wall mounted lighting problem

[SkyWarp]

I pulled the old fixture above the bathroom sink off the wall and found out there was no electrical box behind it. The wall plate on the thing was one of those retangular boxes and it had the globe lights. I have a new smaller fixture I'd like to put in, but there's a pipe running down the middle of the wall (in the pictures, the center is the pencil line just to the left of the pipe). There's 1 3/8" of space between the pipe and the visible side of the drywall. Any ideas how to make this work with this light and a new box?

 

[cement]

nice! a floating fixture!

Since you already have the board cut, widen it to the left until you find a stud, then box it back to where you need it?

 

[SkyWarp]

That would work, but the next stud is 14" to the left of the one in the picture. For the amount of work involved I think I might just buy another light that doesn't require a box in the wall. The fixture is about 3 lbs if it matters.

 

[Jahrtrix]

They do make "shallow" junction boxes. there is a round "pan" style j box for drywall installations.

These boxes are especially made for ceiling / wall lighting uses in places where a half inch or 5/8

space depth is all thats available. Good luck.

jahrtrix

 

[MA_PE]

they make things called "madison bars" to mount an electrical box in the middle of the wall. The box is essentially supported just on the sheet rock. They are readily available at any hardware store. I tried to find a site that shows how to install them, but no luck. Ask the guy at the hardware store to explain it.

This is what they look like.

Madison bars.

 

[Wolverine]

I'm guessing that's your washer drain/vent pipe. Is your washer directly under or over this spot in the house?

Can you just mount the box on the right side gap? Drill a hole through the 2X4 stud and run the wires on through, behind the pipe.

Don'chya just love when a simple project blows up?

 

[IlPadrino]

Why do you *NEED* a junction box? I know code requires boxes for splices and connections - but are they also required for connections even if they're made outside of the wall? I think if it were my house, I'd just attach some plywood to the stud and screw the fixture to the plywood (being very careful that the screws are short enough to not go through the plywood. It looks like a pretty light fixture...

 

[Desert Engineer]

Did they use PVC for the wastelines? I've only seen Black ABS. Also, is that the supply line on the right in PVC?

 

[SkyWarp]

They do make "shallow" junction boxes. there is a round "pan" style j box for drywall installations.These boxes are especially made for ceiling / wall lighting uses in places where a half inch or 5/8

space depth is all thats available. Good luck.

jahrtrix

I went to the store and had one of these in my hand but the info I got from someone in the store and then online was that it was designed to be mounted to a 2"x4" That would require all the effort that a regular box mounted to the side would have.

 

[SkyWarp]

they make things called "madison bars" to mount an electrical box in the middle of the wall. The box is essentially supported just on the sheet rock. They are readily available at any hardware store. I tried to find a site that shows how to install them, but no luck. Ask the guy at the hardware store to explain it.
This is what they look like.

Madison bars.

I'm not sure that would have worked since I needed it right in front of the pipe but that will probably be useful as I continue swapping out fixtures. I didn't want to drag out the project any longer so I went and bought a light that has a wide footprint with the box built into it.

 

[SkyWarp]

I'm guessing that's your washer drain/vent pipe. Is your washer directly under or over this spot in the house?
Can you just mount the box on the right side gap? Drill a hole through the 2X4 stud and run the wires on through, behind the pipe.

Don'chya just love when a simple project blows up?

Maybe not directly over, but the washer is close. This went from 15 minute switch to half a day back and forth to Home Depot. At least I now have a lot of ideas on how to handle this problem the next time it comes up.