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    MCVaughan's Avatar
    MCVaughan Posts: 2, Reputation: 1
    New Member
     
    #1

    Sep 20, 2008, 01:21 PM
    Replacing 2 Ceiling Lights, One OK, the Other Won't Turn On
    Hi there! I replaced 2 flush mount ceiling lights in my basement. Both are in the same room. The problem is that one of them doesn't light up anymore when I flip the switch.

    Fixture #1: In the ceiling, there was one white, one black and one ground wire. The new lighting fixture had two white, two black, and one ground. I connected the two white ceiling fixture wires to the one white ceiling wire, did the same for the black wires, and connected the ground to the ground. After I made the connections, I flipped the power back on at the circuit breaker, flipped the light switch, the and the fixture worked.

    Fixture #2: I took out the old fixture and found that there were three white wires twisted together and capped to a single white wire, three black wires twisted together and capped to a single black wire, a red wire, and a ground wire. I wasn't sure what to connect to what on my light fixture, so I came here I found that I should connect the red ceiling wire to the black fixture wire, connect the white to the white and the ground to the ground, and cap off the black wire. So, that's what I did. After I turned the circuit breaker back on and switched the lights on, the second one -- the one with the red wire -- came on perfectly. But the first one doesn't come on anymore. What did I do incorrectly?

    I'll admit that I can't remember if the black ceiling wire for the 2nd fixture was connected to the old fixture, or if it was just taped off. I'm wondering if not connecting this wire to the 2nd fixture somehow interrupted the power to the first one?

    If it helps, my home was built in 1979.

    Any help would be greatly appreciated!
    hkstroud's Avatar
    hkstroud Posts: 11,929, Reputation: 899
    Home Improvement & Construction Expert
     
    #2

    Sep 20, 2008, 02:19 PM

    The black wire that you capped off should be connected to the black wire from the new fixture and the red wire in the ceiling that comes from the switch.

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