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Electrical in Old House for Low Voltage Fixture

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Electrical in Old House for Low Voltage Fixture 6zbeast 11-19-2006
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Posted by 6zbeast via HomeKB.com on November 20, 2006, 11:00 am


Cool, thanks!

Joseph Meehan wrote:
>>> That wiring is not unusual. It is proper to do it either way.
>>
>> I think you misunderstood him. He's got a switched neutral, which is
>> not proper and dangerous
>
> I must of misread. A switched neutral would be very bad. However I
>can't see where he said that. If you mean "Many light fixtures, including
>this one, have voltage in the box even when the switch is turned off" that
>would not mean a switched neutral, it could mean the power is supplied to
>the box at the light and a separate run is made from there to the switch.
>
>>>> I was hoping somebody could help. I have installed a low voltage
>>>> fixture in my hallway and I can't seem to get it to work. The house
>[quoted text clipped - 25 lines]
>>>
>>> Dia 's Muire duit
>

--
Message posted via HomeKB.com
http://www.homekb.com/Uwe/Forums.aspx/repair/200611/1


Posted by Mark Lloyd on November 20, 2006, 1:54 pm


On Mon, 20 Nov 2006 15:47:34 GMT, "Joseph Meehan"

>RBM wrote:
>>> That wiring is not unusual. It is proper to do it either way.
>>
>> I think you misunderstood him. He's got a switched neutral, which is
>> not proper and dangerous
>
> I must of misread. A switched neutral would be very bad. However I
>can't see where he said that. If you mean "Many light fixtures, including
>this one, have voltage in the box even when the switch is turned off" that
>would not mean a switched neutral, it could mean the power is supplied to
>the box at the light and a separate run is made from there to the switch.
>

It could. Much of my house is wired that way. Romex from the breaker
panel is wired to a node near the ceiling light. Cables from the
switch and all the receptacles in that room connect to that. You see 2
junctions with a lot of wires in them. One is a bunch of white wires
(including a wire to the light). The other is a bunch of black with
one white. That white wire is the one going to the light switch.

The "hot" node is not connected directly to the light. Doing so would
bypass the switch and keep the light on all the time.

>
>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>> 6zbeast wrote:
>>>> I was hoping somebody could help. I have installed a low voltage
>>>> fixture in my hallway and I can't seem to get it to work. The house
>>>> is old, and the wiring is always a surprise. Many light fixtures,
>>>> including this one, have voltage in the box even when the switch is
>>>> turned off (learned this the hard way with the first light I
>>>> replaced in the house). Seems like the power runs through the
>>>> fixture down to the swich, instead of the reverse. I don' t know
>>>> if this would make a low voltage light not work. Maybe the
>>>> transformer is just defective. When I turn it on, I can barely
>>>> hear the transformer making a slight buzz sound, but the lights
>>>> don't light up. I also thought it might be the track, but I've
>>>> inspected it and it seems okay. I've even tried reverse wiring it,
>>>> still no luck. Any ideas?
>>>
>>> That wiring is not unusual. It is proper to do it either way.
>>>
>>> Someone needs to measure the voltage at the transformer (voltage
>>> in and voltage out). Remember that using a digital meter can result
>>> in measuring AC voltages that are really not there. For this kind
>>> of work a older analog meter is better. The voltage has to be
>>> measured at each connection until you find one that is dead.
>>>
>>> I would have to guess that if the transformer is buzzing, even a
>>> little, it is getting voltage. Have you checked the bulb(s)?
>>>
>>> --
>>> Joseph Meehan
>>>
>>> Dia 's Muire duit
--
35 days until the winter solstice celebration

Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.laughingsquid.com

"I have found Christian dogma unintelligable. Early
in life I absented myself from Christian assemblies."
-- Benjamin Franklin

Posted by Mark Lloyd on November 20, 2006, 1:42 pm


On Mon, 20 Nov 2006 09:59:01 -0500, "RBM" <rbm2(remove
this)@optonline.net> wrote:

>> That wiring is not unusual. It is proper to do it either way.
>
>I think you misunderstood him. He's got a switched neutral, which is not
>proper and dangerous
>

Somehow, I get the idea that the switch is connected to the correct
(black) wire, but the connections to the source are wrong, making the
white wire hot.

