How To Install An Exterior Light & Add Outlets With No Extra Wiring!
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- Опубліковано 17 вер 2024
- In this video I show you how to replace and install an exterior light fixture. I also show you how you can easily add electrical outlets as well with no additional wiring! It is a relatively easy and quick install that many DIYers can handle.
🧰 Products In The Video 🧰
Black 2 Pack of Exterior Lights With GFCI Outlets: amzn.to/4g89iFy
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Have you ever seen anything like this? When I saw it, to me it was a no brainer. Links for everything you saw in the video are in the video's description for your convenience.
Great Video! As a professional electrician I really think Wago’s are a great option for homeowners and DIY’ers.
I bought 2 of those last year. It greatly simplified having an outlet for all the various holiday lights/inflatables. And with the switch controlling the lights, it also controlled the decorations as well.
But even better, since the outlets were accessble now, I was able to mount a small IR flood light on top of one of the lights to greatly help the security cameras .
Good video. TY. _I want some that are soffit mounted._ EDIT Oh, yeah, do you know where I can buy at least 100 pack/box AlumiConn
3-Port Al/Cu Wire Connectors wholesale? Or, for a second choice, the same type of wire nuts, and copper pigtail wires. (I have AL interior wiring.)
These are pretty neat. I used something similar a couple of years back. It has everything except that receptacle....though this would be a game changer. The set that I used looked almost identical except they come on with the photocell at dusk on 'low' (little light) mode, but when someone comes in front of the range the light will move to 'high' (bright) mode. Maybe mine will fail and I can change my lights to these and have a place to plug in Christmas lights. Thanks for sharing.
I just saw these online. So cool that you just posted this. Now I know I could install these myself.
My parents have a 100-year-old house with a lot of old two-conductor cloth-insulated wire still around in places. We used to think it was adequate to just turn off a light switch to work on a fixture, but after I got older and learned more, I realized we'd just been lucky. I started testing the wires, and the hot wires were usually still hot, and just the ground wire was switched. Nearly everything in the house was wired that way. So while I totally agree that it's way easier to use the switch, always test it with a voltage probe or something, especially in older homes.
Hey I’m liking those lights built in gfi outlet . Great for adding a PTZ surveillance camera.
Excellent video
Wow, I didn’t even know that you could get a light fixture for the house that had a GFCI outlet connected to it. That’s a great idea and I definitely got to look into those on Amazon.
Totally skipped to the part to see if you used Wagu connectors as you highlight often. I was not surprised :). Really helpful video - thanks!
In line connectors ftw! I always struggle with wire nuts. Those fixtures with the outlet are brilliant.
I use Wago connectors, especially when one or more of the wires is stranded wire. I have never trusted wire nuts when it was solid and stranded wire together.
I hope to see more lights with this feature in the future for sure. This one doesn't appeal to me personally, but what a fabulous idea!
Another great video. I just purchased these fixtures! I was looking to see if they came with bulbs or not but can you use "smart bulbs" controlled by Alexa in these? Thank you.
They do not come with bulbs. I don't know for sure about the smart bulbs but I cant see any reason why they wouldnt work.
@@HowToHomeDIY FYI to all, I did try "smart bulbs" and they do work, but, they don't dim down to 30%. However, you can control that by asking Alexa to turn power to 30%, but they did not get brighter with motion. All-in-all, great light, easy install, and looks awesome!
Perfect! I'm installing 6 of them around my house. Yes. The Wago works very well with stranded copper. Thank you for the videos. Please keep em coming!
you mention the wago's are good for low amp situation...but the outlet on the fixture could turn it into a higher amp situation no?
Man i been waiting on this vedio i have 2 light fixtures that need replaced. Plus hey with the extra plugs man that's going to work for the holiday season. Many thanks for this one
First thing I'd do is replace the tamper resistant outlet with a useable one. Do we really need a child safety plug 6' off the ground outside? I can totally see that thin metal bending while you're trying to get the plug to go in. Other than that, I like the idea of the hidden plug. It's a great feature for Christmas lights.
Considering the only time I would use the outlet is for Christmas lights the safety feature wouldn't bother me. If I were to use them often to the point where it annoyed me I would render the safety feature useless. Power off, then stab in a flat blade screwdriver and turn it back and forth until you destroy the plastic doors. Easy to do
You make it look easy. Thank-you for the video. Happy Labor Day weekend.
Going in at dusk and off at sunrise is good but I’d rather have the additional motion sensor that enables the on and off feature to avoid the light being on for 12 hours. This way there is only light when approaching the fixture rather than having g the light bulb on all night long. My idea saves the light bulb to last longer and only lights when approaching close to the fixture.
