When it comes to illuminating your home in a way that is unobtrusive and blends in with whatever décor you have chosen, you cannot get anything better than downlights. Part of the appeal in these fixtures lies in the fact that they can be installed in your ceilings as a part of a do-it-yourself job, helping to save the costs on getting an electrician out and the time wasted in hanging around waiting for them to turn up. If you are interested in installing your own trimless downlights, these instructions may really help you out.

A downlight is generally made up of two parts - the trim and the housing. The trim is the visible part of the fixture (it resembles a metal lip that sits flush with the ceiling), whilst the housing is hidden (it is the actual fixture, which sits inside the ceiling and is fed electricity). Once you know what you are doing, installing downlights in your home can be fairly simple.

Step 1: Choose the type of downlight that you wish to use. The most common kind are known as an 'eyeball' type, as they can be focused on a particular spot and moved around at will.

Step 2: Decide on the proper placement of your downlights and mark this on the ceiling using a pencil. The ideal spacing for these fixtures is about 6 to 8 feet, but you may choose to space them further apart in rooms where tasks aren't generally completed, such as the bedroom.

Step 3: You will need to ensure that the power has been turned off at the mains to ensure that there is no chance of electric shock. Then, move or cover any furniture that is in the room to prevent dust from getting into it. If there are any existing fixtures in the room, make sure that you carefully remove them before cutting holes into the ceiling for your new downlights.

Step 4: Begin by installing the housing of the downlight inside the ceiling itself, making sure that you have properly wired it (black wires join to black wires, and red to red). Once you are finished, you can then clip in the trim and the downlight globe.

Step 5: Finish by turning the power back on at the mains and turning the trimless downlights on at the switch to ensure that they work.

As you can see, installing a downlight can be a fairly simple process once you know what you are doing. Even so, as you are working with electricity (which can be potentially fatal if not dealt with correctly) it is recommended that you work with a friend just in case an accident or injury occurs.