No Outlets!

depends on whether or not you have to upgrade the board when you perform your changes.

OK, so, what do you think the price would be both with and without the board upgrade?

with the bathroom, if fully tiled, you have to redo the whole bathroom. easier to find a switch with an outlet in it. that will be $20.

the fixture prices ignored, you'll have to run 2 different lines and make holes in the walls and ceiling to get them up. a few thousand just for the electric work and then a general contractor to fix the holes. because you did not indicate the layout of the apartment, there's no way to know how far the lines will have to be run and how much damage will be made to get the lights and switches up.

Depending on whether the power hits the bathroom switch first, or the bathroom light fixture first, you might need wiring between the two to be redone before the "$20" switch (actually about $2) will work. Maybe you can find an old (no longer allowed to be sold new) electrocution-friendly light fixture with an intgrated outlet instead.

Chances are better than excellent that your 1953 building with no ceiling fixtures in the living room doesn't allow channeling in the concrete ceiling, so installing a fixture would mean having an ugly boxlike casing for wiring running across the ceiling. Better might be floor fixtures with an Insteon wireless control system that can control lamps plugged into any outlet (not just the ones that are currently switch-controlled).

Good answers guys. Thanks. This is a damned nightmare. It's only a 130K studio!!! I cannot see paying more than a couple grand to make this place more livable.

Alan: I have never heard of this type of setup (Insteon). I just looked at it and it looks pretty cool. Now, regarding floor fixtures....I'd have to see those. Any links or suggestions?

Ikea has zillions of floor lamps, starting at something like $8.
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/10139879
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/categories/departments/lighting/10731?sorting=relevance&pageNumber=0

This is the best place for Insteon: http://www.smarthome.com/_/index.aspx
You can't use fluorescent bulbs with Insteon (and the allegedly dimmable CFL bulbs don't work right) ... but the new standard-replacement LED bulbs that are debuting this year should work.

Talk to your super about old bathroom light fixtures with switches. Sometimes supers save them if they help swap in a new one.

you can also do sconces with a switch not to far away. will not have to worry about ripping up the ceiling.

VERY HELPFUL! Thanks a bunch. I was willing to spend some money (Frankly, living in a dimly lit cave is not an appealing lifestyle option), but now it looks like I won't even have to spend but a fraction of that!

Oh. OK. I looked at your IKEA links and those are basically free standing lamps. I thought you had a more chi chi design idea like something that ran across a baseboard with a series of bulbs or something. I am not confident that one or two of those types of lamps will sufficiently illuminate me. I guess I'd need to see how the Insteon would work. I mean, I only have so many outlets, but, it would seem that the Insteon would only require one to operate many lights/devices?

I must seem like a complete idiot, but I am an interior design/home improvement novice whose screwdriver/hammer skills are questionable at best.

I saw a home improvement show and they had this problem. They just did the metal conduit going around the room at knee height thing. Painted right, it didn't look so bad.

It was not super attractive, but it was MUCH better than running random wires and not having lights and all that. Especially when furniture is put in front.

In the bathroom, same thing. Might be a few hundred bucks, better than ripping everything out. A small white metal pipe might fit in ok.

I've done this in offices before, and it seems fairly easy.

Somewhereelse: That would be a last resort thing. Not having light is pretty bad, but, I think standing lamps is better than that tubing, although, I suppose I could encapsulate the tubing in a decorative moulding. Still, I'm not too crazy about the idea.

ab_11218: The sconce idea seems doable for one area, but not another. I may do one sconce with one floor lamp. I should really just get an electrician in there and give me some sort of estimate and advice.

I have four identical floor lamps in my LR. I mostly use two, which are "wired" together to the same Insteon switch. At full blast, they very brightly light up the room. I use the other two (which flank my couch) mostly for added reading light.

With a 6- or 8- button Insteon switch where your one lightswitch now is (I assume you have a switch that controls one of the outlets ...?), you have lots of options.

For 60s retro-chic, put a couple of light-cans on the floor behind your couch for wall-washing uplighting as part of your general lighting.

Where does one find a $130K 1953 studio, by the way?

"Somewhereelse: That would be a last resort thing. Not having light is pretty bad, but, I think standing lamps is better than that tubing, although, I suppose I could encapsulate the tubing in a decorative moulding. Still, I'm not too crazy about the idea."

If you have moldings or knee walls or something, its easier to blend. They had exposed brick, and it actually looked ok.

But, yeah, if you can set up a standing lamp, all good. This apartment that didn't work, so guy had mega extension cords.

> Where does one find a $130K 1953 studio, by the way?

In 1973.

;-)

Sorry somewhereelse, I don't know buildings by their lot numbers.

I'm guessing Parkchester, but very very curious to learn the answer.

Alan: Mine is in Forest Hills, but, right now they can be found in many different places. This is a co-op, mind you, and not a condo. In the less desirable areas of Forest Hills, they can be had for $115K and Rego Park for the same or slightly less. I'd imagine you can get a co-op in Parkchester for 85K-90K right now. That's not the greatest area to most people. I know a guy who used to be a Security Guard in those buildings and he said they were basically glorified housing projects.

Alan: the only light switches I have are in the kitchen and bathroom. I guess I could convert the kitchen switch, right? Is Insteon very reliable? I just read an article written in 2005 when it was apparently first introduced and the writer complained that it was not very reliable.

Apparently, in Parkchester, the 1BR goes for 99K.

http://www.zakirkhan.com/Nav.aspx/Page=/ListNow/Default.aspx

I saw a studio on another site advertised for 60K.

Here are some Forest and Rego listings:

http://www.exitkingdomrealty.com/?pagename=Open_Houses

Yes, you could convert the kitchen switch if it's in a convenient location. Keep in mind, though, that fluorescent is a no-no with Insteon. I put track lighting in my kitchen, with incandescent for now, and LED when the price comes down (2-3 years).

I've never had a problem with my system. Before Insteon was X-10, which only takes one path. As I understand it (which isn't very well), Insteon travels wirelessly, and, somehow, through the wiring even if it's not the same circuit. You can do all kinds of fancy things with Insteon, programming from a laptop, but I keep it simple.

Bigman, there're also wireless switches at http://www.lightningswitch.com. There's a wiki page on them, too.

Very simple. Pushing the switch generates enough power to send an on-off signal to the receiver thingy into which you're plugged your lamp(s). The switch just sticks on the wall by the door.

I've got them in all my closets (replacing pull cords) and for under-cabinet lights in the kitchen. (Those are fluorescent.) They've gone several years with no problems.