Spring Clips on Downlights

[JohnP]

What is the best technique with the viscious things? The seem to damage the plasterboard when removing the lamp. Why are they so damned fierce?

[Algernon Goss-Custard]

JohnP [e-mail] posted

Apparently in the decorating trade it's called "being mouse-trapped".

[JohnP]

Algernon Goss-Custard [e-mail] wrote in news: [e-mail]:

I like to remove fittings when painting - but I ain't touching these again"

[Steve Walker]

For mine, I just pull them part way down, put a finger and thumb around the clips and pull them the rest of the way out.

[JohnP]

Steve Walker [e-mail]> wrote in news:saao2m$ea0$ [e-mail]:

I wonder how many times it can be done before the hole becomes a mess?

[Chris J Dixon]

In some cases, <1.

Chris

[The Natural Philosopher]

Yup. definitely a case for some sort of plastic ring to take the high stress of the springs BUT thus is supposed to be a semi permanent fitment dine by a skilled electrician, You don't need to remove the thing to change the bulb - only, in the case of LV the transformer

[Robin]

If there's plenty of time I soak the plasterboard with stabilising solution and then glue on a bit of scrim. But even with that I hate fittings with "butterfly" springs

These days many downlights do not have replaceable bulbs. And expecting everyone to pay "skilled electricians" (or to send their 1st year apprentices) to replace sealed fitting seems to me extreme. Even Australians are allowed to DIY for that if they had the nous to get sockets installed.

[JohnP]

to keep the texture the same.

[Mathew Newton]

I always put some thing strips of wood (ply, OSB etc) up inside the hole first and have the butterfly clips resting on those. If you ever need to pull the lights back out the force (and sharpish edge) is applied to the wood and not the back of the plasterboard.