[anyacolo]

My house is about 15 years old, and i bought it new. I am painting my bathroom, so I removed the light over my mirror, to find this horror behind the light.


I am a bit shocked at this, as my builder is very well known and has a good reputation. I have been "inside" all the other boxes in the house, to replace light fixtures, and they are all done correctly/properly.


I have also just recently replaced all of my light switches and outlets because i wanted the newer decora type, and there were no problems with the outlets or switches, so it seems its just isolated to the one light.


I am shocked, upset, and mad, at the same time as to why somebody would do this, and not cut/mount a proper box here, there is no stud in the way, its hollow wall.....

 

[jmon]

I agree with you. For whatever reason they took the shortcut. Lazy, no need for that.

weird to, because there is the outline of a cut out circle on the drywall for the proper receptacle to encase the wires. Looks like it was never cut out.

 

[anyacolo]

weird to, because there is the outline of a cut out circle on the drywall for the proper receptacle to encase the wires. Looks like it was never cut out.

the outline is actually the outline of the light that was mounted there

 

[rjordan393]

Send an email to the builder with a picture. If he can determine who installed the wiring and fixture, then that employee will either get fired or a reprimand.
All though it's been 15 years, He might and should make it right as he knows if something like that gets spread around, then he might end up being sorry.

 

[lenaitch]

Not a pro, but aren't some fixtures themselves certified as a junction box? Maybe it was one of those.

 

[ServiceCall]

So cut in a box and install the fixture. They make round cut in boxes.

 

[dmxtothemax]

its amazing just how much weight that plaster board can hold,
i have come across 400w hmi troughers just sitting on plaster board
And they had been there for a long time
the only reason i took them down,
was the plaster eventually started to sag.
400w ballasts are not light.

 

[Old Thomas]

I have seen houses wired with a vanity light wire simply left with slack in the wall. After the selected vanity is installed a hole is cut for an old work box and the wire is retrieved. That guarantees that the light is centered over the vanity. That probably happened except the box was not installed. The guy probably forgot to bring one.

 

[anyacolo]

Not a pro, but aren't some fixtures themselves certified as a junction box? Maybe it was one of those.

here is a pic of the light i removed.....i dont think it would be approved for what you describe....the connections/wire nuts for the light were shoved back inside the wall into the hole to the right of the metal bar

 

[anyacolo]

So cut in a box and install the fixture. They make round cut in boxes.

yeah, thanks for the great advice, that is what i will be doing, couldn't figure that one out without your help :vs_smirk:

 

[anyacolo]

its amazing just how much weight that plaster board can hold,

its actually supported by wood behind the drywall,


if you look closely to the right of the metal bar you can see the wood,


they have put a 4-6 inch piece of wood behind the drywall to screw the bar into, its just a small piece of wood, and not an actual wall stud

 

[Missouri Bound]

here is a pic of the light i removed.....i dont think it would be approved for what you describe....the connections/wire nuts for the light were shoved back inside the wall into the hole to the right of the metal bar

No, that is not allowed.
Fixtures with a wall plate, such as strip fixtures can have the wire go directly into the fixture with a connector. Yours doesn't fit that category.
All connections must be inside an electrical box or fixture rated as such.

 

[Missouri Bound]

yeah, thanks for the great advice, that is what i will be doing, couldn't figure that one out without your help :vs_smirk:

Ahh.....a whiff of sarcasm in the air..........:vs_lol:

 

[ServiceCall]

yeah, thanks for the great advice, that is what i will be doing, couldn't figure that one out without your help :vs_smirk:

It was a suggestion.

I figured if you were here asking about a simple little DIY project, that any 15 year old could have done but you just needed some help because you just didn’t know what to do.

Apparently you do, but didn’t have the confidence to do it. So go ahead and spill some sarcasm on me I don’t care. I wouldn’t have needed help to do a little piss [email protected] project like that. Hope it worked for you!

 

[ServiceCall]

Ahh.....a whiff of sarcasm in the air..........:vs_lol:

I added a little more sarcasm.

 

[Missouri Bound]

Send an email to the builder with a picture. If he can determine who installed the wiring and fixture, then that employee will either get fired or a reprimand.
All though it's been 15 years, He might and should make it right as he knows if something like that gets spread around, then he might end up being sorry.

You are kidding right?
Whoever did that didn't care and whoever let them do it didn't care either.
It worked for 15 years. That doesn't make it right but it is what it is.
And the OP is going to fix it. Nobody will admit it or even remember it 15 years later.

 

[anyacolo]

I wouldn’t have needed help to do a little piss [email protected] project like that. Hope it worked for you!

Why don't you go back and read my original post....actually read every post of mine in this entire thread, not once did i ever ASK for any help.


I posted this here, so people could see how NOT TO wire a light!!


I never asked for help on how to fix it!!




.

 

[ServiceCall]

Why don't you go back and read my original post....actually read every post of mine in this entire thread, not once did i ever ASK for any help.


I posted this here, so people could see how NOT TO wire a light!!


I never asked for help on how to fix it!!




.

 

[RustNeverSleeps]

That is pretty bad. But at least they used a lot of screws, Lol.

We must share building crews. This is an overhead light in my house as seen from the attic. A drunkard could have done a better job of cutting the hole to install the light. Instead it looks like someone shoved it in, creating blown out sheetrock all around.

Besides fixing some small cosmetic imperfections from the room ceiling underneath, I need to determine if it is better to insulate against air leakage using spray foam or one of those recessed light draft stop covers.

 

[anyacolo]

That is pretty bad. But at least they used a lot of screws, Lol.

We must share building crews. This is an overhead light in my house as seen from the attic. A drunkard could have done a better job of cutting the hole to install the light. Instead it looks like someone shoved it in, creating blown out sheetrock all around.

Besides fixing some small cosmetic imperfections from the room ceiling underneath, I need to determine if it is better to insulate against air leakage using spray foam or one of those recessed light draft stop covers.

if it looks okay from underneath, i would use spray foam up top for a good seal,


it might be a bit difficult to remove the light in the future though, if you ever want to