Tuesday, November 23, 2010

How to change a light switch?

I want to know how to change my regular light switch to something like an electronic dimmer. I need to know how to do the wiring.How to change a light switch?A switch is a pretty simple device, One wire connected to it has the power from the panel. The other wire goes to the light. The nice thing is that for most switches, it does not matter which one is connected to which screw. Make sure you turn off the power at the panel, remove the switch from the box, (as long as only two wires are connected), remove then, and connect them to the new switch and re-install.



The new digital dimmers that I have seen come with wires attached to them. In this case, you will need two wire nuts to make the connection. One wire for the switch connected to one wire from the box. They may also have a green wire on the switch, this is a ground. Attach it to the metal box in the wall with a ground screw or wire nut it to a bare ground wire in the box.



If this is a 3 way switch, or more than two wires are currently attached, you should probably get the help of a professional.How to change a light switch?No problem, good luck!

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How to change a light switch?the important thing to remember always turn the power off when doing dimmers



most switches can handle a change out while still hot



most dimmers cannot



all the advice above is very good so it would seem that your switch just might be changed before i finish typing thisHow to change a light switch?Several types of dimmer switches are available--for example, push-on dimmers ( figure A) and slide dimmers (figure B)--but most operate the same way.



Materials:



Dimmer switch

Medium-size flat-head screwdriver

Needle-nose pliers

Crimping tool

Circuit tester

Barrel crimps

Wire nuts





Safety tip: Periodically test your circuit tester at an operating electrical outlet.



Turn off the power at the circuit breaker.

Remove the switchplate cover.

Remove the screws from the existing switch, and pull it out from the wall.

Use the circuit tester to make sure the power is off.

Disconnect the wiring.

Straighten the wires coming from the wall.

Twist a wire from the switch onto a wire from the wall, and snug the connection with needle-nose pliers. Use a barrel crimp (figure C) to connect the green wire to the bare copper ground wire. (Some building codes require that ground wires be connected with barrel crimps.)

Note: For this installation, it doesn't matter which color wires you use to make your connections.





Cap the connection tightly with a wire nut.

Repeat the process for the other two wires.

Push the wires back into the box, screw the switch into place, and replace the cover. Be sure to install sliding dimmer switches upright--otherwise they could operate in reverse. The previous cover plate may not fit; others are available.

Turn the power back on at the circuit breaker.





See URL for pics etc ...How to change a light switch?The new dimmer will come with directions. Read them and Understand them before you do anything.How to change a light switch?Buy the same type of switch you have. A single or a three way. (two wires or three). Wire it the same way as the old one. The dimmer will probably have wires rather than screws. Connect them to the wires from the old switch with the twist on wire nuts that will come with the new dimmer. Turn off the electricity to that circuit first.How to change a light switch?Turn off power from main box .Then In back of the dimmer there's three wires (black-white or blue-green) connect black to black -white or blue to white- green to exposed wire in box (Ground , does not have plastic cover).

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