Problem: After purchasing the third night light for my home I started to think about a more permanent solution. Why not power all the lights from one super economical source and lead the lights around the house?
Whole or part house night light system
For the young and old alike dark areas of the house at night can be a real worry or even dangerous. You could populate the sockets with plug-in lights of which there are many available, or you could use the smart solution – a night light system from Starscape!
Solution: From one of our MiniLED150 light sources, 1.5mm sheathed optical end glow fibres are led through the ceiling space to emerge in small groups where the light is needed. Our excellent fibre will transmit light for up to 18 metres so, with judicial placement of the light source most areas of even quite a large home should be reachable.
Naturally this system will work best with new builds or conversions. However, if you have access to the attic in a two storey house for instance, then leading the fibres through the trusses and joists should not present too much of a problem.
Fibre optics in the dark are always difficult to photograph, so we had to have some background lights on to provide enough light for the camera. This cluster of 5 fibres protrudes through the ceiling by 25mm. At night the room has more than enough gentle light so see your way round but is not bright enough to affect night vision.
In our tests, we dimmed the MiniLED150 to its lowest level, and then varied the amount of stars in the cluster depending on distance from the light source. The following table suggests what you may need:
0 – 5 metres 3 fibres
5 – 10 metres 5 fibres
10 – 14 metres 7 fibres
14 – 18 metres 9 fibres
As in our star ceilings we grouped the fibres in a natural looking clusters, although you could formalise the layout into circles or square patterns for instance.
The kit comprises the fibre loom, power supply, light source and remote control.
Wherever possible, locate the light source centrally since this will minimise fibre run lengths. The above photo shows the blue MiniLED150 light source with the hard wire power supply above. Above that is the junction box connecting the 6amp lighting circuit to the room switch and power supply. The loom of 1.5mm sheathed fibres can be seen at the bottom of the photo.
Lead the fibres out to their various locations, drill the holes through the plasterboard then prepare the fibre ends.
Strip back the sheathing by 40mm. This will allow enough length for the fibre to protrude below the plasterboard. The fibres can always be cut back from below.
The fibre is bright at the end as we would expect, with a little bit of side glow. To get a more uniform distribution of light abrade the side of the fibre with a fine grade sandpaper.
Here the fibre is glowing along its length as well as the end giving a more even light distribution in the room.
If you’re not happy with bare fibres in the ceiling our domed end fittings will do a good job of distributing the light. Domed fittings will be included in all kits.
Drill from the required amount of holes.
Insert the fibres.
As all installations will be different we don’t offer an off-the-shelf kit. Just drop us an email at info@starscape.co.uk or give David or Martin a call on 01289 332900 to discuss your project. We will then make the kit to your specifications with no charge for manufacturing.
Use the guide below to calculate the fibres you need. Light is attenuated as it travels along the fibre and it’s for this reason that we recommend increasing the number of strands as the distance increases. The extra fibres offset the loss in light per fibre. The simple pricing structure is inclusive of VAT. Carriage, usually £12.00 will need to be added.
0 – 5 metres: 3 fibres
5 – 10 metres: 5 fibres
10 – 14 metres: 7 fibres
14 – 18 metres: 9 fibres
The MiniLED150 can accommodate 110 x 1.50mm fibres.
MiniLED150 light source with hard wire power supply £150.00
1.50mm sheathed fibre £1.27 per metre.
