I suspect I know the answer but I'll ask any way...

Hi,

Thanks for reading this post.

I have this new house with many electrical shortcuts. I believe his work was safe but apparently the electrician took as many shortcuts to save costs as he could. I'm going to attempt to work out each problem or disliked electrical feature as I can.

Here is one of the problems. The main powder room has a ceiling fixture and over-the mirror light. The electrician wired them both to one switch with one 12/2 wire. I would really like to be able to turn each light on separately and running a new line through this part of the attic and feeding a line through the wall will be next to impossible.

Am I stuck with one switch for two lights or do you have any thoughts? Do I need to cut out the wall (12') and ceiling?

Thanks so much.

KC

 

If you can't run more cable in the walls, you are probably stuck with what you have. You could consider surface wiring, or you could replace one or both of the lights with a pull-chain fixture. If it's just light level you want to control, consider a dimmer switch.

By the way, running new wire may be a lot easier than you think. Most things seem impossible when you've never done them before. Home wiring books are full of tricks to help overcome these situations. Worst case, drywall repair isn't rocket science.

And most homes were wired by the electrician who was the lowest bidder. And any extras he might give you come directly out of his pocket. So you aren't likely to get any.