AboutBob Sponaugle Expertise Just about any home wiring question. (not appliance repair) I have done all kinds of home wiring for myself, including adding a new breaker box, etc. Please, questions from North America only. Please be specific with details.
Question I am replacing an existing flush mounted ceiling light with a chandelier type light in my dining room. The fixture is operated with a dimmer switch. I purchased a quick disconnect unit manufactured by Hampton Bay. There is a component that attaches to the wiring of the light fixture and one that attaches to the junction box. The wires on the light side are inserted in slots and tightened with tiny screws. The wires on the junction box unit are inserted in holes (similar to a light switch unit). All wiring seemed to be correct but the light will not come on. The new fixture has aluminum wiring that is not marked. It looks almost like speaker wire. I thought the side with printing on the wiring cover was generally the hot side so I connected it to the red, black to black and ground to ground. In the junction box, all wiring is copper white, black and ground. The junction box is very shallow and I had to really cram the wires in to attach the crossbar. However, nothing seemed to become disconnected.
I have never had this problem with any other ceiling light in my house.
Answer Hi.
Did you connect the fixture to the black and red? It is probably red and white. If not black and white. Try that.
Dimmers are very temperamental. So perhaps it is defective. Did you turn the power off at the breaker box? If not, it can damage the dimmer. Try replacing the dimmer with a wall switch temporarily, or touch the wires together with the dimmer removed, but be careful not to touch any metal with your body.
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