I can't find this on Youtube -- perhaps due to not knowing specific terms. What I want to do is to install 2 of these in my garage:

Comm. Electr. 2 ft. LED Lights

What I have currently is a single fixture with a light bulb in it. Taking that out and wiring into 1 of the above is easy. I want to do both of them -- each probably 2-3 feet away in opposite directions on the ceiling. They will both be controlled by the same switch (on = both on).

1. Is this possible?
2. Is this safe?
3. How do I do it so it looks semi-professional?

Do you have an attic above the garage and can you access it?

The "most professional" way would be to tie into the box from above and run the Romex to the additional boxes that you would have to install. You could then put a plate over the original box.

Keep in mind that all connections should be 1. in an approved electrical box and 2. accessible.

Yes, I can get up there.

What would be an "approved" electrical box be? When you say accessible, you mean from the attic, right?

Could I still wire a receptacle at the fixture -- i.e. above the ceiling the way you say; below the ceiling a 2 outlet recp.?

91AggieLawyer said:

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Yes, I can get up there.

What would be an "approved" electrical box be? When you say accessible, you mean from the attic, right?

Also, what is romex?

Could I still wire a receptacle at the fixture -- i.e. above the ceiling the way you say; below the ceiling a 2 outlet recp.?

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These are examples of "approved" boxes.. I've seen some hack jobs that had connections in butter containers before. Yes, in the attic is considered accessible. You're not supposed to bury a junction box behind drywall so that you can't find it.

Romex is a brand of electrical wire. You'll want to match the size of the existing wire.

Personally I would not use an OLD Work Box even though your light isn't that heavy. I'd spend the extra money and get Something Like This that will support the weight better. Since you have access it's a breeze to install.

I'm not up to date on the current code but I believe there is a limit on the number of receptacles/lights you can have on 1 circuit. The LED fixtures don't draw a lot but I'd count up the number of things that are on the circuit before you make the original fixture an outlet. You could convert the existing box to an outlet if you won't go over whatever that magic number is but remember it will be a round ceiling box and more than likely not big enough for an outlet. If it's a single bulb fixture you could get one of the screw in adapters.

So basically, all 3 sets of wires (live, light1, light2) meet at the box and get connected. The wiring is actually connected below the ceiling, right? Then you push it up and cover it with a plate, right? Ceiling access is to install a new box and to thread the light wires to the box, right?

If that's it, I got it. If not, let me know.

Thanks!

You got it..

One thing I forgot to mention is that if you use a metal box you'll need to remove a knockout to feed the wire in and you'll need some of these to keep the wire from getting cut on the box. The plastic boxes have openings to feed the wire in that is supposed to lock the wire in place and not let it get pulled back out.

I like to use these connectors instead of wire nuts for solid wires. They come in 2,3, and 4 wire capacity.

One last thing... even though you should shut off the breaker for the circuit so nobody comes by and turns the switch on I find that I use this tester a lot when I'm wiring stuff.

Good luck and besides sweating your ass off in the attic it shouldn't be that bad. Just take your time when you are connecting the wires.

Spend a little bit more money and go with 4ft LEDs in the garage...you'll thank me later!

Here ya go...

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Commercial-Electric-4-ft-White-LED-Wrap-Ceiling-Light-54654141/206032014

I've got one of those testers. In fact, I may have 2 of them. I've got 2 of a lot of things because I either forgot I bought them before or couldn't find them when needed and found them later after buying another! Oh, well.

Since it is only 10 dollars more, I'll probably get the bigger lights.

Ya'll are making this much more difficult than it needs to be.

1. Buy one of these: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000HEHCAU/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
2. Install it in the place of the bulb socket
3. Plug in your lights
4. ???
5. Profit

Similar to the other garage lighting thread, I will suggest the Costco Feit Electric 4ft LED strip lights instead of the light in the OP. Make that old light socket into an outlet and simply plug in a couple of the Costco lights. They have a 4-5ft lead on them, so lenght will not be an issue.

Quote:

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Plug in your lights

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The lights I referenced don't come with plugs.

Quote:

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I will suggest the Costco Feit Electric 4ft LED strip lights instead of the light in the OP.

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Why? They're $10 more each, and come with a pull that I don't want. I'll concede the advantage of not having to get up in the attic, but that is very minor.

In my opinion the above suggestions to plug your lights in is not a good one. The only case where I could see this being somewhat suitable is if your garage is open air (no drywall or wood on the joists). Yes it may be easier, but having cords running against your ceiling would look pretty bad. Like I said, just my own opinion.

87IE was on correct track with his suggestions.

