Nothing is easier than replacing a wall switch. This does not mean that you should omit taking the necessary precautions. Follow these tips to do this little job safely. Light!
1. Turn off the power
- Turn off the power switch.
- Remove the wall plate.
- Unscrew the switch fasteners.
- Remove the switch from the housing and, with a tensiometer, make sure that the circuit is broken.
2. Disconnect the wires
- Unscrew the switch terminals and disconnect the wires.
- Depending on the circuit, they may both be black or one may be black and the other white.
- CAUTION: The white wire is usually the neutral. If a black tape has been added to it, it has been recoded to black to indicate that it is a live wire.
3. Plug in the new switch
- Plug in the new wall switch by attaching the bare wires to the terminals.
- Tighten the terminal screws.
- The new switch will have a green ground screw, which may not have been the case with the old switch.
- If so, connect the case ground wires to the green screw.
4. Finishing
- Place the wires and switch back into the housing.
- Screw the switch into the housing.
- Put the wall plate back in place.
- Restore power.
How to connect electrical wires
Knowing how to connect electrical wires correctly allows you to make some simple repairs and installations wall switch,safely.
strip a wire
- To connect two wires, you must strip approximately 2 cm of sheath at the end of each wire with a wire stripper or with a stripping tool.
- If using a stripping tool, insert the wire into the appropriate notch, then close and rotate the tool to cut the sheath. Then slide the tool along the wire to remove the sheath.
How to splice
- Use a wire nut to connect the wires.
- Hold the stripped ends of the wires and twist the wire clamp to the right.
- Twist the stripped ends of the wires together, then screw on the connector.
- connect a wire
- To attach a wire to a terminal, use long-nose pliers to bend the stripped end of the wire.
- Wrap the bent wire around the terminal screw to the right and screw down the terminal.
How to make a pigtail
- Pigtail fittings are used to prevent a failure in one outlet from interrupting the entire circuit.
- To connect two wires to a switch, use a wire nut to splice them together for a short length. Then connect the pigtail fitting to the terminal.
- Never connect more than one wire to a single terminal. The majority of terminals are designed for a single wire.
* It is not only dangerous, but also illegal in Quebec and other provinces, to assemble your own electrical circuits. The solution: consider hiring a master electrician .
