How To Change An Outdoor Light Fixture By Yourself

This is a simple video where I show you how to change an outdoor light fixture. You should definitely NOT do this unless you feel comfortable working with electricity. The process involves removing the old light fixture, connecting the 3 wires on the new fixture to the ones in the wall, and securing the new light fixture into place! I replaced an old fixture on my garage with a new motion sensor LED outdoor light!
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[@MargotKeyes]

My husband is an electrical engineer and has done all our wiring in the house...and I have even installed some J boxes myself...but that was a dozen years ago. The mind forgets no matter how old or young we are. Thank heavens for You Tube these days! He thinks "there are only three wires, how hard can it be?" Well, as you started saying, if people feel uncomfortable they should never do it themselves. However, this is 2020--- Covid 19 has punched a whallop on so many people and finding good help to actually come out in a timely fashion is a challenge. DIY is more the way to go for many reasons! He' s away for an extended period, so I am going to remove some 40-year old ugly and broken amber lamps and install two new brass onion lamps outside my New England cape and I feel confident with this awesome video that I can do it! Thank you!!

[@erikaquatsch2190]

just a basic tip on how to connect a wire to a screw: bend the end of the wire in the shape of the top of an "S" (not like the bottom of an "S" ) and place the wire left of the screw, wrapping around it. As you righty-tighty the screw the wire will be more secured to the screw.

[@91mysunshine1]

THank you so much , this is the 1st time I will be changing a fixture by myself and have watched 3 how to videos and you are the only one who explained all three wires . Thank you

[@berardo9992]

yes thank you

[@johnwilliams7102]

EXCELLENT ! Well done - clear video that shows connecting wires, simple easy to understand explanation of each step, and safety considerations. Just what I needed - thanks.

[@shirleybaker-jones9191]

I as an older woman from old schooling now think I can do this for myself. You can bet your Hiney the power will be off to the light fixture. Thank you . Going to put up flood light with security camera wifi.

[@karenkramer3760]

That sounds so cool. How did it come out?

[@MaryfroMaryland]

This was really helpful. First time switching out a light fixture on my own. Smooth and easy process because of this video. Thanks!

[@lass-inangeles7564]

That was one great demo, thank you!! Very clear instructions with very clear visuals, much appreciated. Don't throw away that beautiful old lamp though, its lovely! It had more character than your new one, so use it somewhere in your house.

[@loft4me]

Hi DIY. I just received my security light from Amazon, and I am waiting on a non-contact voltage tester that should arrive today. This will be my first changeout of something that involves turning off electricity at the breaker, so I am taking my time. One thing I notice, is that the included flexible grommet/seal ring that comes with the light, needs to be put on before the wires are attached; made a mental note for myself about that step. Thanks for the video; it gives me a good work flow on how to proceed.

[@ruthpelcastre2482]

Thank you for the video. I now feel confident that I can change my flood light! :-)

[@salfitimina2376]

Honestly, if you are gonna make a video please flip through the code book. The codes are there for a reason, to prevent fired and prevent electrocutions. I know we all take short cuts , but..... 1) a pancake box is not an outdoor wall mounted rated electrical box. The water will get in there first rainfall. 2) pancake box has a box fill max of 6 cu. in. ( I didn't hear the wire size he is using) so that's basically three # 14 wires. If they ran # 12 wire, code violation. 3) IF you "need" to use a pancake box, don't make the wires so long, & 4) IF you "need" to use a pancake box ( and this is really a point he should of made , no matter what type of box), get some caulking/silicone and seal around and openings, holes, etc.

[@destravlr]

A note about installing a light: coiled fluorescent and LED lights should last longer if you choose a fixture that has the light above the base. That will reduce heat from the light from affecting the circuit in the lamp base and should extend the life of the lamp.

[@lumpiasauce8699]

Does the watt power have to match the previous?

[@BioSnare]

I appreciate the straight to the point instruction.

[@kalavinka3]

Good video! I did worry abit about the screw going through a wire, but I feel confident that I can chnange my own light.

[@alanramnanan]

Good job bro👍🏽Loved the hands free stand u made👌🏽

[@shingj4007]

Great detailed how to video, good for not at all handy me. Thank you.

[@adamkimo7447]

Thanks bro I’m going change my front yard light to moation light 💡

[@karenkramer3760]

Awesome video! Can't wait to do mine and save some money

[@llw53one]

Thank you. This is exactly what I needed 🙏🏽

[@jaijohnson1723]

Thanks for this video it helped me change out my defective light fixture easily and successfully.

