"Cliff Hartle" wrote in message
news:nutVj.23625$5Y1.12816@trnddc04...
Let me get this straight.

In the box for the switch there is a black and white wire and in the
light's box there is also only a black and a white.

In my post I assumed that the cable in the switch box was also in the
light box and should match the diagram.

If this is the case then there has to be another box somewhere between
the switch and the light.

Also I believe that digital multimeters can give weird readings or you
have some majorly screwed up wiring like things wired in series instead of
parallel.

Good Luck


"Aaron Fude" wrote in message
...
On May 10, 10:36 pm, "RBM" wrote:
"metspitzer" wrote in message

...





On Sat, 10 May 2008 22:03:16 -0400, "RBM" wrote:

"John Grabowski" wrote in message
...

"Aaron Fude" wrote in message
...
I'm sure you guys will crack it instantly.

I'm replacing a light and the switch that controlled it. I removed
the
switch first. The switch connected a black and a white wire that
came
in the same sheath. The white one was hot. (I know that sometimes
this
means something, but what?)

Then when I removed the light I discovered that it, too, had a black
and a white wire connected to it, and the black one is hot. Now that
the light is disconnected, the black whire is still hot, but the
wire
that used to be connected to the switch is now dead.

There are no other wires in either electrical box.

I'm racking by brain, but can't figure out how everything was
connected.

Many thanks in advance!

Aaron

I'm thinking that there is another junction box somewhere where these
wires could be connected. Is there another light fixture in the same
room? Is there an accessible attic above so you can go see if there
is
a
junction box up there? Did an electrical box get buried during a
remodel?

I agree, the op either missed the second cable and splice in one of the
junction boxes or there is obviously a third box, and they mistakenly
broke
the neutral through the switch

Sounds like to me he is just trying to get a voltage reading across
the switch.

If he took a switch out he would only have 2 wires to put back. You
can't really mess it up.

When he took the light down, there is only 2 wires to put back too.

Seems like he is mistaken of the meter readings.

I think he's just trying to figure how it works, not so much, how to put
it
back. As you said, he really can't go wrong. I belive he's thinking that
with the switch wires disconnected, he shouldn't still have a hot wire at
the light, which is correct, except for when the neutral was switched
instead of the hot



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Hi,

To clarify matters - yes, I'm just trying to figure out how it works,
not how to put it back together. And I still don't get it.

There are *only* to wires in each electrical box. I'm sure I did not
miss anything, because I have now removed the electrical boxes. Each
of the two wires came from a single romex.

So Cliff's suggestion was mostly likely, but that is not it. So I am
still puzzled.

One thing I am thinking is that I've been using a cheapo pen-like
voltage detector. Maybe my readings are wrong. I will go back and use
something a little bit more refined.

In that case, what John Grabowski suggested, must be correct. There is a
third junction box. If disconnecting the two switch conductors does not kill
the hot in the lighting outlet box, then it was the neutral that was broken
through the switch