I second the vote for two or four tube fluorescent fixture with diffuser
cover - to replace the ceiling fixture with. They are cheap, and hardly
worth taking when you move. For certain needed improvements you may be able
to get the landlord to take it off your rent if you supply the labor. If so,
get the better ones, with solid state power transformer.

"Quidnunc" wrote in message
om...
Hi, all. I'm a first-time poster looking for some advice.

I desperately need to improve the lighting in the kitchen in a rented
apartment. It is too dark to work comfortably at the stove or at the
counter next to it. We don't want to do anything permanent or
terribly expensive (more than $250). The idea I came up with is to
put in ceiling-mounted track lighting using a cord with a simple
in-line switch running down to an outlet over the counter in question.
The track could be positioned so that two lights are shining on the
counter and one is over the stove. When we move out, if we wanted to
take the lighting with us, we could patch whatever screw holes were
left in the ceiling (which is plaster). The wall outlet is in a good
place for this plan, and most of the cord could run along cabinets and
window frames so it shouldn't look too unsightly. The ceiling is 8
feet 3 inches high.

I haven't done much home repair work, and I've never bought or
installed track lighting before, so I have some questions. I looked
at www.lampsplus.com and picked out what looks to my ignorant eye
like it should be a complete and workable system:

Juno 4 foot track (line voltage) $27.99
Juno Cord and Plug Power Feed $24.99
Juno PAR30 Flatback Track heads ea. (Uses 50 watt halogen
bulb).


Now for the questions:

1) Does this seem like a reasonable way to go, or am I missing
something?

2) How heavy are these systems? Do I have to have a beam to screw it
into to?

3) I'm more concerned about simplicity and initial cost than long-run
energy savings, so I have ruled out the low-voltage systems, but am I
overlooking some other advantage they have?

4) Does my choice of track heads make sense for the application? Is
the light going to be bright enough and widely dispersed enough to
work under? (If that depends on the specific bulbs I use, what would
you recommend? And by the way, what does the "30" mean in PAR 30?)

5) Are there any common mistakes to avoid when installing (other than
forgetting the shadow issue)?

Many thanks for reading--with your help we won't need to keep the
bandaid box so close to the chopping board any more!

Mark