[@rickeylewis444]

Jordan lucus

[@reneecole6744]

Thank you , this video is clear and simple.

[@blueghost5488]

What about the green ground screw on the bracket did you put the ground wire on it

[@kennethjensen5921]

This thing works great 100%

[@lesterjones9335]

why didn't you add silicone something to stop water from getting in the fixture?

[@noneyabusiness1359]

Lester Jones also was wondering the same thing. Great Video though.

[@saintanthony7718]

Quick question, after you attached all the wires can you let me know if the ground wire was attached to the green screw on the bracket ? Or was it just wire nutted to the other ground wire coming out of wall ?

[@whocares0692]

I saw that when the original light was removed, the ground was connected to a screw in the back of the box. I thought the new light ground should have been connected to that screw.

[@romuloromero2268]

That's quite the contraption LOL

[@franciswhite419]

That shallow box is for indoor use only plus the wire enters the center knockout Tightening the center fixture screw will drive the screw into the wires. Hope its grounded.

[@rashaunbrooks9595]

nbvo

[@mrpanda2655]

Listen to his voice

[@susanjeffay3851]

Couldn't be any clearer!! Thanks

[@victorrivera2644]

Very helpful video thanks!

[@sharkflap7092]

Great video I would have liked to see the light at night though!

[@carlg5086]

Did you attach the ground wire from the wall around the ground screw, before attaching it to the ground from the light?

[@jpmuzeackly185]

Hi Carl. I'm so glad you asked that question. I don't understand how to do that. I could only find one youtube video on how to do that. The guy had a third piece of copper wire. He didn't explain where he got the 3rd wire. The ground wire on my fixture is really long. Do I just snip a bit of that wire off to have the third piece to connect to the green screw? Hope my question makes sense?

[@M219D]

I was wondering same thing. The directions say to wrap the ground wire from the fixture around the ground screw on the crossbar. I didnt see him do that.

[@carlg5086]

@@M219D i replaced my old wired lights with modern solar ones. They're more efficient and brighter, and no wires!!👍🏻

[@carlg5086]

@@jpmuzeackly185 i'm not sure. There should only be one ground direct to the fixture. I'm from the UK, I think the wiring might be slightly different over here. I bought outdoor solar security lights to replace my old ones.

[@M219D]

@@carlg5086 Thank you. Solar lighting sounds ideal. I purchaced LED. they have wires. I may go look for solar today. 👍

[@AA-kf7uf]

Don't you need to seal with silicon bead to keep water out?

[@lumpiasauce8699]

Good question? What's the answer?

[@RaulMoralesRealtor]

There are two cables inside, one black and one red, they are not connected to anything, what do I do with them?

[@NGUYENTRAN-bi1wg]

Very nice to share your work

[@slane8]

Any tips on leveling crooked outlet boxes?

[@SanityClause]

Great video. Thank you

[@parmesan9761]

Great video, I would like to know the name brand and type of light you used with wattage & where you purchased it. I have an old house and the wire connections are old basic & simple my light has to be replaced yesterday.

[@ikaikacorpus5827]

Do you need to shut off the circuit breaker part???? I turned off the switch part where you turn it off and on....

[@borntoraisehell5353]

Very well explained! Thank you! ☺

[@shannoninalaska]

Thank you for the great tutorial.

[@designstudio8013]

Seal heavily with caulk around light base.

[@shawoo]

That pancake box is ok to use for exterior ?

[@maureenfrancis890]

Does anyone know what to do if the lights stay on? I have tried resetting - still stays on

[@jasonpuckettfyi2854]

Yeah make sure you test your voltage tester on a live circuit that you know is on. Weird things happen

[@rogercontreras2580]

Is that the correct pancake for outdoor?

[@johnmarkvanzee]

What about the backing foam included

[@ashwinsvideo]

***Careful with installing light with old electrical box as shown in this video with Romex wire coming right at the center as the screw holding light fixture is also at center and can go straight to the wiring if the screw is long and can short wires or cause fire hazard***

[@tombluff]

what do you do if the wires coming into the box are too short?

[@cgn10]

Did you end up rewiring it completely? Running new wire seems like the solution. That or trying to find slack wherever your power supply is coming from. I know this is old but there was no response.

[@jarjarbinks6170]

I just shiver the wires in the metal cover would that lead to bad things ? Or I have to make them neat and make sure all wires arent touching so basically if I did do something wrong ima have to go back and fix it

[@chessbuff]

great. thanks for the example.

