Why do I have 2 live wires on my light switch?

An outlet may have two hot wires so that one wire may function as an ‘always on’ transmutation from the power supply, feeding the other wire. The other hot wire would transmute that voltage to another device or series of devices.

Why does my ceiling light have 4 wires?

In order for the light to be controlled by its own switch, the wiring between the switch and the fan unit needs a fourth wire, a red wire, to carry power to the light kit.

What is the loop wire in a light fitting?

Loop in allows you to carry electricity from one lamp to another lamp. Inside the ceiling rose of a pendant light there are four terminals: loop in, neutral, switchline, earth. Power comes into the light via a cable from the consumer unit, containing line, neutral and earth wires.

What do you do with a ground wire in a light fixture?

Quote from the video:
Quote from Youtube video: Ground make sure you make your loop. In the same direction that your nut is tightening up and that will pull the wire underneath the screw.

Can I connect two hot wires together?

A short circuit happens when a “hot” wire (black) touches another hot wire or touches a “neutral” wire (white) in one of your outlets. When these two wires touch, a large amount of current flows, creating more heat than the circuit can handle, so it shuts off.

Why does my light switch have two black wires?

STEP 3: Identify the terminal and ground wires.



Observe the layout of the wires. You should see two black wires, each connecting to a different screw on the side of the switch. These are called terminal screws. You will also see two white (neutral) wires that connect to one another in the box.

What is the fourth wire for?

The 4th wire in that cord and plug configuration is an equipment grounding conductor. This equipment grounding conductor is the missing wire in the older 3-wire configurations. In these older appliance installations where 3-wire cords were legally installed, the wiring consisted of two hot wires and a neutral wire.

How do you connect 4 wires to 3 wires?

Quote from the video:
Quote from Youtube video: As we can see the four wire cord is color coded and the three wire cord is not the green wire on the four wire cord is ground black is l1 or line one white is neutral.

What is 4 wire used for?

Four-wire is used for “two-way” circuits, and for cases where two circuits are running to the same place (independent control of a ceiling fan and its lights, for example). In the US color coding conventions, red is the “second hot” needed for these applications.

What do you do with green wire without ground?

What to do When there is Nothing to Attach the Ground Wire

  1. When you have a ground wire and there is no place to attach it then place a wire connector over the end, coil up the ground wire and push it back into the electrical junction box.
  2. IMPORTANT: Never cut the ground wire off.

Is it OK to install a light fixture without a ground wire?

Yes, if you have a metal light fixture your fixture needs to be grounded. The ground wire exits your junction box, but it is not attached to your junction box.

Does a pendant light need to be earthed?

Any light, lamp, bulb holder or fitting with a conductive or metal exterior surface must always be earthed to ensure against risk of electrocution or serious injury.

What happens if light fitting is not earthed?

An earth connection is designed to take away the danger of electrocution from a fault in an incredibly fast time. Most normal light fittings have an earth terminal on them & if you don’t have an earth connection in your electrics then the electrician cant put the light up.

What happens if earth wire is not connected?

Without the earth wire, if a fault occurs and the live wire becomes loose, there is a danger that it will touch the case. The next person who uses the appliance could get electrocuted . The earth wire is therefore connected to the case and is attached to a metal plate or water pipe underground.

How do I know if my light fitting is earthed?

Take one of the wires and place it in the earthing port, which is the third hole at the top or bottom of your outlet. Place the second wire in the live port again to see if the lightbulb illuminates. If the lightbulb has the same intensity as your first test, then the outlet is properly earthed.

Where does earth wire go in light fitting?

The earth cables must be sleeved individually with yellow and green sleeving and terminated into a connecter block or a wago type connector, your light fitting is double insulated and the earth is not required to be connected to the fitting , but is needed throughout the rest of the circuit .

How do you check if a wire is earthed?

Insert the Negative wire in the Earthing of the Socket (Top single Hole). The Bulb must Glow with Full Brightness as before. If the Bulb does NOT Glow at all then there is NO Earthing / Grounding. If the Bulb Glows Dim, then it means the Earthing is Not Proper.

How do I know if a wire is neutral or live?

Quote from the video:
Quote from Youtube video: If you don't get a voltage reading the wire is neutral. If you get a reading the wire is hot you can also use color coding to identify. Hard neutral and ground wires.

What happens if you mix up hot and neutral wires?

This happens when the hot and neutral wires get flipped around at an outlet, or upstream from an outlet. Reversed polarity creates a potential shock hazard, but it’s usually an easy repair. Any $5 electrical tester will alert you to this condition, assuming you have a properly grounded three-prong outlet.

Can you get shocked from a neutral wire?

The neutral wire does have current going through it. However, we do not get shocked when we touch something with current going through it, we get shocked when current goes through us.