The main reason to wire a closet is to add a switchable light fixture. It is relatively easy to do this, especially if you have a convenient place to connect wires, such as a nearby wall outlet, and the closet is unfinished inside. If the closet is finished with drywall, you may have to cut and patch some of it in order to install the wires. You will also want to check that you are not overloading a circuit by adding a light. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
Running the Supply Wire
1. Choose the outlet in the room nearest to the closet and verify that you will not overload it by adding a light. Do this by adding up the current draw of all loads on the circuit and checking that it is less than the rating of the breaker. Verify also that the outlet does not already have a continuation wired in. If it does, choose another outlet.
2. Remove the outlet from the electrical box and punch an opening in the box with a screwdriver. Use a drywall saw to make a small hole in the wall just above the baseboard. Feed a length of electrical wire through the outlet box and out the hole. Feed through enough cord to reach the location where you plan to install the switch, with 6 to 8 inches to spare.
3. Using a splicing tool and pliers, connect the wire to the available nuts on the outlet, black to brass and white to silver. Be sure to connect the ground wires. Re-attach the outlet into the box.
4. Pull the wire from the outlet along the baseboard to the location of the switch. Make a small hole in the drywall under the switch and pass the wire through to the inside of the closet. Staple the wire you have left exposed to the wall and cover it with surface-mounted conduit. This conduit includes special fittings to cover the entrances of the wire into the walls.
Installing the Switch and Light
5. Cut a pathway in the drywall from the entrance of the wire to the location of the switch and continue to the ceiling. Cut holes for the switch box and the light fixture box next to the nearest convenient stud or rafter, respectively. If the closet is unfinished, you obviously don't need to remove drywall, but you will need to cut a hole for the switch box if the switch is to be located on the wall outside the closet.
6. Punch two holes in the switch box for entering and exiting wires, and one hole in the light fixture box. Affix them to the stud and rafter, respectively. Pass enough wire to reach the switch through the hole in the electrical box and pull it to the switch, leaving a length of about 6 inches at the electrical box.
7. Wire the switch by connecting the incoming and outgoing black wires to the brass nuts on the switch, twisting the white wires together and capping them and twisting the ground wires together. Push the switch into the box, screw it in and screw on the cover plate.
8. Wire the light fixture by twisting and capping the black wires together, then the white wires and then the ground wires. You don't need to cap the ground wires, but you do need to attach them to the electrical box, if it is metal. Affix the light fixture to the electrical box.
9. Staple any wire you can to an available stud. Patch up any holes you made in the drywall.
Tags: light fixture, ground wires, wires together, adding light, black wires, closet unfinished