i=p/u

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Arms
Hello,

I have been giving 9w led panel downloghts to fit in a house, has any of you guys fitted these before and have a recommended spacing as these have 120 degree angle , 135mm cutout
 
rough guess between 3'6" and 4'6" spacing. depends on ceiling height and the amount of light required.
 
A 9W panel light is probably equivalent to a 40-50W pendant light so you can plan your spacing wider than for a standard downlight, unless they want very bright.
I have put two 12W panels in a 3mx3m kitchen (reasonable) and two 3W in a tiny toilet and one 9W (or possibly 6W) in a small bathroom 2.5mx1m (which was plenty).
No real requirement for fire rating unless penetrating a fire barrier, as opposed to a fire resistant surface, though it does make a big hole and you really do not have much leeway between the joists.
 
Its seems to me some very experienced people on here are not grasping the whole fire rated downlight or equivalent when cutting through a fire rated celing, when a hole is cut into a ceiling to mount a recessed downlight into, a potential fire hazard is created. Plaster board ceilings (for example) have a natural ability to act as a fire barrier. In any building where people maybe living or inhabiting above, the ceiling below must be fire rated. Fire rated downlights are used to restore the fire integrity of a ceiling fire hoods may be used with non fire rated downlights to provide the same level of protection. In the event of a fire, the downlight hole is like a gateway that allows fire to spread through, unchallenged. Once the fire starts to spread through this hole it has direct access to the adjoining structure, usually made from wooden ceiling joists. Fire rated downlights seal off the hole and slow down the spread of fire. Modern fire rated downlights are fitted with an intumescent pad which swells up when it reaches a certain temperature and blocks the spread of fire. The fire then has to find another way around - delaying its progress. This delay allows occupants to escape the building or ideally allows additional time for the fire to be extinguished. You will notice that some fire rated downlights are rated at 30, 60 or 90 minutes. This rating depends on the structure of the building and more importantly how many floors it has. The top floor of a block of flats for example would require a 90 or possibly 120 minute fire rating, whilst a ceiling in the bottom floor of a house would be 30 or 60 minutes. If you cut into a ceiling you must restore it to its original condition and not interfere with its natural ability to act as a fire barrier.
 
A building may be constructed to have fire compartments, these are usually fire resisting barriers that prevent the spread of fire from one dwelling to another (e.g. between flats or between terraced houses) or from, say, a garage integral to a dwelling.
Penetration of these fire compartments will require the use of fire rated sealing, such as fire rated downlights, to ensure that there is no deterioration to the fire compartmentalisation.

General ceilings that are not a fire compartment barrier should resist the internal spread of fire by being generally not readily combustible.
The basic standard is 30 min resistance, increased to 60 min resistance if the floor is above 5m. However the fire risk assessment for dwellings such as blocks of flats may have more stringent requirements depending on the fire escape procedures.

Where downlights are installed in a ceiling it has been determined that they do not reduce the fire resistance properties of a standard ceiling and so no requirement is in place to have fire rated downlights so long as the ceiling is not a fire compartment.
However there is absolutely no problem and possible benefit from having fire rated downlights and the current availability of fire rated downlights is such that there is often no limitation on fitting them, however they are not required to be fire rated.
 

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i=p/u

Arms
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If you're a qualified, trainee, or retired electrician - Which country is it that your work will be / is / was aimed at?
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Practising Electrician (Qualified - Domestic or Commercial etc)

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9w led panel recessed light
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