I'd like to add a on/off switch and wall light from an existing plug outlet box?

Question

This is newer circuit wiring. Black, white and ground coming to the outlet. Should I use a single pole on/off switch?

Answer 1

In normal home wiring, the black wire carries the current (the "hot" wire) and the white wire is called the "neutral." The bare ground wire is... well, the ground wire.

Cut two holes in the wall, one for the light switch and one for the light fixture. You will need two boxes, one for each hole. Get the type of boxes that are called "old work" boxes, as these are built to be shoved into the holes in the wall and have features that will support the box sturdily once installed. These boxes should be made of plastic and I highly recommend plastic boxes, as it simplifies grounding.

Before installing the boxes, run a stiff wire (such as a coat hanger bent straight) from the box with the receptacle to the switchbox location. Use this stiff wire to pull a piece of 12-2 electrical wire from the outlet box to the switchbox location. Thread this 12-2 wire into your "old-work" switchbox and work the switchbox into the wall. Tighten the support screws so that the box is firmly attached in the wall.

Starting from the switchbox, feed a length of 12-2 wire from the switchbox up to the light fixture box. Once you have about 12 inches sticking out of the hole in the wall, thread this wire into your light fixture box and press the light fixture box into the wall. Fasten it with the support screws. You should now have a wire running from your outlet box to the switch box and again to the light fixture box.

At this point, strip the wires in the light fixture box and in the switch box, leaving several inches of the black, white and ground wires exposed. Take about 3/4-inch if insulation off the ends of the black and white wires.

In the switchbox, twist the two ground wires together, leaving a strand coming off to connect to the ground terminal on the switch. Twist a wire nut onto the ends of the two white wires and connect the two black wires to the terminals of a single-pole switch. Attach the ground wire to the metal part of the switch and screw the switch into the box. Use wire nuts to connect your light fixture to the wires in the light fixture box.

The last step is to attach the wires to the receptacle. Of course, you should switch off the the power to the receptacle before attaching the wires. Once switched off, attach the new black and white wires to their respective terminals on the receptacle. If this receptacle was installed in the last 35 years, it should be a simple matter of installing the black wire to a screw terminal next to another black wire and doing the same for the white wire. Twist the ground wire onto the other ground wires in the outlet box.

That should do it!

Answer 2

ALWAYS control the Black (Hot) with the single pole switch never the neutral (White).

Answer 3

First you must isolate that circuit from the feed to the box, otherwise you will turn off everything feeding to it- then get that wire to the Switch Box- if you already sheetrocked,bummer you must somehow get the wire to the switch.

Answer 4

Most house wiring is very simple to do. but it is very important to know exactly what you are doing. Don't guess.Get a how to book first and check out the pictures. It wouldn't be wise to proceed with your very simple project by taking advice from this forum. Good luck.

Answer 5

Yes you can, just tap into the black and the white, and put your single pole on/off in either.