Lighting fixture
pull chains can be replaced without the help of a professional electrician.
Lighting fixture pull chains occasionally stop working due to regular wear and tear or simply by being pulled too hard. The process of fixing pull chain switches is mildly involved, but can be done by a novice if proper safety precautions are taken. There is some wiring that needs to be done, but nothing too technical. Doing this task alone involves the normal dangers of working with electricity, so always be aware of your surroundings and alert those in your home about your project so they don't turn the power back on prematurely. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
1. Turn the circuit breaker off to the room you are working in. This will cut off the power to that room and help aid in protecting you from shock while you are working. Leave a note taped to the circuit box telling all residents of your home that you are working on the a project and require the power to that room to stay off.
2. Take off the lighting fixture cover and unscrew the screws holding the fixture into place in the ceiling. Allow the lighting fixture to hang down by its wiring. The pull chain will then be exposed as well as a round switch inside the fixture.
3. Unscrew the brass cap piece located around the area where the chain leaves the switch area. This separates the pull chain switch from the lighting fixture. Remove the wire nuts connecting the wiring from the wall and the socket to the pull chain switch.
4. Send the new pull chain through the side hole on the lighting fixture. Screw the brass cap back into place over the pull chain. Connect the wall wiring to either of the two wires from the new pull chain switch using wire nuts and apply electrical tape around this connection for added security. Do the same with the socket wire and the remaining wire from the new pull chain switch.
5. Tuck the wiring into the lighting fixture tightly. Screw the complete fixture back into place with the two screws you removed at the beginning of this process. Cover the fixture again and attach the new extension string to the pull chain.
6. Add a new light bulb to the fixture. Turn on the power to the room and remove your note from the circuit box.
Tags: pull chain, chain switch, lighting fixture, pull chain switch, into place
