I have a basement full of 50W Halogen Recessed lights running on 120V through several dimmers (controlled in sections). Only problem is that they run incredibly hot, while the rest of the house is nice and cool the basement is running like a sauna. I’m looking for alternatives and so far I haven’t found anything that would really solve the issue. I really don’t want to rip up all the lights to replace them with something else. I’ve looked into GU10 versions of LED (3-6W, expensive, tall, not dimmable), CFL (~11W, tall, not dimmable) and even Xenon Filled bulbs that promise to run cooler but I haven’t found any real data supporting it. I’d like to keep my dimmers if possible but I’m open to other suggestions. Even though I found dimmable versions of LED and CFLs, most of them are too large to fit in the standard housing (Catalina Lighting Recessed Housing) or only are available in 240V versions.

I guess I’m a little fuzzy on when I "need" to apply for a permit for work I am doing around my house. Can I just call the city I live in and ask someone every time I work on a larger project?

1a) I install a ceiling fan, I don’t think I need a permit.
1b) I remove a single fluorescent tube light fixture and install recessed lighting in my kitchen. Do I need a permit (or inspection) since I’m rewiring/placing new wire in the ceiling?

2a) I change a faucet. No permit.
2b) I install a water softener. I was told I would need a permit for this because if it isn’t installed properly the resin could backflow into the city water header.

I feel it is my home and I can do what I want and I guess that is true for the most part. I can understand issues arising like mentioned with the water softener (I’m not planning on doing this and haven’t looked into any details so I don’t know if the resin backflowing is even a concern but I think it’s a good example). If I do the work correctly, no one is really going to know that I installed recessed lighting, but still…

When do I NEED to get permits or have inspections performed when I am working on my own house?

Ok so we spend a fortune on electricity, and I wanted to switch everything over to compact fluorescent bulbs (CFLs) to save money, but I think I will commit suicide if I do that.

When I go under normal Fluorescent bulbs I get migraines, my eyes start to throb, and I turn into an agitated person. I have no idea why I get like that under Fluorescent bulbs.

So I started with the garage, replaced some incadescent bulbs with CFLs, and everytime I go into the garage, the lights instantly irritate me.

Is there a better solution. I can’t imagine changing all the lights inside my home to CFLs, I would go nuts, seriously I’m not kidding.

Also I hate the color light they produce, anything warmer than 2700k? I purchased warm yellow, but they still don’t produce a light anything close to incandescents.

I also have dimmers on all my lights, and recessed lighting, so this is another issue I have with CFLs and finding right ones to work on dimmer.

HELP, what do I do?
I’ve already considered LED’s, but they are way too expensive. Just to replace the recessed lights in my kitchen alone with LED’s would cost me over 500 bucks, and that’s just the kitchen!

I need better options

i have a 2 way switch that control fan/fixture but the 2 way doesn’t seem to work. both switches has to be on for the light to come on. what i want to do is add recessed lighting and have one of the switches to control fan/fixture and the other to control new recessed lighting and do away with 2 way wiring. how do i go about rewiring it since it never worked to begin with? the junction box above ceiling fixture has 3 lines going into it. thanks in advance.
Hey Stephen. Thanks for the answer. black wires in the switch box was incorrectly connected. so once common wires are correctly connected. three way is working fine now. at the end i decided to connect recessed lighting to existing fan/fixture wires and let it be toggled from 2 separate switches (3 way as you corrected me already). as for the ceiling fan (no lights), i am going to connect to main and turn it on or off from the fan cord. i already tested the connections from the junction box and this is the easiest way i think for me. do you see a problem for doing it this way?

What are the differences between those (PAR30, PAR38, BR30, R30, and possibly others that I don’t know about) light standards. I currently have recessed lighting and (I think) BR30 light bulbs in hallways and common areas. I have PAR30L’s in kitchens and bathrooms. They use the standard E26 socket? How viable is putting CFL’s in there? I’ve read that CFL’s shouldn’t be put in enclosed areas such as recessed lighting. Is it still a problem with modern CFL’s? I don’t want to spend /bulb and have it die in 6 months. Can I put R30 CFL’s in the same sockets as the BR30 and PAR30L’s and have the same (or similar) lighting conditions? Thanks for the reples.

House Dems turn out the lights but GOP keeps talking

Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and the Democrats adjourned the House, turned off the lights and killed the microphones, but Republicans are still on the floor talking gas prices.