Also, is there a reason you initially said you'd be wanting to space out the lights 2-3 feet in each direction of the existing fixture? In my option it'd be better to get more spacing than that. And yes, go with the 4' LEDs. Depending on your budget, the flushmount LED lights are great for letting you keep your ceiling space. http://www.homedepot.com/p/Commercial-Electric-1-ft-x-4-ft-White-LED-Edge-Lit-Flat-Panel-Flushmount-74031-HD/206040708

Buy these instead:

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Commercial-Electric-4-ft-White-LED-Linkable-Shop-Light-54103161/205331022

I have 4 of these daisy chained and mounted in my garage plugged into that same outlet and controlled by a switch. Works great.

My costco is showing them at $30/per unit compared to $40 for the light in the OP. Also, your light is 1800 lumnes as opposed to 3700 for the Feit lights. Yes they have a pull chain, but you do not need to use it. Switch them to the on position, plug them in, and then use your switched plug to control them. Heck, on my install, I just cut the pull chain off entirely.

But if you want to crawl into the attic, cut in new boxes, and wire up hard-wired fixtures that will likely have about the same life-span, feel free. I was just throwing out an easier and brighter alternative.

87IE said:

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In the OP he stated he wanted it to look semi professional. Hard wiring the lights isn't that big a deal and will look a lot better (IMO) than cords surface mounted to the ceiling.

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Yep, that's exactly what I did using the LED lights I posted above. 2 over main garage area on 1 switch and 1over the work area on another switch. All hard wired and do an awesome job of lighting the garage area. No hanging lights or cords from the ceiling...all flush mounted.

87IE said:

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I like to use these connectors instead of wire nuts for solid wires. They come in 2,3, and 4 wire capacity.

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Wago came out with those stab ins many moons ago. A whole bunch of them have developed a bad habit of glowing when they start to arc. Wire nuts give you much better wire to wire contact, where a stab in has just the edge of a thin blade against the wire. There's a pretty good number of electricians who won't use them anymore, especially after having repair jobs fixing someone else's glowing connectors. Yes, there isn't much current flowing to a 4 foot LED shop light, but still. Like any other "revolutionary" product, if it was meant to replace a wirenut, it would have.

Don't hang the fixture from only the outlet box, regardless if it has a hanger bracket or not. Screw it into the joist or use anchors. Hanging it only from a box is asking for it to sag or hang crooked, especially on a 4 ft fixture.

Interesting. I started using them after the electrical contractor showed them to me when they were replacing our light switches with motion sensor ones at work.

87IE said:

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Interesting. I started using them after the electrical contractor showed them to me when they were replacing our light switches with motion sensor ones at work.

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A few lighting manufacturers include the push in type connectors with their fixtures instead of wire nuts. That always seems to get a discussion going. We looked at Wago's first Wall Nut umpteen years ago for a school district. Stab in a solid wire, and it would bite. Yank on it, it wouldn't come out. Twist the wire just a hair and you could pop it right out. Stranded wire just got messy in a hurry.

They're not chinese drywall bad, but IMO should be limited to areas with very little load if used. Or if you have an existing box with very short tails where you don't have the length or room to twist and get a wire nut on a joint. You also need to pay close attention to the length of stripped wire needed to stab in the correct distance.

I had a wire nut fail on me a few years ago. In the middle of a holiday bbq with a whole bunch of people at the house, the primary condensate line from the air handler upstairs stopped up and it started draining on the back porch, right over a lighted bbq pit. Couldn't move the pit, needed to stop the water. Got somebody to watch the food and lugged the shop vac upstairs to clean the primary line. The shop vac started, then slowed down as if the motor was burning out. . Shut it off, then it wouldn't start again, and then I noticed other things off. Had to go get an extension cord to power the shop vac. While I'm doing this, i can smell meat burning outside. So much for my help. Get the line cleaned out, stop the drainage to the patio, and salvage the food.

Later that night, tired and smokey, I started chasing the gremlin on the circuit upstairs. I had plugged the shop vac into an outlet in the game room where I'd also added an outlet on the wall for a tv. A wirenut on the pigtail feeding the tv outlet had a wire come loose. The inrush of the shopvac got it arcing and started melting the wirenut. Shutting off the shop vac stopped it. I sat on the floor for what seemed like forever staring at a melted wire nut. Freaked me the F out wondering what else could have happened considering where that outlet was. I got lazy when I put it in. Ever since then, every connection I've ever made has been pre-twisted stupid tight with a wire nut.

Quick wiring question: once a wire nut is applied can electrical tape be wrapped around to secure the connection? I ask this in general for wiring whether ceiling fan or whatever.

I guess the better question is when is it proper to use elec. tape?

You don't need tape, but it doesn't hurt. The twisting of the wires under the nut is what holds them together. I'll often add tape if the wires require gentle persuation to get back in the box. Start with a couple laps or two around the wires themselves and then wrap part of the nut. Also helps keep other wires or a ground from getting poked up under the nut.

