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This is my first time attempting any electrical job... Parents house has had a bad light fixture in their utility room. Turn on light, it flicks on and immediately turns off. Well, I studied up, bought a tester and went at it. Opened light switch and confirmed hot wire was hot. Turned off breaker. Easily traded out old switch for new. Turns out the house uses white wire as hot and black wire as ground/neutral. Backwards, right? So, turned power back on, confirmed hot, and turned switch on. Light fixture didn't work. Turned power off, unscrewed light fixture and pulled down wires to test. Knowing that wires are switched, turned power back on and tested hot wire (white). No power to it. Tried black too, no power either. Besides being backwards, do I need new hot wire from switch to fixture? Switch has power, but not getting any power from light fixture. Any help would be great!
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Another question. Since in this house white is hot, what is black? Neutral or ground? I wired the black, which doesn't show hot, to the ground at the switch. The white, definately hot, wire is in its normal terminal in a single-pole. Does the black, neutral? or ground?, wire need to not go on the ground side but over to the other side with the hot, some reason white wire? Do I sound like a novice or what? I'll have a electrician here yet! -
While your wires are backward, they should still work fine. Whichever wire is hot (white in your case) goes to one terminal on the switch. The hot wire to the light goes to the other terminal on the switch.
The other wire coming from the light (neutral) is tied directly to the neutral in the switch box (black wire in your case). The ground, if there is one, is a green or bare copper wire. Both of them coming in to the box are tied together and attached to the green ground screw on the switch. The ground wire on the fixture connects to the ground wire coming from the switch box.
If you've got power to the box and the switch is good, then there's always the possibility of a short in the switch leg (the wire going to the fixture) or in the fixture itself.Comment
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One other thing: if you have a continuity tester, you can check the switch legs by turning off the power at the service panel, then tying the black and white wires together at one end of the switch leg, then use your continuity at the other end. If you've got continuity, then it's probably the fixture.Comment
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Thanks for the info. Yup, 1950s house with backward wires... No ground is present. No green or copper. Only black and white wires. So that means I need to move the neutral, black wire in my case, off the ground leg at the switch? Sounds like my neighbor told me the wrong leg to put the neutral since no ground is present. May of found my problem...Comment
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Yeah, apparently there was no return from the fixture, then.
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Both poles on the switch need a wire other wise there is no circuit when you flick the switch on.
Sometimes the white can be hot but it should be marked as hot by either a black band with a sharpie or the like or a black band of insulation tape.
Little about a lot and a lot about a little.
Every day is a learning day.Comment
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Sounds like a easy fix! I don't know why my Dad's neighbor said to put the neutral on the ground. No wonder nothing worked! No circuit! Thanks guys! I'm going to sleep easier tonight and finish it in the morning!Comment
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my question to you is: How many wires in the switchbox? If you tell me only three: white, black, bare ground - I'm going to tell you that is called a switch loop. the hot wire and neutral is at the ceiling box. at the ceiling box, the incoming hot [which should be black] is tied to one of the wires going to the switchbox [ in your case as you measured, white] the return to the ceiling fixture is black. this ties to the fixture's black. the neutral at the fixture is wirenutted to the incoming line's white, completing the circuit. the bare or green grounds have no play in the circuit other than protection against a short circuit.Comment
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He mentioned that there is no ground wire, only black and white.Originally posted by HayZee518 View Post
However, if there is only one cable at the switch box, then I agree that the fixture is wired hot.
The OP was a little vague as to where he was testing the wires, whether at the switch box or the fixture, but if there's a live wire at the fixture when the switch is unhooked or 'off', then your theory is correct. Although he did mention that he had hooked one wire (I'm guessing the neutral) to the ground screw on the switch, which would definitely not work.Comment
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wiring
follow this diagram. you may or may not have everything that's shown, but I'll bet it is very close.
A hot romex is coming into the ceiling box. another wire is going to the switchbox in the wall. if it is an old style romex then it may not have the bare [copper colored] wire, or the ground may have been just cut off.Comment
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If that's the case don't forget to mark the white as hot (black stripe), the next person to work on that switch may not be so careful. Little about a lot and a lot about a little.
Every day is a learning day.Comment
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Got it! Works fine. Neutral wire was on the ground leg right where my neighbor put it for some odd reason. No ground at all. Light works, but now my mother wants to go to Lowe's to replace the old fixture with something nicer. She wants me to do the kitchen too. Since I know what I'm doing now, it'll be a piece of cake! Trying to find more projects now; just opened a can of worms! Thanks for all the help everyone!Comment
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just don't get over confident. it might be the next job that BITES you!Comment
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