How to Install: IKEA ALANG Ceiling Lamp

We get a lot of traffic to our blog through the search inquiry: 'how to install IKEA ALANG'.  Interestingly enough, we had some questions ourselves when we installed the larger 18" version in our laundry room several months ago.  We were about to install two of the smaller 14" ALANG lights in our upstairs hallway, & figured it would be a good opportunity to create a photo tutorial.

If you've ever put anything together from IKEA you'll know all about their lovely pictorial instructions that they include.  You may (or may not) find them easy to follow.  Hopefully the IKEA instructions, coupled with this post should get the job done!

First, make sure you have all of the pieces:

Of course, you also want to make sure the light switch & breaker are turned off before you begin.  

Unscrew the old fixture from the ceiling plate (don't lose those screws).  
You will be left with three wires typically- we had 1 copper, 1 white, & 1 black:

Once you have all the components out, you can begin to put the ALANG light together.
Start by fitting the sockets into the white plastic fixture:

Secure the white wires into the slots provided.  We had to push fairly hard to get them to stay in place:

Next, attach the 3 magnetic pieces into the slots: 

Now you need to string the white wire through the metal plate (metal hook facing down & green/yellow wire up).  We forgot to take a photo at this point, but these IKEA instructions illustrate that step:

Next, you need to connect the correct wires together.  

The IKEA directions illustrate the fixture having 1 black, 1 white, & 1 striped wire:

However, the actual fixture has 2 white wires - not 1 black & 1 white.  We knew that the striped wire represented the green/yellow wire & should be connected to our copper wire (ground wire).  However, we weren't sure if the 2 white wires were different from one another.  Why would IKEA show 1 black & 1 white wire if they were the same thing?  Did this confuse anyone else also?

So we did a little research (AKA-call dad & search Google) & this is what we came up with:

Apparently, if the manufacturer provides a fixture with 2 white wires then it shouldn't matter which wire goes where.  It seems that the way the electricity flows (polarity) does not matter in this type of fixture.  As long as the ground wires (copper & green) are connected together you should be good to go.

[Clearly, we are not electricians- just homeowners trying to DIY.  If you are unsure about your electrical situation at home and/or it looks totally different than our set-up, you should definitely consult a professional.]

Next, secure all the twist on wire connectors tightly:

Then gently shove all the wires back into the electrical box & screw the metal plate back on with your existing screws: 

 After the plate is secure, hang the plastic zip tie from the metal hook.  Make sure the side with the ridges is facing the correct way: 

Now you can go ahead & slide the zip tie through the opening on the white plastic fixture: 

Next, run the round plastic piece up the zip tie & flush to the white piece to secure it:

Tuck the end of the zip tie into the slot & add two light bulbs.  

At this point, you should also test the light out before you put the shade on:

To finish, simply line up the 3 magnetic spots on the shade to the 3 magnetic pieces on the fixture....

and voila!

Here's a little Before & After action:

So much better!

 If you'd like to see the larger 18" version we installed in our laundry room click here.

Hopefully, if you had similar questions as we did, you will find this post helpful.
If you have any questions, please let us know!

Mel & Nader

:)