I have this crappy old incandescent fixture in my living room that I want to replace with some nice efficient halogen track lighting. I found this attractive little number. Am I correct in assuming that I can simply hook this unit up in place of the old one, or does it require some special wiring, or something? I vaguely recall once hearing something about halogen lights requiring special transformers; the product page doesn’t mention anything about it though.
Should be an easy job. Any transformer required will already be built into the fixture. Just a basic black-white-ground connection.
w00t! That’s exactly what I wanted to hear. Simple connect-the-wire jobs are well-within my realm of expertise.
Check Lowe’s and Home Depot. I’ve seen similar units there for less cash.
Licensed electrician checking in here…
While I would be surprised if the base of the fixture didn’t include the transformer, it is also not guaranteed as the description mentions nowhere of the transformer being included.
Worst case scenario is that you’ll have to buy a separate transformer which you can just fit inside the ceiling, or if that isn’t an option, you can buy very small electronic transformers these days which will fit inside the base of the fixture.
With 6 x 50w lamps, you’ll need a transformer capable of converting from your supply voltage to a minimum of 300va.
Wow that’s kind of expensive. Have you tried IKEA?
I do love IKEA, but they seem determined to make ordering anything from their website either impossible or a complete pain in the ass. And I don’t feel like going out to New Jersey to go there in person right now. I have found a couple cheaper units from shopping around, though.
Sometimes for the track lighting fixtures, the transformer is on the light itself.
As for price, I've decided that lighting is one of those things like jewelry and kitchen plumbing fixtures where the price is unrelated to anything tangible. It's all about the style, so if you go into a lighting store, you'll pay several hundred dollars, while a pretty much equivalent, non-designer version of the same thing can be bought at Home Depot for $50.00.The fixture you’ve selected is low-voltage halogen. If the price doesn’t include a transformer, ensure that the transformer you purchase is properly sized and listed by UL for the intended application, and that it is installed according to manufacturers recommendations.
The right product installed wrong, or the wrong product yields the same net result: an unsafe and possibly lethal situation.
No matter how I say this, it will end up sounding snarky, so apologies to those who take it that way…
Is the number of posts to my name a direct correlation to whether or not anyone pays attention to my replies, or have I just used jargon which renders my post unintelligible?
It doesn’t sound snarky. People read what you said, but weren’t compelled to respond to it. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. If you say something wrong or controversial, there’s a good chance you’ll get a response. That’s not the kind of response you want.