Cable Lighting System

Where to Use a Cable Lighting System

Cable systems are often used in spaces where it would be a challenge to mount other types of lighting. They are a low-voltage system of lighting where the mechanism that holds and conducts electricity to the light fixtures is a pair of cables.

If the cables only need to cover a short space, less than twenty feet or so, as with a beamed ceiling, then short runs can usually be installed from wall to wall without any vertical support. If the length of the cable required is longer than twenty feet, then additional vertical support may be required to prevent tension from stressing the mounting points.

The low-voltage lights are perfect for task lighting and accent lighting; however, they should be used along with other types of lighting to achieve balanced lighting in the room.

Because of the ease with which you can move the lights, they are uniquely suited to art galleries and other places where the focal points move frequently. Restaurants and museums easily come to mind but these versatile lights also allow homeowners to redecorate easily as often as they like.

Consider them for:

• Rooms with high ceilings
• Vaulted ceilings
• Cathedral ceilings
• Ceilings with soffits, beams, or exposed ductwork
• Commercial spaces

In homes that have standard, flat ceilings these lighting systems may be chosen for the beauty and uniqueness of the design.

Cable Lighting Glossary

• Turnbuckle: Attaches the cable to the wall or ceiling mounting point and allows tension to be applied to the cable run. Each system should have one or more pairs of turnbuckles.
• Anchor: Similar to a turnbuckle. They attach cables to the wall mount point but do not allow additional tension to be applied. If a cable run is short and not very complex, it would typically have one set of turnbuckles and one set of anchors, while longer runs may have turnbuckles at both ends.
• Cable: The primary support and electrical conductor. The cables used in cable lighting systems are Kevlar reinforced, tin plated, 10 gauge cables. Occasionally aircraft cable will also be used as vertical support but, it should never be used in place of standard lighting system cable.
• Isolating connector: The isolating connector connects two pieces of cable while breaking the flow of current between them. This allows a long cable run to be run continuously but still allow small segments to be independently operated and powered.
• Remote mount transformer: A transformer that is designed to be mounted in a closet or other hidden area away from the lighting project. Primarily used as a building is being built.
• Surface mount transformer: A transformer that is housed in a visually appealing enclosure and attached directly over a power junction box in the ceiling or on the wall. These are primarily used in remodeling projects.
• Turn kit: The turn kit allows the system to be turned at any angle along the run. It is made up of a pair of rigid stem supports attached to a cantilevered horizontal support cable. This is only used with a system that runs close to the ceiling.
• Vertical support: Often rigid pieces of metal called stem supports that mount directly to flat ceilings. These add support to cable runs of over twenty feet. Cable supports are used to support long runs where there is an irregularly shaped ceiling.

Where to Buy Cable Lighting

• Form + Function
• Lightology
• Lighting FX
• Home Portfolio

Installing a cable lighting system is not a do-it-yourself project and will require the help of an electrician. Even if you are using the kits, the system requires that a transformer that converts 120 volts to 12 volts be installed. By using a contractor you can enjoy the beauty of your new lights with confidence in their safety.