Map out your wires. What do i do.
3 Way Switch 2 Black 1 White How To Wire A Light Fixture With
2 wire to 3 wire light fixture. A bare or green wire. This will usually require a screwdriver. First map the wires coming out of your electrical box. Unfasten the current light fixture from its mount. The light fixture does not work unless i connect one of the 3 wires to the bare wire. The wiring is more complicated than a traditional single pole switch but well explain how to make the connections.
Untwist the connectors holding the two black wires and the two white wires together. Once youre done youll be able to control a light from two switches. The connector could be crimps push in connectors or twist on connectors. How to attach a two wire lighting fixture to a three wire supply step 1. Follow standard color codes that identify each wires function in a circuit. Heres how to connect a 2 wire light fixture to a 3 wire ceiling box.
Pull the wires apart to release the fixture and set it aside. Place one probe of the tester on the. The black wire is a hot wire coming from the box. Wiring a 3 way light switch is certainly more. Several types of remodeling boxes can do the job but we recommend a 2 x 3 inmetal remodeling box thats 2 12 in deep for fixtures up to about 6 lbs. Knowing which wire does what and goes where is imperative not only in the correct configuration of an electrical system but also for your familys safety.
Once the light fixture is free you will be able to see the wires that attach to the fixture with some type of wire connector. While the light only has a black and white electrical wire some manufacturers include an addition wire. All home electrical wires made in the us. This keeps you safe from potential electric shock. Test the wires to verify that no power exists using a voltage tester. Open the package of wire nuts and installation screws that came with the new light fixture.
Always turn off the power at the breaker or fuse box before you work on electricity. Remove the screws holding the metal. Traveler wires are interchangeable on each switch. A red wire is an alternate hot often coming from a light switch. I am attaching a 3 wire fixture to a 2 wire ceiling box plus one bare ground wire. The black line wire connects to the common terminal of the first 3 way switch.
However its likely that the light fixture was mounted in the middle of a stud cavity which makes mounting a box that can support the weight of the fixture more difficult. Disconnect the wires. A 3 wire nm connects the traveler terminals of the first and second 3 way switch together. The white wire is common going back to the electrical box. Turn off the circuit breaker at the main panel that supplies power to the three wire cable intended for the. In the 1st diagram below a 2 wire nm cable supplies power from the panel to the first switch box.
This story features diagrams that show how to wire 3 way switches. Disconnect the old wires. The trick to.
Gallery of 2 Wire To 3 Wire Light Fixture
