Hello everyone,

I had to replace a pool light recently and after installing the new one it did not illuminate. The old one did illuminate until it deteriorated to the point that it needed replacement. I replaced the switch too. I do not think I have wired it correctly. The junction box also holds a transformer. The box is divided into two parts. On the left is the 120V part where the incoming negative and neutral wires connect to the transformer as well as a ground going to the grounding screw. On the right is where the wiring is. There are four wires on the right coming from the transformer. A 14V, a 13V, a 12V, and a 0V. The 14V and 13V are unused. There is also a white wire coming into the box on the right and it looks to be 8 or 10 AWG and my multimeter seems to tell me it's live plus it had a black strip of electrical tape on it. The pool light's wires are ground, neutral, and negative. The previous light made use of the 0V wire but I'm not sure where it connected.

 

If you think it is negative and neutral that connects you need to call an electrician. One mistake wiring a pool light can kill.

 

I didn't mean connecting negative to neutral or vice versa. I think to simplify the whole process I could remove the transformer and use a 120V pool light instead of a 12V pool light. All the wiring is in place for the change but I would have to make sure that my area allows 120V pool lighting. I just don't understand why there is a 0V wire.

 

Pool wiring may not be rated for voltage that high.Your lack of understanding is why you need to call an electrician. No. Neutral refers to an AC circuit. Negative refers to a DC circuit. You won't have both.

 

First off there is no "negative" and "positive" with AC circuits. There is only hot(s), neutral, and ground.

Any light that is installed in, on, or near a pool needs to be designed for that location. First off lets do some trouble shooting:

You are going to need a meter, analog preferably. If you don't have one, go to the home store and pick one up for about $12.

Take your meter and measure between the hot (black) and Neutral (white) and see if you have 120 volts. If you do then we can move on. If you don't, then you have to back track and find why there no power to the transformer.

If you have 120 volts, next you will check the output of the transformer. The 0v is likely the common so you will measure between that and the output leads (14v, 13v, and 12v) You should have voltage between them. If not, check between every lead and see if you have any voltage at all. If not, your transformer is dead and will need to be replaced. If you do have voltage, then move on to where your lights are.

At the lights you should have two terminals or wires. Take another voltage reading. If you have voltage at the light but the light does not work, that light is bad. If you do not have voltage at the light, you have a break in your wires someplace and will need to look for a splice some place and find the broken connection.

 

0v is the common of the transformer. The reason for the different voltage taps is to correct for low voltage based on low voltage wiring distance.

What color wires did your new light come attached with ?

 

An electrician came and inspected the wiring for me and told me that the 14v and 13v are for longer runs so the 12v and 0v are what I need to use. The 0v is in fact common and where the white wire from the pool light connects to. The 12v wire is where the black wire from the pool light connects to, and the large 8 or 10 AWG wire is actually the ground and connects to the ground wire of the pool light. We wired it and and it worked but then bulb's filament broke.

 

You might want to see if you can get an LED bulb as a replacement. What is the base of the incandescent bulb?

 

The pool light uses an E26 base bulb. I have found an LED replacement for it but the bulb alone costs $70. However, it only uses 18 watts compared to the 300 watts of the traditional incandescent pool light bulb. Additionally, it has a much longer life span and much lower operating temperature. The inside of the current fixture has melted resin due to the heat of the incandescent bulb. I probably will pull out the light again and run a new light and use an LED bulb with it.