I just installed on of these 3 months ago and love having outlets ready when needed. What I did was that I sanded clean the ground wire that had paint since I was already in there and that way it creates a better bond. I have mine on low where it lowers the light to 30% and then 100% when motion is detected. Also used Wagos...
Wow, these are great. I have a 17 year-old house that has the photo cell poking out of the garage. I don’t know how it’s wired up, but if they ever break. I think I’m gonna go for these. Thank you very much.
I appreciate all the information! I really like these lights. I really need one at my back door!! Thank you, Adam!
Thank you for the video on installing the lights. I have had these for a couple of months and found a couple of things that I wish they had: 1, a way to lessen the motion range. Here is what I mean; I put these on the outside of my garage to replace the 15 year old standard lights. Now, the motion is maybe too good, that the lights turn on when my neighbors are in their driveway which is 10 to 12 feet to the east of these lights. So when they are in their yard, the lights are always on. 2, I tried using smart bulbs and they don't work like standard bulbs (in my testing) meaning, for some reason they randomly come on even when there is no motion of any kind and they won't dim down to 30% when on "high" position per the instructions (or at least the brand I am testing). So today (9/5) I am going to put back the non-smart bulbs and I will use some white (fixtures are white) electrical tape to put on the sensor to make a 1 inch open space directly in the center of the sensor. This way I am taking the side range out and see if this works to only detect motion coming right at it as in my case.
Very good video!
I just installed these exact same lights on my garage yesterday.
Great minds think alike! 😁
wow those r some cool lights, didnt know those were a thing. i might need these some day👍
Thanks for the video, simple install and the benefit of a outdoor outlet!
Looking at the copper ground wire, would it not be prudent to clean off the paint to insure good contact with any screws or connectors??
my thoughts exactly!
Great video, love the in-line connectors
the pair i put outside my garage door , couple years ago... had GFCI recips as well as d2d and motion, and tho everyone's taste is different... i went with a different style less old lantern hanger and more modern up down light.. SFMF
Very nice demo, thank you! Got to get some Wagos, they are so useful.
This is a nice lamp, and I love the built in extra sockets!
Cool tip, just use the 5/16 or 1/4 inch bit port of your multibit screwdriver for that ground screw. Great video as always
And, you flip this side latch, and you got a coffee maker. 😊
yep the lights are useful, not sure I'd like to be a nearby neighbor with your lights on from dusk to dawn...... but the built in outlets are great..... Christmas lights, power tools if you can reach them ya know, thumbs up
I put a 60 W warm light bulb in my outside photo light. It lights up the front nicely without a lot of bleed.
I also have a 15 W yellow bulb in my front porch light so that the bugs don't come flying around at night.
While you had the power off would have been better if you used some scotchbrite or steel wool or fine sand paper to clean off the oxidation and the paint on all the ends of the wires. With just a very low wattage LED bulb, no issues. Plugging in something nearing max rating (15A) would have been nice to see cleaned and shiny wires
Nice video and nice lights. I like the GFCI access right at the light. My lights don't have a GFCI, but they do have motion and light detector. Mine are on but dim at night and then get bright when they detect motion and off in the daytime. Also, it is good to note that the light circuit those outside lights are on may have other lights that may not be LED - so, before using the GFCI it would be good to note how many amps are already being used by that circuit before plugging a heavy usage device into that receptacle.
BTW - it was good you pointed bonding the bare copper ground wire to the bracket as well as the box ... however, it looked like your wire was covered with white paint. It would be a good idea to clean any paint and/or corrosion off the bare copper wire before putting it under the screw and tightening it.
Very nice. Thank you for another fantastic video!
Great video. Thank you for sharing. Have a nice weekend
Thank you!
Can you use Wago’s on an outdoor box or fixture due to weather or code?
Thanks.
A couple of of things:
I noticed the insect activity around and behind the old fixture. I would have squirted some Hot Shot/Baking soda around and behind the wall.
Also I would run a very thin line of caulking around the base to keep future critters out.
if you caulk around a light, always leave a gap at the bottom - you can never keep water out, but if you caulk the bottom, it will fill up the box.
I enjoy your videos. Although you showed hooking up the light fixture starting with the ground, then the neutral and finally the hot, you should show why the order of hooking up the wires is important. Cool fixtures too!
Yes that is the correct order to hook them up. It is in reverse when unhooking something. The why would require a fairly long comment is its own video. But long story short it’s for safety. Appreciate the feedback!
Great and useful info as always. Thanks 😊
very practical lights appreciate that 😊
Bought the lamp and the special wire connectors. Very simple to install. I wish the printed instructions were clearer with regards to the motion sensor and if it can be manipulated to higher or lower sensitivity.
