In replacing light fixture, the wires are both black and sheathed in brown weave. How can I tell which z which

Question

No idea how old wiring is. House is 1904, fixture looks about 1950.

Answer 1

I take it you don't have much electrical background so the couple of post before me probably don't make sense to you. So, you can buy a cheap 'hot stick' (looks like a fat magic marker) that is idiot proof (no offense) pull your 2 wires apart and put the stick to each one individually and it will light up or cherp on the hot, that'll be your black and the other will be the white. The stick cost about $15.

Answer 2

it sounds like you have knob and tube wiring, if the two wires are separate and not encased together in any type of sheathing. i'll tell you how i handle identifying these type wires in my '32 home. first, pull the fuse, or flip the breaker off, if the service has been upgraded. next, disconnect the two wires from the fixture, and spread them so they won't come in contact with each other. next, i plug an extension cord into a three prong outlet with a known good ground contact, then run the cord over to the fixture. next i turn the power back on at the fuse panel. now, working very carefully because you will be working with live wires, with a voltage multi meter, set to volts/ac, i insert one of the probes into the round ground connection on the extension cord, and touch the other probe to each of the wires, one, then the other. the meter will read the voltage when touched to the live/ hot wire. carefully, without touching the other wire, cover that hot wire with electrical tape. if neither wire gave you a voltage reading, try turning on the light switch then try it again. after i have covered the live wire, and there by marking it, i turn the power off at the fuse box before proceeding. i have bought two rolls of electrical tape, one is white, one is red, now the correct color coding is black is hot, white is common, or neutral, but everyone uses black tape on everything, so i use the red to identifiy the hot/live wire. the cloth wire covering is very brittle, so handle it gently, wrap the hot wire with red tape, covering it an inch or two, and the common, the same, with the white tape. now you can install the new light fixture, gently with the wire nuts. then put the fuse back in. as i have worked on the wiring in my home this is what i have done, and now 90% of the wiring is identified, so whenever i have to work on it again, i know what i have. another hint, i use black electrical tape to cover the screws and wire connections on any switches and outlets that are installed in metal wall boxes, just to prevent any chance of contact with the box. another tool to get for yourself is, a circuit tester that plugs into an outlet, that will tell you if the outlet is wired correctly, and if it is grounded. a lot of people have worked on these old houses over the years, and the way they were wired, sometimes with a shared common wire on two circuits, you need to identify any wires you encounter. also, always re check that the power is off, even after you pull the fuse, so that you don't get any surprises. i have had to pull two fuses, more than once, to turn off a circuit. good luck, hope this helps.

Answer 3

You have the almost ancient wiring like I had in part of my house where the wiring is not color coded and the insulation is asphalt impregnated cloth. Assuming the wiring is correct one wire is connected to neutral (white in modern lighting) and one is connected to the switch, which is connected to the hot lead (black). My suggestion is to run a 3 prong extension cord from an outlet with a known ground or grounded outlet. A meter can be used to check voltage from that ground to the wires with someone turning the switch on and off. If you have power, then the hot wire will go high and off with the switch. If you do not, the resistance will be low on the neutral and high on the circuit with the open switch and/or circuit breaker.

Answer 4

even as the lighting fixtures might artwork connecting the two way, to be secure, do an hassle-free continuity try. The bulb socket has a center touch element for the very backside of the bulb. it truly is the touch element that would desire to finally be related to the black cord. The threaded factors of the bulb socket might desire to be related to the white cord. Take a continuity tester and place one probe on the threaded metallic factors of a bulb socket. With the different end of the probe, touch certainly one of the two wires with the sparkling insulation, one after the other, to be sure which sparkling insulated cord is hooked as much as the threaded metallic area of the bulb socket. That cord might desire to connect with the white cord. for the reason which you purely have 2 wires to attempt, as quickly as you perceive one, you already know the id of the different, yet you could then additionally try for continuity between the middle touch element on the backside of the bulb socket and the different cord. That different cord will hook up with the black cord.

Answer 5

Connect the hot to one of the wires and use a continuity tester to find which is hot by probing the center electrode and going to the other unconnected wire or ground if you want to put the hot on the center electrode which is the modern requirement. Not really hazardous if you don't though.

Answer 6

Follow wires back to light socket and the wire that conects to the center of the socket is your black or hot wire.

Answer 7

just take a volt meter and see which line is hot or has 120 volts that would be your line in or load. the other would be neutral . black wire is hot white is neutral.

Answer 8

A fixture 56 years old is in need of replacing.To answer your question if they are both black it doesn't matter.

Answer 9

papaw is right. Since there's only two wires, it doesn't matter.

Sounds like, from your description, the wiring may be "knob and tube", or BX, as we used to call it. Now it's called flexible metal tubing. Both of those old type wires were fabric covered.