Downlight positioning

[atregent]

I was up in the ceiling on the weekend, running some speaker cables around the place, and noticed that one of my low voltage downlight fittings is almost touching a rafter. The fitting itself is all metal, with the globe in a sort of an open ended tube, it's the side of the tube that's almost touching the rafter.

Should I get it moved, or should it be ok? Or is there some other solution?

I'd hate for the rafter to suddenly catch fire, but I'm not sure how hot it actually gets there since the globe is in a sort of heatsink/spreader.

[Amb]

So long its not touching it should be ok. Where talking about 5-10mm gap, not 1 mm, aren't we. But get up there when the lights been on for a while and have a feel. You might be surprised how hot it gets.

[atregent]

No, it's not actually touching, but it would be more on the 5mm side of things than 10. I know those things run hot, and I guess it's the pessimist in me that assumes the worst, however unlikely it may be.

[OBBob]

I'm not really sure what ... but there is probably something you could slip in there to shield it a little and help you sleep at night??

[atregent]

I was considering that, bending a bit of aluminium sheet over the rafter just to spread the heat a little. I think I've got some laying around somewhere.

[Tas_Dean]

Bending a bit of ally/tin around the rafter wouldn't be a bad idea, but you should try to make it so the tin doesn't actually touch the rafter. Perhaps nail it to the rafter at the top, and bend it around the rafter so it doesn't actually touch anywhere else.

Or a couple of offcuts of cement sheet nailed to the rafter.

[atregent]

Cement sheet, perfect, just like on the space shuttle! Why didn't I think of that?. Got heaps of that around the place. Thanks Tas Dean!