Minority Leader John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) and other GOP leaders opposed the motion to adjourn the House, arguing that Pelosi’s refusal to schedule a vote allowing offshore drilling is hurting the American economy. They have refused to leave the floor after the adjournment motion passed at 11:23 a.m., and they are busy bashing Pelosi and her fellow Democrats for leaving town for the August recess.

At one point, the lights went off in the House and the microphones were turned off in the chamber, meaning Republicans were talking in the dark. But as Rep. John Shadegg (R-Ariz..) was speaking, the lights went back on and the microphones were turned on shortly afterward.

But C-SPAN, which has no control over the cameras in the chamber, has stopped broadcasting the House floor, meaning no one was witnessing this except the assembled Republicans, their aides, and one Democrat, Rep. Dennis J. Kucinich (D-Ohio), who has now left.

Only about a half-dozen Republicans were on the floor when this began, but the crowd has grown to about 20, according to Patrick O’Connor.

See Also: More Updates
GOP talkathon Part II: Dems turn out the lights but GOP won’t go home
GOP talkathon Part III: No shirt? no tie? No problem
GOP talkathon Part IV: Come on down

"This is the people’s House," said Rep. Thaddeus McCotter (R-Mich.). "This is not Pelosi’s politiburo."

Democratic aides were furious at the GOP stunt, and reporters were kicked out of the Speaker’s Lobby, the space next to the House floor where they normally interview lawmakers.

"You’re not covering this, are you?" complained one senior Democratic aide. Another called the Republicans "morons" for staying on the floor.

Update: The Capitol Police are now trying to kick reporters out of the press gallery above the floor, meaning we can’t watch the Republicans anymore. But Minority Whip Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) is now in the gallery talking to reporters, so the cops have held off for a minute. Clearly, Democrats don’t want Republicans getting any press for this episode. GOP leaders are trying to find other Republicans to rotate in for Blunt so reporters aren’t kicked out.

Update 2: This message was sent out by Blunt’s office:

"Although this Democrat majority just adjourned for the Democrat 5-week vacation, House Republicans are continuing to fight on the House floor. Although the lights, mics and C-SPAN cameras have been turned off, House Republicans are on the floor speaking to the taxpayers in the gallery who, not surprisingly, agree with Republican energy proposals.

"All Republicans who are in town are encouraged to come to the House floor."

Update 3: Democrats just turned out the lights again. Republicans cheered.

Update 4: Republican leaders just sent out a notice looking for a bullhorn, and leadership aides are trying to corral all the members who are still in town to come speak on the floor and sustain this one-sided debate.

Also, Republicans can thank Shadegg for turning on the microphones the first time. Apparently, the fiesty Arizona conservative started typing random codes into the chamber’s public address system and accidentally typed the correct code, allowing Republicans brief access to the microphone before it was turned off again.

"I love this," Shadegg told reporters up in the press gallery afterward. "Congress can be so boring. … This is a kick."

» Continue reading House Dems turn out the lights but GOP keeps talking

Update 5: The scene on the floor is kind of crazy. Normally, members are not allowed to speak directly to the visitor galleries, and visitors are prohibited from cheering. But in this case, the members are walking up and down on the floor during their speeches, standing on chairs. The visitors are cheering loudly. Some members even brought in visitors, who are now sitting on the House floor in the seats normally filled by lawmakers, cheering and clapping. Very funny.

Democrats faced a choice here: Should they leave the cameras on and let Republicans rip Pelosi & Co. on C-SPAN, or should they leave the cameras off and let the Republicans have their "tantrum," as one Democratic aide characterized it, with the cameras off? So the cameras are off, but Republicans, and the crowd, are clearly enjoying the scene.

Update 6: Republicans are literally hugging each other on the House floor. Rep. Don Manzullo (R-Ill.), not normally known as a distinguished orator, just gave a rousing speech, accusing Democrats of stifling dissent. He referenced President John Quincy Adams, who returned as a House member after being defeated in his presidential reelection bid. Waving his arms and yelling, Manzullo brought the crowd (including a lot of staffers shipped in by GOP leaders to fill up the place), and he left the floor to hugs from his colleagues. You don’t see that up here every day.

Update 7: Rep Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) just pretended to be a Democrat. He stood on the other side of the chamber and listed all of the GOP bills that the Dems killed.

He then said, "I am a Democrat, and here is my energy plan" and he held up a picture of an old VW Bug with a sail attached to it. He paraded around the House floor with the sign while the crowd cheered.

