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Wiring a ceiling light from wall switch and from light to other lights

Wiring a ceiling light from wall switch and from light to other lights


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Old 04-01-15, 01:46 AM
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Wiring a ceiling light from wall switch and from light to other lights

What is the proper way to wire a ceiling light from a switch. The power is coming in at the switch. From the ceiling light I want to continue to other lights with their own separate switches. I'm guessing i'd need a 14/3 wire from the switch to the first ceiling light and I tie in the unconnected to the first light black or red hot wire to the next light on the circuit. Do I connect the black or red wire to the first light, does it make a difference?
 
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Old 04-01-15, 03:04 AM
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Since you have power at the switch, you won't need 14-3. Run 14-2 (black)from one of the switch screws and the neutral bundle (white) in the box. Your hot (black) from the bundle will attach to the other screw. With that set up you will have enough to energize the light in the ceiling. If you need more lighting, just connect black to black and white to white from the first light to all lights in the chain you want.
 
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Old 04-01-15, 04:12 AM
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From the ceiling light I want to continue to other lights with their own separate switches.
If to have the other lights on a separate switch you would run 14/2 from another switch in the same box using the same incoming power (black and white, bundle the whites and put a short 6 inch jumper wired nutted from each switch to the black incoming power so now you have power going to both switches), to the other lights to control on that switch; repeat the same process that chandler explains. You would not run the 14/2 from the light you control from the first switch to the next light you control on the second switch.
If you are going to only have two separate switches controlling two sets of lights only then you can run 14/3 from the switches to each of the sets of lights but that takes more explaining if that is what you want to do. How many different sets of lights do you want controlled from how many different switches? Also, are you only turning the lights on and off from one location?
 
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Old 04-01-15, 05:12 AM
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If you are installing another switch besides the initial switch where you are getting power from you will need to use xx-3 cable. Either the black or the red can be the switched hot from the first switch. The other will be the constant hot to feed the second switch for the other group of switched lighting.
 
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Old 04-01-15, 09:20 AM
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Thanks for all the responses, but I don't think I made it clear what I'm trying to do. The first switch would provide the power and control only the first light. The second light would be in a different room and would get powered from the first light but would only be controlled by it's own switch - it would not be powered from it's own switch but from the first light. There would be about four lights ultimately. I thought I'd need a three wire from the first switch because one hot wire would power the first light and be controlled by the first switch, and I'd still need a hot wire to power the second light but not be controlled by the first switch - the second light would have it's own separate switch.
 
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Old 04-01-15, 09:43 AM
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Yes, in that case you can run 14/3 to the first light. At the first switch connect your power black to both the switch and the red by wire nut. Connect your neutrals wire nutted. At the first light connect the black to the light. Wire nut your neutrals. Run a 14/2 to the next light but connect your red to the black on the 14/2 going to the next light. At that next light run a 14/3 to the second switch. At that second light wire nut your neutrals. Connect a neutral jumper to your light. Then to your switch connect both the black and red to the switch so that the power returning from the switch is on the black wire (code actually says that the wire color going to the lights should be black). You could have run a 14/2 to that switch (switch loop) but new code says the switch box should have a neutral but that is a good idea anyway in case you want to extend the circuit anyway. Hope this helps. Connect the black and red wires to your switch and just put a wire nut on the end of the white (neutral) for later use.
 
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Old 04-01-15, 11:04 PM
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"At the first switch connect your power black to both the switch and the red by wire nut."
I'm not sure what you mean by this. Is the red connected to the switch directly, kept separate from the black, and run to the junction that connects to the next light fixture? If you connect the black and red together by nut at the switch wouldn't they both be controlled by the on off switch?
 
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Old 04-02-15, 12:43 AM
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Sorry that I confused you.

What I mean is make a short (at least 6") jumper of a piece of black conductor. Take this black short jumper, hot incoming power black and red conductor and wire nut together. Take the other end of the jumper and connect to one screw of the first switch. Take the black conductor going to the first light and connect it to the other screw of the switch. Wire nut all neutrals.
 
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Old 04-02-15, 12:48 AM
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Thanks, it makes sense now.
 
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Old 04-02-15, 02:41 AM
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Welcome. Glad I could help.
 
 

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