>
>
>
>> 6zbeast wrote:
>>> I was hoping somebody could help. I have installed a low voltage
>>> fixture in my hallway and I can't seem to get it to work. The house
>>> is old, and the wiring is always a surprise. Many light fixtures,
>>> including this one, have voltage in the box even when the switch is
>>> turned off (learned this the hard way with the first light I replaced
>>> in the house). Seems like the power runs through the fixture down to
>>> the swich, instead of the reverse. I don' t know if this would make
>>> a low voltage light not work. Maybe the transformer is just
>>> defective. When I turn it on, I can barely hear the transformer
>>> making a slight buzz sound, but the lights don't light up. I also
>>> thought it might be the track, but I've inspected it and it seems
>>> okay. I've even tried reverse wiring it, still no luck.
>>>
>>> Any ideas?
>>
>> That wiring is not unusual. It is proper to do it either way.
>>
>> Someone needs to measure the voltage at the transformer (voltage in and
>> voltage out). Remember that using a digital meter can result in measuring
>> AC voltages that are really not there. For this kind of work a older
>> analog meter is better. The voltage has to be measured at each connection
>> until you find one that is dead.
>>
>> I would have to guess that if the transformer is buzzing, even a
>> little, it is getting voltage. Have you checked the bulb(s)?
>>
>> --
>> Joseph Meehan
>>
>> Dia 's Muire duit
>>
>>
>>
>
--
35 days until the winter solstice celebration

Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.laughingsquid.com

"I have found Christian dogma unintelligable. Early
in life I absented myself from Christian assemblies."
-- Benjamin Franklin

Posted by 6zbeast via HomeKB.com on November 20, 2006, 2:30 pm


Would any of this affect whether the low voltage light I'm trying to instal
works? The old light worked just fine, and went on and off with the switch.
It had the same three wires as the new low voltage light. I have no idea why,
if the white wire is always "hot" the light did not stay on constantly.
Somehow it all worked before.

Mark Lloyd wrote:
>>> That wiring is not unusual. It is proper to do it either way.
>>
>>I think you misunderstood him. He's got a switched neutral, which is not
>>proper and dangerous
>
>Somehow, I get the idea that the switch is connected to the correct
>(black) wire, but the connections to the source are wrong, making the
>white wire hot.
>
>>>> I was hoping somebody could help. I have installed a low voltage
>>>> fixture in my hallway and I can't seem to get it to work. The house
>[quoted text clipped - 22 lines]
>>> little, it is getting voltage. Have you checked the bulb(s)?
>>

--
Message posted via http://www.homekb.com


Posted by Mark Lloyd on November 20, 2006, 3:45 pm


On Mon, 20 Nov 2006 19:30:35 GMT, "6zbeast via HomeKB.com"

>Would any of this affect whether the low voltage light I'm trying to instal
>works? The old light worked just fine, and went on and off with the switch.
>It had the same three wires as the new low voltage light. I have no idea why,
>if the white wire is always "hot" the light did not stay on constantly.
>Somehow it all worked before.
>

It's about safety. The light should still work exactly the same when
no one is touching the wires.

>Mark Lloyd wrote:
>>>> That wiring is not unusual. It is proper to do it either way.
>>>
>>>I think you misunderstood him. He's got a switched neutral, which is not
>>>proper and dangerous
>>
>>Somehow, I get the idea that the switch is connected to the correct
>>(black) wire, but the connections to the source are wrong, making the
>>white wire hot.
>>
>>>>> I was hoping somebody could help. I have installed a low voltage
>>>>> fixture in my hallway and I can't seem to get it to work. The house
>>[quoted text clipped - 22 lines]
>>>> little, it is getting voltage. Have you checked the bulb(s)?
>>>
--
35 days until the winter solstice celebration

Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.laughingsquid.com

"I have found Christian dogma unintelligable. Early
in life I absented myself from Christian assemblies."
-- Benjamin Franklin

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