I have a standard light switch in my bathroon I'd like to replace. The new swich I bought is a switch and an outlet all in one, switch on top half outlet on bottom half..
Can someone please explain how to hook this up.
Current I have black/black in and out of the old switch and the green/ bare wire. The white wire it capped off in the back not connected to anything.
Thanks for your assitance, Felix
BTW, here is a link to the product:
You will need to use the white, hope it's connected at the other end. If not, you'd have to rewire to get a neutral.
To wire the combination, you'll need to determine which of the black wires is hot and which just supplies current the light. If it isn't obvious, you can use a tester between the white wire and a screw on the current switch and see which one is hot even with the switch off.
I have done the above a few times, using a little neon tester to find hot.
Disconnect the wires from the existing switch, determine which one is the live wire. Once you know this, connect the live wire to the side of the combination switch-outlet that has only two brass screws with a bridge connecting them together. The other black wire, which is the load wire, goes to the brass screw on the opposite side of the switch. You now need to run a white wire from the silver screw on the outlet to the two white wires connected together with a wire nut. Install your ground wire to the green screw and you're done. I will caution you that by current NEC , all bathroom outlets are supposed to be GFCI protected. They do manufacture combination switch-gfci outlets as well
Reader assumes any risk from use of this advice.
You probably have a device where there is a feed on one side with two screws but there is a connecting link so that one feed can serve both the outlet and the switch. On the other side there is a connection for the neutral as well as for the power leaving the switch going to the light. There will also be a ground connection at the end or corner and probably tinted green.
Naturally you will have turned the power off before doing this. The incoming black power line goes to one of the screws on the feed side (brass colored). The black wire leading to the light goes on the opposite side of the sitch part (probably also colored brass). The white neutral wire should be uncapped, end stripped if not already so, and connected to the silver colored screw next to the outlet but opposite the feed side. Green ground wire goes to the green screw. Take care in connecting the wires--if solid wire you can pre-form the hook shape that goes around the screw and then squeeze it to a smaller shape with needle-nosed pliers before tightening down the screw. Wires should go around the screw clockwise. Tighten firmly but not so much as you strip the screw threads. It's a good idea to wrap electrical tape around the body of the device so the screws are covered over. Before pushing it back into the junction box you can carefully test it by turning the power back on and make sure the switch works (and the breaker doesn't trip). Turn the power off while you carefully push the device back into the box, screw it down, and put the cover plate on.
With a voltage detector, determine which of the black wires is hot. Attach that to pigtails going to the two brass screws (if the switch and outlet are connected already, you can just attach the hot to a brass screw; no pigtail necessary). Attach the other black wire to the white screw on the switch. The switch is set. Attach the white wire to the white screw on the outlet. Where-ever the other end of the white wire is, presumably at a light, attach it to the other white wires. You should be good to go on the outlet. If you don't follow me, you had better hire an electrician.
The code in force at the time his house was built may not have required the GFCI, therefore he's not required to put on there upon replacement.
For that matter, whose to know anyway? (regardless of when it was built)
He's not replacing an outlet. He's installing an outlet in a bathroom where one didn't exist. I believe under those circumstances he'd be required to use a GFCI
I don't follow you, and I am an electrician!!! If he connects it as you describe, with the black "load" wire connected to a white screw, he'll have a dead short when he flips the breaker back on
You can get a switch/outlet like he is suggesting with a GFCI. Personally I think a GFCI in the bathroom is a good idea.
I know some code items you are required to follow whenever you replace a device, like if you have a grounded box and are replacing an old 2-prong receptacle, you are REQUIRED to use a grounded outlet. Not sure if that is true of the GFCI receptacle, but it certainly is a good idea.
nate
He said white (silver) screw on the SWITCH. I'm following him but I didn't think that switches generally used silver screws for anything, usually line and load are both brass IME. So hot black to "line" dead black to "load" (which are probably both brass) then white to the silver screw on the recep. and pigtail the green screw with a bare wire to the existing ground wires.
nate
RBM wrote:
Correct N8, the only silver screw should be adjacent to the outlet part of the device, for the neutral. Toller knows this, he just had a momentary lapse of reason
Step # 1 Make sure that that circuit is on a GFI. If not likely adding an outlet like that (which I believe are not available in GFI) would be a code violation .
why would that be a code violation?
Any new installation or any replacement receptacle in a bathroom would have to be GFCI protected
Wow, I did not expect so many different posts, but thank you.
After looking at the situation I have a GFI outlet right next to this new switch/outlet, so after failing to think about it at 1st, I just supplied to new outlet with a black & white wire from the exsisting GFI, this making the new outlet a GFI.
Thanks again to all, it was from reading all the post I thought this would be the easiest way.
Felix
Ah, makes sense. So you connected the feed to the new recep. from the "Load" side of the existing GFCI outlet? that'll work.
If there is a recep. in your light fixture (some have them) I would recommend feeding the switch from the GFCI as well, just in case someone uses it.
nate
Yeah, you're right -- I missed that the OP said it was in a bathroom.
Or disconnect the receptacle, and don't use a GFCI for it. Then, if the GFCI trips you won't be in the dark.
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