Need help with ceiling light wiring - 4 wires, 1 set always on, 1 set always off

Hello everyone,

I could use some help with ceiling light wiring. The home we live in is a 1950's built home, appears to have modern wiring (No tube and knob, appears to all be older 2 wire setup, white and black wires, runs through to a breaker box).

The bedroom had a semi flush mounted light on the ceiling connected to a switch on the wall. The light stopped working.

The mount has been loose for a while, I oressed it up, and it lit once then went dead. I pulled the fixture down, found a white wire breaking off.

On further inspection, there were 4 wires, spliced together in various ways with old beat up white Masking/painters tape.

While I was working, I discovered a black wire spliced/extended with a white wire. When I came home from work, I discovered my wife had pulled down the other 2 wires which she said were taped up.

There are 4 wires, 2 black wires, 2 white wires.

1 set of black and white wires are ALWAYS ON according to my meter (and the fact I got shocked when touching them).

Other set of black and white wires are ALWAYS OFF no matter what position the switch is in.

When I tried to connect the blacks to blacks and whites to whites, all that happened is that when I turned on the light switch it blew the circuit.

(I have since seperated all the wires out and capped them all off.)

I know this is NOT the wall switch because I swapped the wall switch with a good known switch.

I picked up several books on wiring, but nothing describes anything similar to this.

Can anyone advise on how to fix the light ?

Thanks

Sean

 

The black and white two wire that has power on it is your feed to the box.
The other wire is a two wire switch line.

Identify the switch pair........using any kind of colored tape....tape the white wire any color but white.
Now connect this wire to the black hot wire.
Connect the white wire from the feed cable to the white on the fixture.
Connect the black wire from the switch line to the fixture black wire.

 

Thanks,

I rewired up the fixture and switch as directed and the light is now working.


Sean

 

Good job.....well done