fixed to a mounting rail; if it weighs more than 10 kg, it must be fixed into the load-bearing structure of the ceiling, such as a joist). You should also have a junction box and connector blocks to hand.

A few precautions

The first precaution, obvious as it is, bears repeating: switch off the power. Although electrical installations that meet current regulations are generally safe, it is best not to play with fire. So keep the light off (and the power off at the consumer unit) while you install it! You should also know that a chandelier must never be hung from its electrical wires.

A team effort

Depending on the weight of the chandelier, make sure there are several of you so you can handle it together, or even take turns at each stage of the installation.

Putting the chandelier in place

First, mark the position of the chandelier's suspension hook in pencil. Then drill a hole at the marked point and insert a wall plug. Screw the chandelier hook into the plug. At this stage, you can connect the live and neutral wires to the light, then hang your chandelier on the hook. Finally, fit the bulbs.