How To Hang A Heavy Chandelier [EASY GUIDE 2022]
Find out what is needed to hang a heavy chandelier for your home
If you plan to install a heavy chandelier, the substantial weight of the item won’t make it easy to lift.
There are a lot of way to make the installation process easy, quick and safe to prevent unnecessary accidents.
Here’s a step-by-step complete guide on how to hang a heavy chandelier
It’s Not Expensive to Hang A Heavy Chandelier,
Before we list down all the equipment's to hang a heavy chandelier, the materials that are needed are affordable and can easily be bought in a local hardware store,
What You Need:
- Stepladder
- 4-in-1 Screwdriver
- Pliers
- Woodscrews
- Electrical Wire
- Light Texture
- Wire nuts
- Measuring Tape
- Saw
- Junction Box
- 4-inch Wood board
- Nails
How To Hang A Heavy Chandelier
There are extremely large and heavy chandeliers that probably cannot be supported by a traditional electrical box on the ceiling. The weight of a heavy chandelier could potentially tear the fixture from the ceiling and damage the drywall, chandelier, and potentially objects underneath.
It is recommended that one of these Arlington ceiling mount brackets be installed to support the electrical box and the weight of the chandelier.
Price: $24.99
These brackets can be easily installed through the hole in the existing electrical box. The support rod rotates and extends outward until it meets and attaches to the ceiling joists. Hand tighten the chandelier mounting bracket, then use pliers to continue tightening until the bracket is completely secure.
Power Source: AC
Material: Crystal
Customer Ratings: 4.2 out of 5 stars
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Step 1: Safety For Your Chandelier
For any pieces of heavy light fixture, having a brace in hand helps secure the chandelier from falling.
Mark where you are to install the heavy chandelier by hammering the nail into the ceiling. (Doing this helps you find the chandelier easily once you are in the attic)
However, if you are not planning to attach the chandelier, then you need to go through your second story floor or be cutting a larger opening in your ceiling for the chandelier installation.
Step 2: Chandelier Distance Measurement
Check the distance from your two joists. Grab your 2 pieces of 4-inch wood board and for it to fit between the jolts.
Then attach the metal hook to the center of the 4 inch side.
Step 3: Chandelier Brace Setup
Secure the brace for your chandelier by attaching the board you have from step 2, to the joists (both top and bottom board)
Double check to make sure the hook is hanging down.
Step 4: Chandelier Wire Placement
Place a small hole for the wire to pass through. Only cut off just enough in order to have a fitted placement
Step 5: Junction Box For Your Chandelier
Include your junction box in order to place all of the wirings and prevent cluttered lines. Once wiring is secured, lock in the junction box with wood screws.
Step 6: Wiring For Your Chandelier
Find the best electrician to work with for the wire installation. If you also want, you could make sure to outsource all Steps 1–5 to your electrician.
Here’s a guide we created to check whether you need to hire an electrician to install or not:
What Are The Cost To Install A Chandelier?
Prices are dependent on what each electrician company charges but here are some good price estimates:
A small fixture will cost around $65 to $120, replacement of an old chandelier to a new one can go as high as $2,000 where the same price can be said for big chandelier installation.
Do I Need To Hire an Electrician?
If you are making small changes from replacing an old light fixture that already dims it’s brightness with a new one, then it could be done.
First find out the total weight of the chandelier, then determine what is the maximum capacity of your standard electronic box could hold. The maximum weight averages at 50 pounds. Once you are done, set a time (1- 4 hours) to replace it.
But some people also prefer relying an expert to do it, here are some things to watch out when working with electricians for your chandeliers:
Only Hire an Electrician in any of this 5 steps:
- If it’s not a replacement but your installing the chandelier on a new area in your home
- Wiring is old and complex
- The chandelier weighs to heavy to be lifted by just one person
- When your not sure how to install it
- You don’t have any experience when it comes to wiring and overall placement
Can I install the chandelier by myself? (DIY)
From considering how much a chandelier weighs, to measuring the perfect ceiling height — all of this must be considered to find out the price, this includes:
- Chandelier’s Weight
- Chandelier’s Electrical Wiring
- Ceiling Height Ratio
- Old Chandelier Replacement or New Light Fixture
- Difficulty of Chandelier Installation
This is why most people resort to hiring an electrician for a new chandelier instead of doing it on their own.
How To Find The Best Electrician For Your Chandelier?
If you have received many bid requests and aren’t sure whether to pick the best one, here are some tips that could help:
1. Double-Check their Licensing
The last thing you want is working with someone who is underqualified and get messed up with the wiring a few months later,
To prevent this, ask to view a copy of their current license. You can list down the licensing number and call your local state’s department number to verify the authenticity.
2. Ask for Customer Testimonials
Find out their most successful recent projects, what do other customers say about them once they finish replacing the chandelier, any nasty complaints?
It’s better to read a negative review before hiring someone blindly.
3. Do They Have Liability Insurance?
Unforeseen accidents in your home is a possibility, this is why electrician not only needs to be certified but also have expertise when it comes to installing in different home situations,
Ask your electrician if they have a liability insurance — this protects both the electrician and the customer from any unnecessary damage expenses that may arise during the chandelier installation.
How To Pick the Best Chandelier For Your Home?
Contrary to what you see in the movies, chandelier can be installed nearly anywhere in your house from kitchens up to the bathroom,
It all depends on the size of your house, ceiling height and chandelier design preference.
1. Spiral Crystal Chandelier
Price: $569.29
Spiral Crystal Chandelier is stunning and gorgeous in person, perfect for stairways, entryway, hallway, foyer, hall, staircase, apartment, entry hall, and entrance.
