GENERAL LIGHTING FAQS

HOW HIGH SHOULD I HANG MY PENDANTS?

If you are hanging your pendants from a central point in your room, you need to consider the height of your ceiling as a first step. Many old houses have low ceilings and may require flush or semi-flush lights so you are not constantly ducking or hitting your head.

Always check the maximum height of the light that you can accommodate before choosing your lights, and check our product information which gives the measurements of all our lights.

We recommend lights in sitting rooms, bedrooms and hallways should be hung at least 2m (7ft) above floor level to give adequate clearance, but it is your room so you can hang them at whatever height you feel comfortable with.

All our pendant lights come with either 50cm, or 1m of cable and chain that can be shortened.
Another point to consider is that a light will look larger the lower it hangs and smaller if your hang it higher.

For a guide to hanging pendants over a table or kitchen island, see our Kitchen Pendant Guide

Can the cable/chain be shortened?

All our pendant lights come supplied with either 50cm of braided cable, or with 1 metre of cable and chain.

Both the cable and chain can be shortened easily at home with a pair of scissors, pliers or a hacksaw.

For more information, see our Bespoke Chain & Cable Guide

Can the cable/chain be lengthened?

Yes, we can make pendants with longer lengths of cable and chain for a small addtional cost

Please see our guide - Bespoke Chain & Cable Guide

Can lights be supplied with a pull cord?

At the moment the only lights that we currently supply with a a pull cord are our Hanson, Hanson Library Carrick, Club and Clayton wall lights.

However, we have an expanding collection of lights with switches, see Wall Lights with Switch

What is a flush fitting backplate?

These are backplates that sit flush against the wall and will require a wall cavity to house the wiring.

Our Backplates Explained Guide tells you everything you need to know about our backplate designs.

How high should I hang a wall light?

Where you choose to position wall lights depends on a few things; the height of the ceiling, the proportions of the room, the effect you wish to achieve and the size of the fitting itself.

The larger the room and the higher the ceiling, the higher up the wall you need to fit lights so they keep proportional to the space and avoid casting shadows on the ceiling.

As a general rule, wall lights should be fitted with the top of the fixture at or just aboe eye level to avoid glare from the bulb.

If in doubt, go a bit higher rather than lower.

Most lighting experts suggest fitting wall lights around 152 - 170 cm (5-5.5ft) above floor level.

When fitting a row of wall lights, space them around 250 - 300cm (8-10ft) apart.

For further top tips about fitting wall lights, see our Wall Lights FAQ
To find out more about what to consider for bathroom lighting - see our Complete Guide to Bathroom Lighting
And for top tips on fitting bathroom mirror wall lights - see Bathroom Mirror Lights Guide

Are your lights supplied with a ceiling rose?

Yes, all our pendant lights are supplied with a ceiling rose in the same finish, generally our Georgian, or Fordham Ceiling Roses, or the York for heavier pendants.

Explore the range: Ceiling Roses & Hooks

What if I need a deeper rose for my pendant?

There are two options; you could consider buying our Fordham or Gifford Ceiling Roses that are designed to cover your existing plastic ceiling rose. They screw over the top and will cover a standard 80mm, or smaller ceiling rose.

Alternatively, you could use a lighting pattress - a special 'collar' that screws onto the Georgian Ceiling Rose to give it added depth, see our Lighting Pattresses.

What is the maximum weight your ceiling roses can take?

Our strongest ceiling rose - the York is specially developed as a heavy duty ceiling rose for our oversized pendants. Originally it was designed to maintain the weight of our heaviest pendant, the Montgomery, which is a substantial 20kg.

For ceiling roses with hooks for chain - we can advise weights for up to 6kg.

For roses with cable grip only- the maximum weight we'd advise is 4kg.

As always, the fittings are very much dependant on the quality of the fixings so we always recommend fitting them to a joist or batten where possible.

How bright a bulb can I use with your lights?

We recommend using LED bulbs as they are not only the most energy efficient but also don't give off much heat so are ideal for use with glass and fabric shades.

Generally, we suggest the maximum strength should be no more than 12W LED (equivalent to a 100W incandescent). Most Standard Bayonet (BC, B22) or E27 screw type LEDs are around 5/6W LED (60W incandescent).

Most Small Bayonets (SBC, B15) or screw type (E14) LEDs  are around 4W LED (equivalent to 40/50W incandescent) although it may be possible to find brighter ones from specialist stores or online.

We do not recommend using halogen bulbs because they generate heat which can damage fabric shades.

What size picture light should I choose?

Lighting pictures is not an exact science, but a basic rule of thumb is to position pictures on the wall with the centre at eye level - about 1.5m (5ft) from floor level and to position the picture light centrally above the picture.

Most picture lights have adjustable heads that can be swivelled to direct the light correctly onto the picture below.

Landscape pictures - choose a picture light that is 1/2 to 1/3 the size of the picture not including the frame.

Portrait pictures - select a picture light that is as close to 1/2 the width of the picture as is possible, not including the frame.