Just saw a similar light fixture with an outlet i think on Home Depot's website. Definitely need something like that as i have no outside outlets!
Awesome video, really enjoyed it and wish you made this three months ago before I changed my fixtures lol. I do have a question... how do I install those pancake boxes if I don't have a receptacle and I'm clearly out of code.
I’ve got my setup 1 year ago. Thumbs up 👍
I ordered mine should be here today then I will attempt to install :)
Can you help us secure our home? We are so overwhelmed by which camera, ring doorbell, what? Just to have a recording device that we can talk through, watch or review would be awesome. We have a newer home with motion detector lights already.
great video, so do you have to wire the GFI receptical? or does it already come ready to go? also if i dont want them to stay on all night can I manually turn them off inside the house?
Yes, just flip the light switch off on the inside of the house.
@@squidleyskidley what about the GFI plug-in? Does that come all ready to go or do I have to wire it?
@@smittyone66 from the video, it looks like it comes pre-wired. As long as you have a ground wire already as part of your old fixture.
I asked you yesterday how to operate them manually there is no switch the instructions said turn the switch off/on fast and it worked FYI also when I took off the 1st old one there were 2 of each wire I could not figure it out but here my porch light was also connected to that light LOL oh well got them both working thanks again for your video
that is a standard thing on most motion sensing fixtures. the old ones were a headache, because any power bump would turn them to override on mode, and then you had to turn the switch off, count to ten, recite the magic spell, "please reset to motion sensing, spit over your left shoulder, and turn them back on and maybe they would reset to motion sensing. most newer ones will reset themselves to automatic when it gets daylight, next.
the T&R+ size of that model of wire nut is the best all purpose wire nut.
Great job on the video. We have a lot of bugs and spiders and I do not want to keep light on over night. I don't want them to turn on except when there is motion. I have a couple of questions. 1). The specs on Amazon claim that in low mode the light is 100% dimmed (off) until there is motion after dusk, which is exactly what I had hoped for. However, a user review says that is not the case, stating, "The product is good and was easy to install (electrician) but I was hoping it stayed completely off when no one was approaching. Turns out it goes from dim to bright when motion is detected. Not from “off” to bright." Can you confirm? My guess is the reviewer didn't set the switch to low mode. 2). One review claims the hot and neutral wires ARE REVERSED, stating, "Are you trying to kill customers? After I connected the light, I tested the plug with a GFCI tester and it told me the neutral and hot were reversed. The black was connected to black, white to white, ground to ground, but they have the WHITE neutral wire connected to the hot terminal on the GFCI plug, and the black connected to the neutral. How dumb can you get? I would NOT buy from this company again and be VERY CAREFUL if you bought these lights." Can you please confirm if this is the case with the ones you installed?
Currently, on Amazon, if you buy two single packs they are less expensive than one dual pack. Not sure why, but thought I would mention it.
Thanks again for such another great video.
Nice vid and great new features.
Thanks for sharing👍
I love this product
Whoever thought of putting an electrical outlet in an outdoor light is a genius.
Just wondering if there are any bug light bulbs. My cat loves playing at the door with the bugs flying around, but I can't stand the swarm coming in and out of the house with them.
I bought wagos because of your earlier video about them. It's a game-changer for a DIYer. I highly recommend anyone who finds this interesting to check out the other vid.
Great Info.
And you can plug 15/20 amps into the thin wire of the light socket? anyway to plug say a camera in (low wattage) and weather proof the flap somehow?
most of the questions are answered in the video.
Nice. Any problem having 2 gfci outlets on the same circuit or if the garage outlet inside is also gfci?
My home inspector didn't catch this but my sconce wiring runs up to the garage loft and isn't connected. Any special rules like stapling to rafter,crossing rafters involved for finishing the cable run over to a junction box. The loft is probably 70% covered in plywood.
It's not a problem. Technically you could replace every receptacle in the home with a GFCI and the only problem you would encounter is all the money that you wasted.
Unfortunately I need to install wiring for my garage fixtures as well. I have already replaced most of my outdoor fixtures before this video. Yes it's pretty easy.
Christmas lights!
Can you wire two circuits to this light? One constant hot for the GFI and one switched for the light bulb?
No, but the photocell basically does that.
How long have these been out? I haven’t seen them before.
Same question as above, if you have a gfci outlet up stream of these lights, then these two, you may have 3 gfci outlets on the same circuit.
Is this a problem??
Is the plug ‘hot’ at all times? Even if light switch turned off or not connected to the light sensor?
