Lighting Installation
Light where you need it, switched where you expect it
Most lighting complaints in older homes are not about the fixtures. They are about a room with one ceiling box in the middle of it and no plan behind that.
- Recessed and can lighting
- Fixture replacement and relocation
- Under-cabinet and task lighting
- Landscape and exterior lighting
What we install
Layers, not just brightness
A room lit well has three kinds of light doing different jobs.
Ambient
The general fill. Recessed cans, a ceiling fixture, or cove lighting. It should be dimmable, which single-switch rooms usually are not.
Task
Where you actually do something. Under-cabinet in the kitchen, a fixture over an island, reading light beside a chair.
Accent and exterior
Landscape lighting, a lit stairway, wall washing, and the exterior fixtures that make a house safe to approach at night.
Adding a lot of lighting at once? It may raise a capacity question — see do I need a panel upgrade if your panel is already full.
Why it matters
What we handle that a fixture swap does not
Switching that makes sense
Three-way and four-way switching so you can turn a light off from the other end of the room. Retrofitting that means running new wire, which is the actual work.
Dimming that works
Dimmers have to match the load and driver type. Mismatched dimmers are the reason LEDs flicker or buzz, and it is almost always a compatibility problem rather than a bad bulb.
Boxes and support
Fixture weight, box rating and access above the ceiling. Older plaster ceilings in Old Town need a different approach than drywall.
Neutral wires for smart switches
Many older switch boxes have no neutral. Worth knowing before you buy a set of smart switches, not after.
Recessed lighting
What it takes in an older house
The layout is the easy part. Getting there through an existing ceiling is the job.
In a newer St. Peters or Cottleville home with attic access above the ceiling, recessed lighting is straightforward — remodel cans go in from below and the wiring runs through the attic. In an Old Town home with plaster ceilings, a finished floor above, or balloon framing, the same job means finding routes that do not require opening the ceiling. Sometimes that is possible and sometimes it means a different lighting approach entirely, like surface-mount fixtures or track. We will tell you which your house is before you have committed to a plan that does not fit it.
How we work
What to expect when you call
- 01
Walk the rooms
What you want lit, how the room is used, and where the switches should be. Layout decisions are cheapest before anything is cut.
- 02
We check the route
Ceiling construction, attic access and available circuits. This determines what is realistic.
- 03
Install and adjust
Fixtures installed, dimmers matched to the load, aiming and trim finished, and everything tested on the switch.
Free estimate
Get a lighting quote
Tell us the rooms, roughly what you have in mind, and whether there is attic access above the ceiling.
Related: ceiling fan installation, outlets and switches, panel upgrade, whole-home rewiring, wiring a historic home
Something electrical that is not getting better on its own?
Call for anything urgent, or send the form and we will get back to you within one business day with a real number.