How to Re-Wire a Chandelier
Chandeliers add a graceful note to dining areas and other special rooms. If a chandelier is otherwise usable but the electrical wiring is worn out, then replacing the wiring is easy and requires no electrical skill. It is important to keep track of which wire goes where since there will be many sockets to hook onto the lamp wire. Using a digital camera helps document all aspects of the task if you have questions about the way something was done before you disassembled it. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Sticky labels
- Pen
- Pre-wired lamp sockets sized to fit the chandelier
- Lamp wire
- Snap caps
Instructions
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1
Label each chandelier arm with its own identifying number. The wires for each arm should terminate near each socket with two twist caps, one for the white wire and one for the colored wire. Take careful note on how the wires flow and connect from socket to socket. You want to duplicate this exactly when you replace the wires. Disconnect the wires from the sockets by untwisting the caps.
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2
Pull and discard the lamp wiring for each arm while keeping the sockets in place. Measure each wire and write down the length of wire for each arm.
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3
Replace any sockets that appear to be broken or abused. If you are unsure on how to put the new sockets in your particular chandelier, then only remove one socket and replace that one before moving on to the next one. This allows you to examine an existing socket to help you know how to put the new one on.
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4
Cut portions of the lamp wire to meet the lengths for each chandelier arm. Label the cut wires so that you know which wire belongs to which arm. Trim 3/8 of an inch of insulation off from both sides of the dual wire and from both ends. Pull the dual wire apart enough to give you sufficient room to attach each side to the correct snap caps.
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5
Replace the lamp cords on a one-for-one basis the same as you pulled them from the chandelier. One side of the lamp wire will have a small ridge on it that you can see and feel with a fingertip; designate that ridge side as attaching to either the white or colored wire coming from the socket. It doesn't matter which, as long as you apply the rule consistently to every socket. Do not allow the sides to get reversed when connecting the sockets.
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6
Connect the wire to socket number 1 by holding the bare white wire and the bare wire from one side of the lamp cord together and snapping a cap around them, locking them in place. Be sure that the ridged wire is connected to the correct color. You can use a twist cap if you are familiar with them and confident that you can create a secure connection, but spring connector caps are easier for inexperienced people.
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7
Group together the wires for the number 2 socket, the other end of the wires that were just attached to socket number 1 and the wires for socket number 3. These will be connected with a snap cap the same as the first group, but with the three wires in the connector cap instead of just the two. Remember, again, that the number 1 and number 2 ridged wires fit into the same cap with the correct color.
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Hook the number 2 and number 4 wires into the number 3 socket the same as the one previously, and continue to wire the chandelier arms in the same fashion until all of the sockets are completely wired.
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Tips & Warnings
Correct wiring of the chandelier is important to the safety of your home. If you do not believe that you can properly do it yourself, it is better to ask a more experienced person for help.
The spring connector must make a solid connection with all three wires. If a wire comes loose over time, it may cause a house fire.
References
- Photo Credit Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
