12v Downlight to 230vac conversions.

[hartdev@hotmail.com]

Good day all.
As far as I know , if you have a 12vac downlight and wish to use 230vac bulbs, you can just add the 230vac holder which slips into the U shaped groove on the downlight to make it compliant/earth the fitting. Obviously the holder has a GU10 fitting to accommodate the 230vac bulbs and the transformer etc must be removed.
If the fitting does not have this groove then i suppose it should instead be replaced with a downlight which has this groove.
A friend of mine was recently told that although he has downlights with this groove, it would not be okay to add these holders as there is a sticker on the downlight which says 12v.
He has 39 downlights in his house and the electrician wants to replace them all.
I am a qualified electrician myself and do Certificates of Compliance too so I would really like to know what anyone else thinks about this as I follow the book always and I want to do things correctly, but I don't know everything

[AndyD]

It's a bit of a gray area. You can relabel the voltage but does the fitting have a suitable earth connection point and cable entry with strain relief etc? If not I'd say replace the fittings.

[hartdev@hotmail.com]

I usually use the 230 vac holders which slip into the u shaped groove of the downlight. The holders have strain relief and the connections are encased in a tiny plastic enclosure, thereafter you bend it so that the actual connections are not directly above but to the side of the fitting. In my opinion there is no danger whatsoever as long as the earth connection is sound.
I think relabeling is a good idea too thanks
I just don't see the practical difference. A 230 vac downlight's metal body is exactly the same as a 12 vac downlight metal body. Once the conversion is made , all is the same. If it clearly stipulated somewhere in sans10142 that it was incorrect I would deem it so, but I cant see any practical reason why not.