Home Depot Light Fixture Installation? Any experiences here?

[Synomenon]

One of our rooms does not have a ceiling light fixture and I'd like to get one installed. There is a light switch near the entrance to the room, just like a room that has a ceiling light, but the switch is connected to one of the wall outlets for use with a lamp.

I went to Home Depot and found a light fixture I like:

http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/...ctId=100654381


I don't have experience doing this kind of thing and would like to have it installed for me.

Has anyone ever had Home Depot install something like this? What did they charge for the service?

 

[vi edit]

Is there an attic above the room to access things? If not, it could be a horrible ordeal if not impossible to get something run up, through the framing header, and then through the floor joists if they are running perpendicular to where to the outlet is located.

 

[Synomenon]

There is an access door to the space above the ceiling, but that access door is all the way down the hallway on the other side of the house.

 

[BoomerD]

Odds are, that light switch controls one of the wall outlets. (often, only one plug in a duplex outlet) That way, you walk into a room, throw the switch, and turn on a lamp plugged into the outlet.

If you want to install a ceiling light, you'll have to get into the attic, cut a hole in the ceiling where you want the light fixture, install a box for the light connections, run cable from there, down the wall, install a new switch, than back up the wall to a power source. (You may be able to get power from the source that feeds the other switch, eliminating the second run up the wall)

While this isn't terribly difficult to do, it's VERY difficult to do right...if you don't know WTF you are doing...and probably illegal for you to do without permits/inspections/licensed electrical contractor.

Sounds like you're in that "don't know WTF you are doing" category. Call a licensed electrician so you don't burn down your house.

 

[vi edit]

And to echo the "get an electrician" sentiment...he can probably do it in 1/4th the time you could and probably save you another 3 trips back to Home Depot to get some tool or part you later find out you need to complete this.

 

[Synomenon]

Yeah, that's why I was asking if anyone has had Home Depot do this kind of project. It's too much for me to do. I see on their website that they do install light fixtures and do electrical work, but they don't give much detail other than to schedule and appointment with one of their electricians.

 

[hanoverphist]

Sounds like you're in that "don't know WTF you are doing" category. Call a licensed electrician so you don't burn down your house.

or set up a few vid cameras and film the whole thing, then post it here for our amusement if you fuck it up.

 

[Synomenon]

Wow, did you read the OP? I wasn't considering doing it myself.

 

[BoomerD]

Yeah, that's why I was asking if anyone has had Home Depot do this kind of project. It's too much for me to do. I see on their website that they do install light fixtures and do electrical work, but they don't give much detail other than to schedule and appointment with one of their electricians.

They'll probably do a good job...but IME, they charge more for the work than an independent will charge.

Call around for estimates/quotes.

 

[amdskip]

I would hire an electrician directly. Why bother letting home depot profit out of the deal too. That switch may be able to be converted to control the light. It just depends if the wiring goes up or down and if you have access below too.

 

[mugs]

Home Depot just has a contract with a local electrician who will do that work.

I'd guess it'd cost $200-400 to have an electrician do it, depending on how difficult it is.

 

[Elbryn]

check out ads on craigslist.look for guys that list their state licensing in the post and validate the license with your state. i think it shows if they are insured also or not. call or email the ones that meet your requirements and ask for a quote. tell them if the rooms have access from above or not.

i had 4 lights and one bathroom ceiling fan tied back to existing light switches in the room. If the light switch is currently tied to a lamp, the switch can most likely be rewired to control only the ceiling light and change the lamp outlet to always on. the 4 lights + bathroom ran me 125 each and was done in one day. other companies i quoted were higher, in the 175 to 300 range per connection.

 

[DrPizza]

Note again what people have posted though: do you have access to the ceiling from an attic above? Or is there a 2nd story on the home? If the latter, then the price is going to increase.

For what it's worth, Home Depot charges somewhere in the range of $100 to install a ceiling fan. That price is to install it to an already wired, ceiling fan capable box in the ceiling. It's a 5-15 minute job for an electrician; they can almost do it with their eyes closed. I installed one of the ceiling fan kits where the blades snap on, instead of struggling not to drop screws on an inverted fan as you attach the blades. - maybe a little less than 5 minutes from the time I started removing the old fan until the new fan was done - with a helper handing things to me.

That's the kind of job Home Depot is charging upwards of $100 or even a little more for.


I kinda know what I'm doing when I'm running wires (I say "kinda", because there's probably some tool that makes running them through the wall a heck of a lot easier - I'm absolutely sure of my electrical connections.) Worse case scenario: you have a 2nd story & the ceiling joists run parallel to the wall the light switch is on. Been there, done that. HOURS to run the wiring. The final connection - the part HD charges $100ish to connect the wires and hang the light fixture, took 2-3 minutes. Having one of HD's electrical contractors do that job would have cost quite a bit.