Someone asked me last year if I could hang a pendant light over their bathroom.
Paper globe style, big ones. Probably cost about fourteen quid at fucking Ikea. “Straight outta there, no can do matey” was my reply. She looked at me like I’d suggested she couldn’t fill her bathtub up with water. Zones. IP ratings. Someone actually sat down at some point and did the maths on all this shit.
She’d seen some stupid shit_poster_of_perfection hipster take douche posting on some interiors account with easily half a million people hanging onto their every opinion.
Marble counter tops and underfloor heating, every photo clearly take on holiday blended with their actual home life until you forget one exists and the other is fucking out of reach for almost everyone’s means.
Pool ready huge spa bathroom with a gorgeous roll top bath tucked into the corner of what’s gotta be a double just so they could fit it.
Brass pendant hanging low down over one end of it and everyone in the comments yelling at eachother about how they need that kitchen / flooring / lighting / entire bloody house.
Nanny state. Don’t have THAT type of available light in the bathroom just in case someone tries to drown themselves and decides to reach for the toaster instead.
BathroomOhShit none of the people commenting are electricians.
That’s what Instagram photos don’t show you. The practicalities. The literal everything of actually hanging a light that someone at some point had to google if that fitting was actually allowed to be where they wanted to put it.
YES you CAN put a pendant light in a bathroom. The caveat(and where near everyone INCLUDING THAT SIX-FIGURE-NICHE-BLOG-ACCOUNT YOU FUCKING FOLLOW skips) is WHERE in the bathroom.
The Zones Actually Do Matter
Baths, and bedrooms, are split up into zones. UK law has decided that water and electricity DO NOT play well together and best someone actually sat down and did some proper maths on how badly of an idea it is depending on where they can be relative to each other.
Zone 0 is, OBVIOUSLY, inside the bath/shower itself. Unless it’s actually waterproof AND rated for submersion, no electrical can be anywhere near it.
Zone 1 is directly above that, going up to 2.25 metres from the ground. Also still has to be IP rated enough to avoid ANY drips making their way into the fitting. Zone 2 expands outwards 60cm from the edges of the bath or shower and stretches up to the same height as zone 1. Anything outside of that is, technically speaking, not considered a zone at all and where your bog standard pendant, GI housing, fabric flex this abstract lamp thingy can live without you having to too many questions about it.
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The issue is, majority of bathrooms in this country aren’t spacious enough to actually HAVE a decent enough area that’s un-zoned. Google enough bathroom renovations to know that “the bathroom” most people are shit stuck living in is basically just one big ass zone 2 with a toilet bolted on at the edge. Where someone messages me about wanting lighting for their bath… I’m looking at a fitting mid way through zone 1. First red flag. Zone 1 fittings need to be IP65 minimum; fully sealed. Not “ideal for bathroom use” or some bullshit they wrote on the box to get you to pay thirty pound.
Last year I dismantled an entire pendant light that someone convinced me was ‘suitable for humid areas’ because “humid areas” means NOTHING to me when it comes to light fittings and I didn’t want to oversee someone wangching that mammoth of a lie. Split the shade off. Peeked inside the actual socket housing;standard lamp, with a slightly chunkier cable and – yep you guessed it- some rubber gasket where the flex enters the housing thats not remotely enough to ward off steam let alone water.
This, is not IP65. This is NORMAL Pendant light wearing a winter coat. The difference between what you need for zone 1 versus what they sold me would’ve needed to seal that neck joint with silicone the width of your thumb AND probably still would’ve came nowhere near the required rating. Pulled the entire thing right back, sent it back to the supplier with a message to stick that shit sales description on their meme brochure.
The absolute least you need to know before going out and DYI-ing your NEW bathroom is “can I put a pendant light over my bath?” does NOT mean every position over your bath. Once you’re inside zone 1, yes you ABSOLUTELY can – but your fitting needs to be IP65 rated MINIMUM. Zone 2 there are still rules your fixture has to play by; IP44 at minimum.
I’m not “babying” this shit up because I don’t want you guys going out and buying pretty lights for your tubs. We’re playing with electricity here. That’s Part P of the Building regs. And yes you best believe it is legally required just because SOME DESIGN BLOG made it look pretty DOES NOT give you permission to avoid it.
Actual Versions I’ve Installed And Seen Come Downagued
I’ve pulled together correct fittings WITH THE CORRECT RATINGS and hung them over peoples bathrooms. Did it once; over a sink. Designed a bathroom with enough ceiling height that the fitting wouldn’t bang anyone’s head and JUST outside of zone 2 by about a foot. Smallish hex style glass jar shape. Was IP44. And honestly goddamn did it look FUCKING GREAT. Hot bulb working it’s way down over the basin instead of some flat bedroom downlight making everyone look like beige donuts. Was salty AF defending that bastard purchase to death.
Told people NO when they’ve asked me about the pendantlights they FOUND IN THE EXACT SAME CATALOGUE AS THE FUCKING BATHTUB THEY ALSO SAW ON THE PHOTO THAT CHANGED THEIR LIFE trying to slide low over itty bitty bathrooms where everyone shares a shower because THE MATH DOES NOT FUCKING ADD UP. You compromise on the look to get a legit fitting that’ll look NOTHING like your inspiration photo you spent two sentences hyping up, or you get the nice looking one and it SHOULD NOT be anywhere near where you think you want to put it.
In case you’ve missed my aggressive tone with this whole blog.
There is no way to have “my fucking bath” and get that specific bulb you fell too fuck deep into your feelings for on fancy blogger to live in the same room without compromising safety ratings so your favourite fitting can be where you physically want it.
Pulling down fines AND whole house insurance threatening you with eviction from society.
IP65 friendly lighting does not come for fourteen quid. Not unless your fourteen quid is me too, telling you this shit for free.
The real world tell you got pulled about “can you fit a pendant light over my bathroom”? Sure. Over the sink? YES HELL TO THE FUCKING YES. Over the tub? Only if you’ve got ENOUGH room to move into where your fitting is actually allowed to go, and even then you should get this. Drop down to putting lights in the bathroom that actually fit, and pay attention to WHERE they LIVE in that room.
Lights over baths CAN look amazing, I’ve installed them. But a lot of shit on Instagram… comes at a price higher than you think.
