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Wiring a Light Switch

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single-switch-wiring Summary: Take the mystery out of wiring a light switch with these helpful wiring diagrams describing the most common switches found in your home residential wiring.

Understanding the Basic Light Switch for Home Electrical Wiring

Please Note: To illustrate the wiring of these switches, Switch Boxes and Fixture Boxes are not shown but are obviously required for every application.

These diagrams are shown as using the Romex wiring method. These Romex cables contain a ground conductor which is required for all applications as well.

The ground conductors are always bonded together to insure the integrity of the ground path. If you are using metal boxes, the ground conductor must be attached to each box by using a threaded ground screw or provided attachment. The frames of the switches which have a ground screw are to be attached to the ground conductor as required.



The wiring diagram shows a common electric switch also known as a light switch, wall switch, toggle switch, single pole switch or 1-pole switch. Unless the instructions state otherwise, It does not matter which screw terminal the wires get attached to because this is just a single pole switch which means that there is one line of power that flows through the switch and it does not matter which way the electricity travels through the switch. With this type of switch the electricity comes in through one connection and flows out through the other. If you wanted to be logically correct you could wire the switch so the power comes in the bottom and out the top as the direction of travel of the position of the switch. Some electrical devices are wired so the power enters the top and travels downward and leaves the controlling device through the bottom connections, however it really does not matter to the electrical wiring of this type of switch as long as the electricity is getting to the light fixture or the electrical device you are controlling.

Single Pole Switching Wiring Diagram #1

Single Pole switching provides switching from one location only. This light switch wiring diagram shows the power source starting at the switch box.
Single Pole Switching Diagram

Single Pole Switch Wiring Diagram #2

Single pole switch diagram #2


This switch wiring diagram shows the power source starting at the fixture box.

The white wire of the romex going to the switch is attached to the black line in the fixture box using a wirenut.

The white wire becomes the energized switch leg, as indicated by using black or red electrical tape.

Single pole switch diagram #2 shows the power source starting at the fixture box.
singlepoleswitchdiagram2
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