[@TommyCA-US]

Hello, this video is great. I was wondering what is the brand name (manufacture) of the LED motion security light that you got? I'd like to get one for myself too. Thank you!

[@sararivas2128]

Thanks 😊

[@bobclarie]

Shouldn't the bare ground wire also be connected to the green screw on the fixture's mounting bracket ? Thanks, Bob

[@whocares0692]

I saw that when the original light was removed, the ground was connected to a screw in the back of the box. I thought the new light ground should have been connected to that screw.

[@NRB_75]

So do you not use ground screw attached to silver bracket or do you just cap them off?

[@hobojungle1]

"It's not beeping" as it beeps.

[@smittywerbenmanjensen3293]

C. Harris - yes, I noticed that beep as well and got a chuckle. But the beep you heard was actually a double beep indicating he was turning off the voltage tester. Still funny though

[@davidsolis1705]

what kind of siding is that mounted on? does anyone know

[@jackchalfant4796]

Brick...

[@michaelluke5976]

I have a question for all of you out there? I already have a motion sensor outside light, and I just changed the light. However, it is not working right and the light stays on. I have changed all of the settings and still, the light stays on. Any comments out there on what to do?

[@mahesh7069]

Thank you

[@irenerodriguez161]

What if I don't see a ground wire coming from house?

[@sdott313]

I just learned that you can use that green screw on the bracket. Wrap the wire around that screw a couple times and tighten it down.

[@AlaskanBush]

Word of the day "fixture"

[@TexasMan77]

How do you test to ensure theres no current?

[@arnieford381]

If you are not sure just kill the power to your entire house. Otherwise use a tester like a multi-meter

[@designstudio8013]

The main problem is the fixtures don't fit correctly and seal at the electrical box.

[@Catherine_EasternMidwest]

To bad you didn’t have a way of positioning your camera to views when you connected your wires. You make it look simple. Do you need to cut back any of the wires? Do you need to be concerned about having only bare wires connected and capped together? You missed some important information. :(

[@nicholassmith82]

The electrical box has nothing to do with you being able to mount the fixture level. Every fixture should come with its own installation guide. Move the bracket accordingly until it sits level with the surface.

[@salfitimina2376]

Not true

[@AustinWilhite]

I don't think that's an outdoor-rated electrical box

[@freedog632]

Never trust your life to a NCVT. It's helpful, but I would get a multimeter to make the final check. Where I work, I see those lil guys fail alot.

[@hustonhall2271]

Today mcfly. good video

[@Trd2020]

How about that green screw? What’s that for?

[@cgn10]

It's a ground screw. He chose to connect with ground to the first ground wire, which was connected to the first screw in the junction box.

[@Bob-wq6iy]

Outdoor box nope

[@AnthonyFitness]

that tip was great. but the light fixture is crooked as Fuck!

[@haunthunterify]

Nice way to shock yourself or cause a fire with that pancake box and the way he wired this. He didn’t even ground the box. This guy doesn’t know what he is doing. You need to wrap the green wire from light around that screw on the box leaving enough wire remaining to connect it to the green coming out of the wall. If the green wire from the light fixture is not long enough to do this then you connect the green wire from the light fixture to the green coming from the wall and add a third piece of bare wire under that same nut. This is called a pig tail. Then you wrap the pigtail to the ground screw.

[@neilprivilegio9956]

Buddy didn't even show whatx screwdriver to use when u disconnected the way the wire was wrapped u don't show hownto begin unwrapping it

[@supertrooper7403]

If you can’t figure out a screwdriver or how to unwind wires, you shouldn’t be replacing anything by yourself.

[@ikirinak4360]

don't put screws in your mouth. safety

[@daviddoyle4516]

What the Hell is a Myrette? Speak English,,,,,,Snowback,,,,!!!! Myrette?.,,,,We aint got no Myrettes here!!!,,,We call them wire nuts and if you are new tape them up with medium weight 3M black electricians tape,, If you don't get the shock of your life, you are good.

[@PUBGMobile-ot2sk]

Exactly why some "diyers" shouldn't diy...

[@shaunboucher4396]

Okay the first thing we're gonna do is make sure you're breathing. Then use both of my hands to manipulate objects and items. I'm going to make this very very simple, just do it. I don't get why this video is more than 40 seconds 🤷‍♂️

[@91mysunshine1]

Thank you