Some sheathed cable includes a fourth red wire which makes it useful for wiring fixtures with three way switches or a ceiling fan with separate light and fan switches. Normally youll see a red wire in places you would expect a ceiling fan.
3 Way Switch Wiring Electrical 101
Red electrical wire light switch. Switch loops if you see a red wire spliced together with a black one in a 120 volt outlet its probably because the outlet is powered by a wall switch. Source 2 comes in at the combo device where the hot and neutral wires are connected to their corresponding terminals on the receptacle half of the device. When you see a red wire in a light switch box it can mean two things. If your new ceiling fan has a light a red wire from a second switch in the same wall box can provide switched power to the fans light. When you see a red wire in a 120 volt duplex outlet box its usually because one of the outlets is operated by a wall switch while the other is always on. Sheathed cable with a red.
The red wire as a spare wire when a ceiling fan is not installed this spare red wire is insulated with electrical tape or capped off with a wire nut. This configuration sometimes called a half hot or split tab outlet is becoming increasingly popular so its good to know how to wire it. The red wire from the light is connected to the output on the switch and to the hot terminal on the light at the other end. Or it could be the red wire is the wire going to the fixture and the black wires are the live wires. Consult the instructions that came with the light for the proper wire connections. If your ceiling fan does not have a light fixture then simply cap off the red wire and attach the fan motor to the black wire.
The wall switch typically when a ceiling fan is installed the red wire is most commonly used for the light and the black is commonly for the fan motor. If the electrical box was previously used for a fan the wall switch is probably a two pole switch. Well cover the easier scenario first. A red wire up in the ceiling fan junction box usually indicates that the wiring has been installed which provides separate switch for the light and a separate switch for the fan motor. The red wire is for the light switch. It could be there is or once was a three way switch in play.
Either disconnect the red wire from the switch or replace the switch with a single pole version. Certain switch loop configurations require a three conductor wire the extra wire is needed to complete the circuit at the switch. Red can also be. If you change a light fixture and find a red wire in the electrical box chances are the black wire from the fixture needs to go to the redwire in the box. Assume the red and black wires are live.
Gallery of Red Electrical Wire Light Switch
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