How to Replace a Light Switch in a Metal Electrical Box
Posted: Tuesday, January 05, 2010
by Bruce Horst
WryteStuff
Do you have a light switch in a metal electrical box that stopped working or doesn’t stay on? Well, so did I and now I’m going to show you how to replace it. This light switch is in my garage and is a metal electrical box, so it’s a little bit different than most light switch replacements.
First I should say that it can sometimes be difficult determining if a switch is bad or if there is some other problem. Often with a bad switch you can hear arcing when the switch is flipped, or the switch loses it’s “snap" and won’t stay fully in one position or the other. Fortunately this is how my light switch is working, so I’m sure that the switch is the problem.
1. Turn off the circuit breaker so there is no power to the light switch.
Even a light switch which is turned off has electricity running to it, so it’s important that all power is turned off before you start working on it. Locate your circuit panel and the corresponding circuit breaker, and flip it off.
2. Remove the front cover from the electrical box by removing the two corner screws.
The switch is actually attached to the front cover, which is different than most light switch installations.
3. Remove the switch from the cover by removing the two screws above and below the switch paddle.
Make sure you don't lose the screws!
4. Remove the two wires from the switch, plus the bare copper ground wire.
If there are only two wires (plus ground) then it is a single-pole switch and it doesn’t matter if the two wires get reversed. If there are three or four wires (plus ground) then the switch is a three-way or four-way switch, and you must be careful to re-connect the wires in the exact same locations as they were with the original switch. Here again, this switch itself is different from most since it only has screw-type terminals. The previous owner of my house apparently got a great deal on hospital-grade electrical devices so this type of switch is found throughout my house.
5. Remove the ears from the new switch.
This is necessary because this type of electrical box requires that the switch be mounted to the front plate and not the box itself. You can also remove the screws from the switch, you won’t be needing those.
6. Attach the wires to the new switch, including the bare copper ground wire.
Grounding the switch is even more important since the electrical box is metal. I put tape on the screw terminals after the wires were attached because they were so close to the electrical box I wanted to make sure nothing shorted out.
7. Screw the switch to the front plate.
Use the old screws or new ones if the switch came with them (mine didn't.)
8. Screw the front plate back on the box.
Righty-tighty, lefty-loosey.
9. Turn the breaker back on.
If you hear a pop, you have shorted something out.
10. You are finished, if everything went correctly the light switch should now work.
This is my attempt to show a light turning on over my head. Did you notice that I didn't have anyone to help me by holding the camera while I replaced this switch? Also, please note that my hair is coming back nicely since the Mr. T incident.
I hope that you have found these instructions informative and easy to follow. Jean is just glad that she can get me to work on my honey-do list and do something for SearchWarp at the same time!
This Article has been viewed 1,992 times. (Not updated in real-time.)
Top-level comments on this article: (4 total)Entertaining AND informative, just as it should be. Now, how about an article on how to splice and rewire a computer power cord?Thanks Lorrie. Here's a dollar, BUY A NEW CORD! How's that for how-to?
Bruce,I loved the photos! That is definitely the way to instruct someone in the proper procedure.Thanks for letting us into your garage as well!Thanks Nancy. You should see the side of the garage that I didn't show!
Thanks, Bruce, for demonstrating a great how-to article; the graphics are excellent. Now that I know how to replace a light switch in a metal electrical box, I can pay the handy man to replace mine while I watch to make sure he does it right. Great come back on the hair, BTW. ~mogama~Thanks Mogama... and I'm quite proud that my hair has decided to grow back, though I now have proof that gray hair grows faster than regular hair!
Thanks Bruce for painstakingly explaining the fix=up of an electrical switch with photos...so from now on your mail box will be flooded with requests for help to fix this and fix that....enjoy.Thanks Ramaswamy. It's funny how I was much more careful knowing that I was documenting what I was doing. Maybe this will help me be motivated to do more chores around the house!
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