Bathroom pull cord question!

[Extrapepperoni]

Hey all - we're having our bathroom renovated and because of the location of it (structural wall, top of stairs etc) we can't put a light switch outside and regs are pretty strict about no switches inside so I think we have to go with a pull cord switch.

I'm planning to have spots and also lights on either side of the mirror above the vanity. The question is - can pull cords be wired to operate different light settings (eg. Pull once for all lights, pull again for only vanity lights, pull again for off) or are they quite binary (all on, all off).

Any bright ideas welcome! Other option is having two pull cords which feels a bit strange.

Many thanks in advance!

Sensor lights.

Light switches are allowed in bathrooms.

A lot if false information is circulated. Some of it by people who sell lights.

The distance is 600mm, measured horizontally, from the footprint of a fixed bath or shower.

A washbasin or a WC is not a bath or shower. You can usually tell an incorrect diagram because it includes a spurious zone round the basin.

Accurate diagrams and table on pages 1 and 2 of
electrical.theiet.org/media/1450/section-701.pdf

Interestingly, a bidet is also not a bath or shower (nor a WC). It is a washbasin that happens to be mounted lower than usual.

Just put the switches outside the room , structural wall or not doesn’t make any difference.

Thanks @PigletJohn , was hoping you would weigh in! I think the space we have on the logical wall for the lights to be given the door and which way it swings may fall into zone 2, will measure it out tomorrow.

@Diyextension it's a lintel that is blocking wires being pulled through to outside the bathroom.

Think we're going to end up going with an led mirror instead of lights by the vanity instead.

Look into kinetic switches that do not need to be wired in

Have the main switch for the main light and a separate one for the mirror?
But I agree switches are ok in a bathroom as long as humidity is controlled adequately (no condensation running down the walls)

Pull cords are okay but I hate them. They just seem so dirty and ruin the look of a new bathroom imho.
I haven’t used Quinetic switches before but they come highly recommended.

But if you’re having a full refurb then the right way have is to have the light on the outside.
Your electrician has to use his/her brains a bit figure out a way to move the light switch.

I’m guessing they are trying to avoid chasing the wall?

Smart light bulbs?

Have a single cord to turn all the lights on then use a smart remote to actually turn them on/off. That won't need wiring and can be mounted anywhere. It'll allow for several settings you can customise. e.g. press once for main light, press twice for all lights etc.

There is no need to have the light switch outside the bathroom.

But it looks a lot neater inside if the switch is outside the room.