If you're gonna add tape, make sure you have solid connections and everything works first otherwise it's a PITA to undo.

Think of it like caulk. It may help a finished product, but if you're relying on it as a structural component you aiming for trouble.

The only time tape is really needed is for identification, or wrapping a "monkey fist," a split bolt or other splice.

Garage Lights


I bought these for my garage and attic. They have a plug end, with a toggle switch in-line. I bought an outlet adapter like this: adapter. The light bulb turns on in the garage and then turns on the strip light(s). Same for the attic area.

The light is hung with a nice stainless steel wire which can be adjusted to shorter if needed. Nice to not have to do any additional wiring.

~egon

I think I'm going to do this tomorrow with the 4 foot CE lights referenced above (may have been 2 ft. lights linked). Anyway, 2 issues:

1. The lights call for hard wiring but come with a quick connect plug (or it shows one in a youtube video) that are on the black and white wire. How do I connect the quick connect to the wiring at the current light outlet? I'm not sure I understand the whole concept of the quick connect plug and hard wiring -- not to mention wiring 2 lights with QC into one outlet with just bare wires. Cut off the QC?

2. What do I do if the light wires aren't long enough to reach the outlet?

Quick connnect? Do you mean waggo connectors?

Not sure what it is called.

You can see it at about the 2 minute mark of this video:



I think you can see it in this pic if you look -- its the orange thing that connects to the end of the white and black wires and is designed to plug into something. Not an outlet of course but some other connector.



Here's the best pick. Sorry;

91AggieLawyer said:

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I think I'm going to do this tomorrow with the 4 foot CE lights referenced above (may have been 2 ft. lights linked). Anyway, 2 issues:

1. The lights call for hard wiring but come with a quick connect plug (or it shows one in a youtube video) that are on the black and white wire. How do I connect the quick connect to the wiring at the current light outlet? I'm not sure I understand the whole concept of the quick connect plug and hard wiring -- not to mention wiring 2 lights with QC into one outlet with just bare wires. Cut off the QC?

2. What do I do if the light wires aren't long enough to reach the outlet?

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Just installed a 4ft LED CE light yesterday. Just cut off the quick connext (QC) and wire with wire nuts as they're better connections anyway. If the wiring is not long enough between the 2 lights, just get some 14/2 or 12/2 romex to connect them together and you'll be good to go! 14/2 is minimum required wire size.

10/2? No. It's a light fixture, not a dryer. 14/2 is adequate. 12/2 if you're tying into a 20 amp circuit.

OP, from the picture you posted, it looks like there is a circular knockout on the top side of the fixture. if you are going to hard-wire the fixture, knockout that hole, cut off the quick connect and then wire white to white, black to black and green to bare copper.

hodgesco said:

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10/2? No. It's a light fixture, no a dryer. 14/2 is adequate. 12/2 if you're tying into a 20 amp circuit.

OP, from the picture you posted, it looks like there is a circular knockout on the top side of the fixture. if you are going to hard-wire the fixture, knockout that hole, cut off the quick connect and then wire white to white, black to black and green to bare copper.

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Duh, yeah you're right hodgesco, I mis-typed that as I meant to type 14/2, not 10/2. I corrected my post accordingly.

Quote:

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just get some 14/2 or 12/2 romex to connect them together and you'll be good to go! 14/2 is minimum required wire size.

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So just to be clear and assume the fixtures are 4 ft. away from the socket. Take out the light, unhook the socket and I'm left with bare wire. Connect that wire to the end of BOTH romex wires (each 4 ft. in length) in the junction box, and feed each romex toward its respective new light? If I wanted to do more than 2 fixtures, how many romex connections would be safe?

I just want to make sure that's not redneck wiring that will create an electrical hazard.

Cloud said:

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Ya'll are making this much more difficult than it needs to be.

1. Buy one of these: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000HEHCAU/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
2. Install it in the place of the bulb socket
3. Plug in your lights
4. ???
5. Profit

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That is what I did. I replaced a single bulb light socket with a receptacle.

Then bought a two pack of 4 ft LED shop lights from Sams. The lights have a receptacle and you can daisy chain them together. This one was easy enough for the wife and I to work together and not get in an argument.

https://www.samsclub.com/sams/4-led-shoplight-2pk/prod21222050.ip?xid=plp:product:1:2

Are you running these 4ft section of romex in the attic or across the ceiling of the garage?

In the attic. Do they need to be attached to the studs?

Got it.

Code calls for romex to be secured every 16 inches. A couple of wire staples on each 4ft leg should do the job.

So no problems with this wiring scheme?

Thanks to all that jumped in, even with other suggestions. You probably gave others a good idea for their setup.