How do you wire an outside light?

December 6, 2020
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Wire an Outside Light to an Interconnected Switch

In this tutorial we will explain how to wire an outside light to a connected switch. An outside light can be wired up to connect to a switch using different types of wires or even no wires at all. You may want your lights wired up so they are always on when you turn the room on.

Or perhaps you need them off only during certain hours such as night time or when nobody is home.

There are many ways to wire an outside light to a switch. Some of these methods include:

Using a standard wall outlet (or extension cord) as the power source for the switch. Using a regular lamp socket, which could be plugged into any wall outlet. A dimmer switch.

Using an external battery pack, which would require additional wiring and would not provide enough current to run the lights at full brightness 24/7.

The first method requires you to use a wall outlet or extension cord as the power source for the switch. If you have a standard wall outlet, then it will work just fine. However, if you don’t have one of those outlets, then this option might not be suitable for your situation.

Also, depending on where you live and what type of electrical system there may be other options available to you. Using a remote control.

The first method is the easiest and most common way to wire an outside light to a switch. The second method requires some extra work but provides greater flexibility if you wish to use other devices with your switches. If you decide to go with the third option, it’s best to have all three options available in case one fails.

The fourth option is probably the most difficult since you’ll need to have some knowledge of wiring.

For the purpose of this guide, we will be focusing on the first option.

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We won’t go too much into detail here since wiring is not our specialty, but if you have questions about what exactly you’ll need to do this, then you should contact an electrician. They’ll help you figure out the best way to set up your lighting situation.

If you want to use a lamp socket for your switch, then you can use a regular lamp and then replace the light bulb with a dimmer switch of some sort. This would allow you to have complete control over the amount of light being emitted from the bulb. In this case, a regular ON/OFF switch will not suffice since it will always be either fully on or off.

If you’re interested in using a lamp socket, then you can find several examples of wiring them here.

You can also search amazon or eBay for “lamp socket with dimmer”.

You can skip directly to Step 3 if you already have a desired light socket with dimmer switch.

If you have decided to use a wall outlet, then you’ll need to get an extension cord and a plug. Once you have those, then you can proceed with the other steps.

Step 2: Locate correct wires

Once you get your socket, plug, and extension cord, then it’s time to start connecting them together.

For this project, we will be using the following items:

how do you wire an outside light | remodelingmate.com

A lamp socket with a dimmer switch. An extension cord (any length). A wall outlet.

When you get all these parts together, then the first thing you want to do is cut the extension cord so that you have separate extension cord end and wall outlet end.

Next, take the extension cord end’s cover off and expose the three wires inside of it.

Then, take the wall outlet end and unscrew its cover as well (if it has one). Find the black wire (it should be the only black wire in that bundle).

Step 3: Connecting everything

Now that you know which wire is which, connect the black wire from the extension cord to the black wire from the wall outlet.

Sources & references used in this article: