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Need help with basic home electrical

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  • 35Remington

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    I want to wire a motion sensor switch to a strip of LED lights for our pantry. I am bringing power into the closet from an outlet that's on the other side of the wall.

    Can someone with a good electrical background confirm or change my diagram? The motion sensor (Lutron) has 4 wires. Two are black and two are grounds. I have 14/2 coming from the hot outlet and the LED driver uses a 3 wire grounded plug that I want to chop off and wire directly to the switch.

    gyhe9u6y.jpg
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    TexasRedneck

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    Do yourself a favor - don't wire direct. When/if the LED strip burns out, it's gonna be a LOT easier to replace.

    As noted - switch the "hot" side, NOT the neutral.
     

    Vaquero

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    As stated, run the black to the switch. White is neutral.
    14 ga is sufficient for the circuit you propose, but may be too small to trip the breaker of the circuit you intend to tap into.
    It would be best to install a new receptacle in the pantry, tapped off of the plug on the opposite wall.

    ie.
    I'd really like a look at the motion switch diagram. It just seems odd that the neutral or hot would bypass it. Maybe the ground, but not the power conductors.
     
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    Brains

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    NEVER switch the neutral (white)! That's asking for a shock, or in the right (wrong?) situation, an electrocution. In home wiring, the black (hot) is the wire which carries the current. The neutral is joined with the ground at the load center (breaker box), and it should be unbroken throughout your entire home. If you were to check continuity from any point of your home, regardless of switch positions, GFCI, AFCI, etc. all being in any position, the neutral (and dedicated ground, for that matter) circuit should never be broken.

    Okay, got that out of the way :) Otherwise, your diagram is fine with the exception of the white/black swap. The hot wire from the circuit breaker will go to the black screw, and the black wire going to your lights will go to the brass screw.

    I have one of those Lutron Maestro motion sensor switches in my media room, and it wires up like any other light switch. Works great too.
     

    Vaquero

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    Ok, I will switch the W and B. Thanks.



    Can you say more about this?
    I'm assuming this is an uninsulated wall.
    A new box and plug can be installed above or below the existing plug on the opposite side of the wall.
    Tap off of the existing terminals and wire up a new plug in the pantry.
    The guy at home depot or lowes should be able to show you how to use the box attachments for "old work".
     

    Vaquero

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    I believe he is saying to make the motion sensor turn on a plug. The LED is then plugged into it. It will serve your purpose but allow you to change the light easier later.

    No. I would put the sensor and light on a plugged cord.
     

    Dawico

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    No. I would put the sensor and light on a plugged cord.
    I see.

    I assume the sensor needs a box of it's own. I have one that just replaces the switch in the wall and is what I had in mind for this install.

    If he adds a plug in the pantry then he could just plug in a light with a built in sensor.
     

    35Remington

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    NEVER switch the neutral (white)! That's asking for a shock, or in the right (wrong?) situation, an electrocution. In home wiring, the black (hot) is the wire which carries the current. The neutral is joined with the ground at the load center (breaker box), and it should be unbroken throughout your entire home. If you were to check continuity from any point of your home, regardless of switch positions, GFCI, AFCI, etc. all being in any position, the neutral (and dedicated ground, for that matter) circuit should never be broken.

    Okay, got that out of the way :) Otherwise, your diagram is fine with the exception of the white/black swap. The hot wire from the circuit breaker will go to the black screw, and the black wire going to your lights will go to the brass screw.

    I have one of those Lutron Maestro motion sensor switches in my media room, and it wires up like any other light switch. Works great too.

    Ok I don't have a black screw and a brass screw. This is what the back of the Lutron switch looks like:
    how-to-install-a-motion-sensor-light-switch-3.jpg


    I swapped the white and black wires from my diagram, and now the lights just stay on forever, and the switch doesn't operate. When I set it up the way I showed in the diagram, everything worked fine.
     

    35Remington

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    Also, although I previously said the wires coming from the LED driver were Black, White, and Ground, they are actually Blue, Brown, and Green in reality. I searched online to find out which were hot, neutral, and ground.
     

    35Remington

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    Here are some pics of the progress thus far. The existing damage was obviously already there, and the whole closet will eventually get a new coat of paint. If I was feeling more adventurous, I would have run the wires through the wall, but I wasn't.

    Before:

    IMG_1851.jpg



    Now:

    IMG_1902.jpg


    IMG_1901.jpg


    IMG_1964.jpg


    IMG_1965.jpg
     

    Sugar Land

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    I bought a 6 1/2 foot strip and they say dimmable but no dimmer included. They are a tad on the bright side. I guess still need more research.
     

    Vaquero

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    Also, although I previously said the wires coming from the LED driver were Black, White, and Ground, they are actually Blue, Brown, and Green in reality. I searched online to find out which were hot, neutral, and ground.

    Green SHOULD be ground. Blue and brown? Heck if I know.
     
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