Update 8: It’s over.

Right at the stroke of five Georgia Rep. Tom Price announced that House Republicans were ending their impromptu protest on the floor of the chamber, ending a five-plus hour rebellion with a round of "God Bless America."

The assembled tourists, aides and members in the chamber gave Price and his compatriots a standing ovation. They left the chamber to shouts of "USA! USA

I’m installing recessed lighting upstairs, and ran into problems when I tested my first can. Some facts:

- Upstairs has its own breaker panel
- Conduit that fed the track lighting prior to demo has one black, one white and two red wires coming out of it
- There are no GFI outlets upstairs
- Lights are controlled by switches

I removed the old track lighting and connected the recessed lighting can to the existing wiring coming from the breaker panel by connecting the black wire on the can to the black wire coming out of the conduit, and likewise with the white wire.

When I turned the power back on, the light was lit, but lit continuously. Flipping switches did nothing. So, I turned power off and swapped the black wire for one of the red wires. Nothing. Tried the other red wire. Nothing.

I reconnected black to black, white to white and turned the power on. The breaker blew and I disconnected everything. Then, I turned the breaker back on and got out my voltage detector to see if I could figure out which wires were hot. Now, there is no voltage in any of the wires.

I tested voltage on the wires directly coming out of the breakers and the 3 that connect to the conduit and the switches have no power coming out of them. The other 4 breakers which control plugs and other lights work fine.

I have tried reconnecting the canister, with a different light. Doesn’t work.
I have tried a different canister. Doesn’t work.
I’ve tried switching a good breaker into the ‘bad’ position. Doesn’t work.
I’ve tried swtiching a ‘bad’ breaker into a good position to make sure the breaker isn’t fried. All my breakers are good.
I’ve tried attaching a different wire to the bad breakers to see if I can get a reading on my voltage meter. I don’t get anything.

When I have everything connected as it was when I started, the voltage meter doesn’t go off when it gets near the breaker, as it does with the other ones. However, it does go off when it directly touches the wire coming out of the breaker. But, when I test the other end of that wire, there is nothing.

If anyone has any ideas, I’m all ears.

my grandma was saying how she wanted to put recessed lights in her living room. but instead of saying recessed lights, she said skylights instead.. but for some reason my mind immediately thought of recessed lights, like I didn’t pick up on her mistake until she said "oh, I meant recessed lighting."

How did I know that she was talking about recessed lighting when she accidentally said skylights? Is there some like.. subconscious communication thing that went on? like pheromones or something?

i live in Massachusetts…do i need a permit to a) add some new receptacles in my house, b) add recessed lighting in my house c) completely rewire my garage…. and if i do what can happen if i dont get one and still do the work….thanks….btw i am an electrical apprentice and i know what im doing….not just a dyi-er.

I have a two-switch receptacle with one operating the kitchen light and the other operating recessed lights in the living room. I want to replace the latter switch with a dimmer switch. I have a three-switch receptacle across the room that controls the porch light, the ceiling fan, and the light on the ceiling fan. I have replaced the switch that controls the recessed lighting with a dimmer switch. Now, the fixtures that are controlled by the switch across the room from the dimmer switch only work if the dimmer switch is turned all the way on.

The switch that I replaced the dimmer switch with had a bare wire (ground) that connected to a dark blue screw on the top left of the switch. I had a black (hot) wire that went into the top push-to-release hole at the top terminal, and I had two black wires that connected on the bottom: one went to the screw and the other went to the other push-to-release hole. I don’t think this is a three-way switch because there was not any terminals on the same side of the switch as the ground wire. When I installed the dimmer switch, I connected the bare wire with the green wire of the dimmer switch with a wire nut. I connected the black wire of the dimmer switch to the black wire that went to the top of the other switch. I then connected the red wire of the dimmer switch to the two remaining black wires (the two that connected at the bottom terminal of the other switch) with a wire nut.

If this was a three-way switch, that switch would have controlled something else, but that switch only controls the recessed lighting. It seems like somehow the switch that controls the recessed lighting is in series with the receptacle across the room.

What have I done wrong, and what can I do to fix the problem? I suspect it has something to do with the two wires that shared the bottom terminal.
I see now that one of the wires that went to the bottom of the regular switch was grey instead of black. So there was a black wire and a grey wire that went to the bottom of the former switch. I don’t remember which one went where, though.