Light fixture without ground wire

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DIY: Old ceiling light, no ground -- what's the worst that can happen? October 21, PM Subscribe I replaced a ceiling light in a 's-wired apartment. There are insulated black and neutral wires, but no ground connection fixture has ground wire but just connected it to mounting bar. If wired backwards, what happens when I flip the switch? Have read many threads, especially on DIY forums, but haven't found an answer.

Light fixture without ground wire

You can either wrap the ground wire in the electrical box with tape and let it float in the electrical box, or you can attach the ground wire in the electrical box to the light fixture, or appliance, itself. In many cases the light fixture, or appliance, may have a nut or lug on the chassis frame that is specifically meant for tying the ground wire to. Make sure to read this article on how to prevent electrical shock when working on electrical wiring around your home. It is important to keep in mind the purpose of the ground wire in an electrical box and on an electrical light fixture. The ground wire provides a backup path for current to flow through in the event a short circuit occurs in the light fixture, or in the electrical wiring itself. Watch this video to learn more on how to wire an electrical light socket. Consequently it is important to never tie ground and neutral return wires together in an electrical box or anywhere else, except back at the bus bar in the main electrical circuit panel. If a short circuit were ever to occur, which often involves current flowing from the hot wire or return wire onto the light fixture chassis itself, the current will immediately begin to flow over the ground wire as well. Learn how to Replace a Light Switch in this eBook. When this happens, the circuit breaker associated with the short circuited light fixture will trip at the main electrical circuit panel. Learn how a circuit breaker saves lives. If by chance you are installing an electrical light fixture that has no ground wire into an electrical box with no ground wire as well, then simply connect together the hot wire from the electrical box to the hot black or red wire on the light fixture. Make sure to use wire nuts to attach the wires together. Still feeling uncomfortable doing your own electrical wiring?

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Sort by Author Post time Ascending Descending. View Original Size. Rotate image Save Cancel. Breaking news: See More. Deal Alerts. Search this thread. Light fixture with no ground cable I'm refurbishing one of the ceiling lights in my new home.

Electrical lines that go all the way down into the ground beneath your house are called ground wires. The vast majority of modern buildings are outfitted with electrical panels and plugs that are grounded. The extra electrical charges have somewhere secure to go when there is a ground line present. A light fixture is an electrical appliance that provides illumination and often houses an electric bulb within its housing. Every light fixture consists of a fixture body in addition to one or more lamps; however, the vast majority of light fixtures sold in retail establishments are merely fixture bodies and do not include any lamps. You can connect light fixtures without a ground wire if your electricity supply is steady and good.

Light fixture without ground wire

What does this mean? And is it safe to install the light fixture without a ground wire? Question Answer Explanation — — — What is the purpose of a ground wire in a light fixture? A ground wire provides a safe path for electricity to flow in the event of a short circuit.

158cm to feet

As aubilenon mentioned, house wiring is AC, even though neutral should be the same as ground, from the view of the bulb both legs are the same. Unusual wiring for receptacle. Feed the wire through the plate and screw the hollow threaded rod into it. Some plastic boxes have a metal bar that has a gnd screw and runs around to both fixture screw holes. Replies 4 Views Install the app. You don't threaded rod in this case. It is still required to be accessible at that location. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. If not, just reinstall the way it was. It doesn't matter which probe you use. There are insulated black and neutral wires, but no ground connection fixture has ground wire but just connected it to mounting bar. I prefer to not call an electrician, and would actually love to learn how to ground my light fixture.

Home » DIY » Connect a 2-wire light fixture without ground. Last Updated on October 28, by Dave Farquhar.

Members Registered members Current visitors New profile posts Search profile posts. Rotate image Save Cancel. I'm surprised the whole thing didn't fall down already. You could also use a small piece of wire preferably at least 16 gauge, same as the lamp's wire gauge to connect the green screw to the incoming ground in the box. Still feeling uncomfortable doing your own electrical wiring? Be careful in there. Grounding the box gives another chance to protect things if the hot should touch something it shouldn't. It's a plastic box, so connecting the ground to the box won't do anything. Best answer: When it's working, there isn't a problem to not having a ground. Thanks for confirming. Unusual wiring for receptacle. I think someone may have done some sort of retrofit. If not, your best bet would be to undo the wire nut holding the two green cables together and add a wire, reattach the wire nut, then fasten the other end to the green screw on the plate.