Table of Contents
How many wires do I need for a dimmer switch?
There will be three wires: one black, one white, and a separate ground wire that may be bare copper or is sometimes wrapped in green. Identify the different colored wires, and use needle-nose pliers to attach the wires to the dimmer in the same way they had been attached to the switch (Image 1).
Can I install a dimmer switch without ground wire?
Houses wired with plastic-sheathed cable almost always have bare copper ground wires that you’ll connect to the toggle dimmer switch. If testing reveals your box isn’t grounded, you can still install the dimmer, but you must use a plastic cover plate and make sure no bare metal parts are exposed.
Do you need a neutral wire for a dimmer switch?
Since most Insteon-compatible wall switches and dimmers require a neutral wire connection to operate, you need to know if you have one of these in place. There are a few hardwired automated switches that don’t need a neutral wire, but these are in the minority. Also, you’ll be limited to incandescent lights.
Can you have a dimmer on a 2 way switch?
If you have a 2-way circuit (where the same lights are controlled by two switches) you must choose a push-on/push-off dimmer and replace one of the switches with that dimmer. You can only use one push-on/push-off dimmer in a 2-way circuit. Push-on/off dimmers can also be used in 1-way circuits.
Does it matter which wire goes where on a dimmer switch?
1 Answer. Unless the new dimmer is specifically marked with LINE and LOAD or similar, it doesn’t matter which wire goes to which screw/pigtail in a simple two wire switch or dimmer. Since your new switch can be used as a three way, the instructions should say which screw should not be used.
What if there is no ground wire to connect to?
If you don’t have a wire coming in to hook your ground to, what you do is you take your ground wire which is either a solid copper or a green wire, you’ll take that ground wire and you wrap it around the ground screw. Then, you’ll just tighten up that screw and then you’ll hook up your black wire and your white wire.
What happens if a light switch doesn’t have a ground wire?
Grounding light switches have become commonplace, used as a preventative safety measure. It is perfectly legal to wire a light switch without the inclusion of a ground.
Which wire is hot if both are black?
Place the prong of the multimeter’s black wire on the bare metal on the end of a white wire, then read the meter. If you get a reading, the black wire is hot; if you don’t, the black wire isn’t hot.
Why would a switch have two black wires?
The bare or green-wrapped ground wires serve as a backup to divert the power safely away in case of an electrical fault. In most cases, two black wires will be attached to the switch’s two terminal screws. The ground wires will be connected to each other and attached to the grounding screw on the switch.
Can I wire two black wires together?
If you were to leave the other wire disconnected, you’d find that other outlets and/or switches would stop working. Just go ahead and connect the new dimmer the same way. This is the typical way to connect a switch. The 2 blacks connected are “power in, power out” to the next switch in the circuit.
Can I install a dimmer switch on any light?
A dimmer switch can be installed anywhere that an existing on or off switch is in place. Replacing the current toggle switch with a dimmer switch will allow you to change the lights’ brightness, so long as you are using a light bulb that is compatible with the dimmer you have chosen.
Can I use ground as neutral?
a ground and a neutral are both wires. unless they’re tied together with other circuits, and not a ‘home run’ back to the panel, there is no difference between the two where they both end up on the same bus bar in the box.
Does neutral wire have power?
Neutral wire carries the circuit back to the original power source. More specifically, neutral wire brings the circuit to a ground or busbar usually connected at the electrical panel. This gives currents circulation through your electrical system, which allows electricity to be fully utilized.
What is a 2 way dimmer switch?
Two way dimming allows you to dim a light fixture from two locations. You can’t use ordinary rotary dimmer switches to do this because you could potentially dim the light down to 10% with one dimmer, then walk over to the other dimmer and attempt to dim the light to below 0%.
What is the difference between 1 way and 2 way dimmer switch?
1 Way Switches: If a light switch is ‘1 way’ this means it is just an on/off switch. The single switch controls a single light (or lighting circuit). 2 Way Switches: A ‘2 way’ switch means there is another switch controlling the same light. These are often used on a stair case, large room with switches by each door.
What happens if you wire a dimmer switch backwards?
But here’s the catch: If you connect the circuit wires to the wrong terminals on an outlet, the outlet will still work but the polarity will be backward. When this happens, a lamp, for example, will have its bulb socket sleeve energized rather than the little tab inside the socket.
Can I use a 3-way dimmer switch as a single pole?
Yep! 3-way switches can work just fine as a single-pole.
Is it OK not to connect ground wire?
As long as one of the two are grounded, there shouldn’t be a problem. Code bodies and safety experts say to bond both the fixture and the box, because there’s no way for them to be sure that a fixture will properly bond during installation.
Can you add a ground wire to old wiring?
It’s perfectly legal to run JUST a ground wire to retrofit old work. You do not need to also pull all the conductors.
How do I identify a ground wire in a light switch?
The black (hot) wire goes to the brass screw or into the hole in the back of the device on the same side as the brass screw. This wire is sometimes red. The green or bare copper (ground) wire, if the device has one, attaches to the green screw terminal on the switch or to the electrical box.