Each part of the light is carefully packaged, making sure that the chandelier delivery is safe without any damage.
Power Source: AC
Material: Crystal
Customer Ratings: 4.2 out of 5 stars
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2. Modern LED Chandelier
Price: $299.99
Modern LED Chandelier features a Nordic loft style, the chandelier light fixture showcases interchangeable shapes, looking unique and stylish.
A nice home lighting as well as a decoration in your home, high brightness for reading and low brightness for relaxing or intimate dining
Light fixture form: Chandelier
Indoor/Outdoor Usage: Indoor
Best Sellers Rank: #1,279 in Chandeliers
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3. Luxury Crystal Chandelier
Price: $599.99
Luxury Crystal Chandelier is made from top grade K9 crystal chandeliers with ceiling pendant lights featuring raindrop style,
Offering 10 years of warranty, this chandelier combines classic and contemporary elements with eye-catching results, constructed using only high quality materials to ensure your product is built to last, definitely worth it.
Light fixture form: Chandelier
Indoor/Outdoor Usage: Indoor
Customer Ratings: 4.7 out of 5 stars
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4. Minimalist Black Chandelier
Price: $96.99
Minimalist Black Chandelier includes all necessary assembly and installation parts, providing convenient combination connectors to make the wires easy to assemble.
This farmhouse light fixture features 8 evenly candle-shaped stems, each support 1 candelabra-base bulb, crafted of matte black finished, which is simple but classic design.
Suitable used as kitchen island lighting, farmhouse chandeliers, foyer light fixtures, kitchen light fixtures, living room light or bedroom chandelier.
Light fixture form: Chandelier
Indoor/Outdoor Usage: Indoor
Customer Ratings: 4.1 out of 5 stars
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5. Pendant Lighting Chandelier
Price: $99.99
Pendant Lighting Chandelier are easy to install, he chandelier light comes with all the installation hardware accessories and installation instructions.
The black chandelier uses a durable and safe metal chain. You can adjust the height to create a perfect look that matches your house. Suitable for kitchen island, office, bar, meeting room, living room, dining room, farmhouse, foyer, and hotel
Power Source: AC
Material: Metal
Customer Ratings: 4.5 out of 5 stars
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What’s the Chandelier For…Lighting or Design?
Many people use chandelier for varying reasons, if your goal is to help lighten up the place hen adjusting the chandelier’s height should be the goal in order to display optimal brightness for the room.
But if it’s for design (which what most high ceilings are) then you have free control on how high or low to adjust it.
Is There a Best Ceiling Ratio for Your Chandelier?
The general guideline for a normal kitchen chandelier is to reserve around 29–35 inches while sitting down,
But in this case since we are optimizing for a tall high ceiling, start by placing yourself in a standing position with the tallest person in the house.
Once we are sure that they won’t be accidentally be hitting their head of the chandelier then it’s time to start measuring your overall ceiling height,
Since the average ceiling height most places are 9 feet, then you would want to be adding 3 inches for every succeeding feet that passes, here’s an example:
9 feet = 35 inches
10 feet = 35 inches + 1 inch
11 feet = 35 inches + 2 inches, and so on
The Problem With Chandelier Ceiling Ratio
While having accurate numbers is a good thing to base on, some home interior designers would suggest that the height of the ceiling should not determine the chandelier placement.
But this comes with a caveat from earlier section: is your chandelier for lighting up a place or design?
Since only the later do you have the choice to do anything you want
How To Find the Best Angle for Your Chandelier
Look from every possible section of your home on where you can see the chandelier (not just the area below it)
Inspect from the hallway, kitchen or entrance — you might do some experimenting and walking at every point in the house to capture the perfect view of your chandelier.
You might also want to grab your floor plan and determine the accessibility when it comes to turning the chandelier on or off.
Don’t Forget the Chandelier Lighting,
A good chandelier is already bright up on it’s own, you don’t have to worry about having to install a lighting lamp to feel illuminated.
The beauty of the chandelier lies that you can see it’s dazzling light during the darkness. Once night time sets in, it will be the center of the attention for a home.
This is why we suggest not to forego maintenance and checking up your chandelier once-in-a-while for a healthy period of every 6–10 weeks to make sure that the quality is the same as when you first bought it.
If You Have A Ceiling Fan Previously,
If you currently have a ceiling fan but want to replace it with a chandelier, this should be an easy project to do. The wiring will likely be the same and you should also have the option of using the same electrical box on the ceiling.
Simply remove the ceiling spray after turning off the switch. Then follow the installation instructions for your chandelier.
If the chandelier is much heavier than the ceiling fan, check that the electrical box is attached to a beam and can support the weight of your chandelier.
How To Install A Chandelier Without an Electrical Box:
You may need to install a chandelier and there is no electrical box on the ceiling. This can happen when the original lamp was not wired according to the code and did not have an electrical box. You may also be looking to install a simple plug-in chandelier without adding new power to the fixture behind the wall.
When installing a chandelier without an electrical box, you will need to find a ceiling beam or joist to support the weight of the lamp. Work an old pancake box on a beam, then install your chandelier on the pancake box.
Installing A Plug To The Chandelier:
When installing a socket chandelier, the power source is from an electrical outlet in the room, not an electrical box from above. This means that the most important thing is to attach the chandelier to a beam or ceiling joist.
Once the chandelier is attached to the ceiling, you can run the wire or chain with the braided wire through the ceiling and then along the side of the wall to the outlet.
Some outlets are powered by a switch, which would make this option much more convenient.
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