LED lighting done so the driver lasts as long as the lamp.

What is included

• Design of the lighting layout to the room's actual use, not to a downlight grid template. We measure and mark before we drill.
• LED downlights, wall lights or pendants from named manufacturers with proper 5-year warranties and readily available replacement drivers
• Fire-rated downlight cans (30, 60 or 90-minute rating to suit the ceiling above) with the correct thermal cutout for insulated lofts, so the LED driver does not cook itself in a summer heatwave
• Dimming compatibility checked at design stage between driver, dimmer and lamp, so you do not end up with the four-lamps-flickering-out-of-eight problem that badly-matched dimmers cause
• PIR sensors on stair heads, landings, hallways and outside doors where accessibility or dusk-to-dawn cover is wanted
• External lighting specified for IP65 seafront exposure, marine-grade stainless fixings within corrosion range of the bays

Downlights, thermal cutouts and insulated lofts

The single most common lighting fault we correct is a downlight that no longer works because the LED driver has been sitting on top of loft insulation, in an unventilated void, running hot for years, and has finally failed. Modern regs and manufacturer install instructions both require a thermal cutout on the driver where insulation is present, plus a fire-rated can that maintains the ceiling's fire compartment. On any lighting job that touches a downlight in an insulated loft, we fit both. It is a small cost at install and the difference between a light that lasts 20 years and one that lasts 3.

Broadstairs specifics that change the design

• Older-buyer accessible lighting. Broadstairs sells to an older-buyer market as much as it does to families and second-home owners. Stair heads, landings and hallways benefit from PIR-triggered LED at a low colour temperature (2700K to 3000K) with a soft ramp-up, so a night trip to the bathroom does not need a fumble for a switch. We fit these routinely and they are the single highest-satisfaction upgrade on the older-buyer end of the fleet.
• Victorian villa ceiling roses and lath-and-plaster. A grid of ten downlights across an original lath-and-plaster ceiling is the wrong answer even if the room needs more light. We prefer wall-washer downlights around the perimeter, pendant on the original rose kept in place, and picture-light or plinth-level fills. It costs the same and does not shred a 150-year-old ceiling.
• Seafront salt corrosion on external fittings. Outside lights within a few streets of Viking Bay, Louisa Bay, Stone Bay, Joss Bay or Botany Bay corrode standard mild-steel and cheap alloy fittings inside two winters. We specify IP65 minimum, marine-grade stainless or brass fixings, and orient the gland or entry point downward so any driven rain drains away.
• Conservation area and listed properties. External lighting on a front elevation in a conservation area or on a listed property may need Thanet DC consent. We check before quoting a large external lighting scheme.

PIR sensors that actually work

The default PIR module wired into a stair-head or landing light is often set to a 5-second timeout by the electrician who fitted it, then never adjusted. That is why customers switch them off. We commission every PIR to the room's actual use pattern, typically 3 to 5 minutes for a landing, 20 to 30 seconds for an outside door porch, and set the lux threshold so daylight does not trigger it. Ten minutes of commissioning saves years of complaint.

How a lighting job runs

Small refits (one or two rooms of downlights or a hallway rewire for PIR) are one-day jobs. A whole-house lighting rebuild is two to four days depending on ceiling access and whether we are chasing new drops for pendants and wall lights. Testing on every circuit: insulation resistance, continuity, polarity, and where a new circuit is added, earth-fault-loop and RCD trip time. Test results on the Minor Works Certificate or full EIC as the job dictates.

Indicative pricing

• £220 to £320 - replace 6 to 8 tired halogen or bulb-and-driver downlights per room with fire-rated LED cans and cutouts, existing circuit reused
• £320 to £420 - new lighting design in a single room (kitchen, living room), with dimmer, PIR or scene control
• £450 to £900 - whole hallway, landing and stair scheme with PIR at every level and porch light replaced
• £900 to £2,400 - whole-house lighting redesign, second-fix on a rewire, or coordinated internal-plus-external scheme

External lighting on a listed or conservation-area front elevation quoted separately once consent route is clear.

Compliance in short

Work is completed to BS 7671:2018 Amendment 2:2022. Where a new circuit is added or an existing circuit is materially altered, the work is notified under Part P to Thanet District Council building control. Manufacturer install instructions for downlight thermal cutouts and fire-rating are followed on every install.