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Want mood lighting in your home without spending bookoos of cash? Install dimmer switches! Do not be intimidated - it is a very simple and inexpensive task!
All you need to start out is a flat head screwdriver, circuit tester, wirecutter/stripper, dimmer switch (you can pick up at any hardware store), needle-nose pliers, wire nuts (plastic twist-on wire connectors/caps) and a dimmer switch plate.
- Turn off the circuit you will be working on in the breaker box. Be sure to double check it by trying to turn the light on; if it remains off, you are good to go.
- Remove old switchplate with screwdriver.
- Use the circuit tester to make sure that the switch is not receiving power before beginning work on the wiring.
- Disconnect the wires that are connected to the light switch. There should be three wires in all, a black wire, a white wire and a groud wire, which is usually red.
- If the exposed wire looks worn, strip the wires using wire cutters. First cut off all the bare wire to just below the plastic insulation on all three wires. Then use your wire cutter to strip off three-eights inch of the insulation. This will give you clean pieces of wire for the new connection.
- Connect the black wire from the workbox on the wall to one from the dimmer switch by placing the bare wire ends next to each other. Then twist them together in a clockwise direction with the pliers, and twist on a wire nut. do the same for the white set of wires as well as the ground wires.
- Bend all the wires into a zigzag pattern to fit them easily into the workbox. With all three wires connected, you're ready to install the new switch in the wall box. Just make sure the switch is oriented so that up is on and down is off. Push the switch into place, tighten with the workbox screws to hold it in position, and screw on the switch plate.
- Voila! You have installed a dimmer! Switch back on the breaker and you are finished!
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