Wish they made these lights with motion sensor instead of photocell. I live in the middle of no where and bugs are a massive issue. So all my lights are ring right now. When motion is detected, all exterior lights come on but would love to have this type of a set up with outlet.
Motion sensors suck in rural areas though, spiders learn to build the web in front of the sensor so the light always stays on. My dad runs the sensor about 10 ft to the side of the light
Just get an insect bulb instead- slightly yellow tinted in a range the insects don’t like as much. Works fantastically on my outdoor lights!
Amazon just ran a special two for $79 for a one time deal.
How water and moisture resistant are those connectors? Do you need to caulk around the light? What if your fixtures are old and don't have a ground ( third wire) and just two?
You should always caulk around a light fixture. It's actually a code requirement.
Nice video 👏👏👏. One point that I believe needs clarification. These lights are motion sensing lights. So, in their standard use case, the lights will only be on when the sensing unit on top detects a moving object. I assume they must also be able to be set to stay on all night using the light sensor that is part of the detector as that is how you say you plan to use them. I actually believe having motion sensing functionality makes the lights even more useful as some folks do not want lights on all night.
The lights do stay on all night. The motion sensor is for when the lights are set to high, when they detect motion they get brighter, when they dont then they go to low mode. So they are still on just not as bright.
@@HowToHomeDIY Ahhhhhh! Thanks for clarifying. The description on Amazon wasn't clear about that. For those who do want some lights on all night, that is a very cool feature. 👍
Where is the link that you always say “ the link below “?
Hello. Do you know Wago connectors for 10AWG? Thanks
Seems like you forgot to mention that the timer is still in the circuit. For the new exterior light to function as you describe, you'll need to remove the timer from the circuit and replace the wall plate to cover the opening. I suppose you could leave the timer in place and just bypass it. Bottom line, the wiring at the timer needs to be addressed.
I didn't forget, it was intentional. For me yes but most people no. Which is why I left it out of the video as most people wont have to deal with that at all and if they do, it is very easy to install a standard switch. Have videos on the channel showing how.
@@HowToHomeDIY I'm not following your response. The power to the old exterior light is controlled by the timer: if the timer is 'off' there is no power to the fixture and it does not light up. Simply replacing the exterior fixture does not resolve the issue as the timer is still in the circuit. I suppose another choice is set the timer so that it does not interrupt the power. But one cannot just install the new fixture and not address the timer.
Most people aren’t using a timer switch so I intentionally left changing mine to a standard light switch out of the video as it will not pertain to most people. If you have one you can either continue to use it or switch it out to a regular switch so the power is always on. Both are very easy to do and I have videos on installing light switches. I did say multiple times in the video no more timer switch. So I thought it was inferred I was getting rid of it.
So the sensors and controls on the light fixture override the switch on the wall? Do you need to leave your wall switch on all the time? Will the outlet turn off if the wall switch is off?
They don't necessarily override the switch. The switch is still sending the power on to the lights. The photocell and sensors are the gate keeper to that power and then control if the power then goes on to the lightbulb. So the light switch always stays on. The outlet will not work if you turn the switch off. If for whatever reason you want the lights to come on even though it isnt dark out you can turn the light switch off and then on quickly and it will manually turn them on.
The switch controls the power, so if you switch light off inside the house, it will not turn on at all. However, the motion/ daylight sensor oversees the light operation and is the next level control.
Light switch is the principal.
Sensor is the teacher.
Light bulb is the student.
Hope you put those wire connections inside the pancake box
You really should have shown that!!!!!
When the old interior light switch is turned off power to the new gfi that is installed in the new light fixture is turned off. Also most all older homes are wired with only two wires going to external lights with no ground wire. Leaving lights on all night long is not good for the environment and even if you are using LED bulbs, the bulbs usually burn out in about eighteen months. Also leaving the lights on all night long attracts a lot of critters to the lights. Pick lights that are in the yellow spectrum as to not attract critters.
You are REALLY reaching for negative things to say at this point 🤣. The ground wire point is irrelevant. All their home has no ground then. And the GFCI outlets help make up for that. So that is a bonus for these. The environment? really? Yes all bulbs burn out at some point. We all knew that. Yellow spectrum bulbs still attract all of the insects.
Is the gfci controlled by the photocell ?
No. Always on as long as the switch is on.
Shouldn’t you scrape the paint off the bare copper wire first before screwing it down? I was always told make sure you scrape paint off before bonding.
It’s just some overspray. Would it be better? Sure. But there is plenty of exposed copper. It’s not coated.
Thanks for the clarification, I guess the GCI test showed it’s all good anyway.
Really like this idea, untill I saw the price. A little steep for this old man.
I just bought an old house and put in all new light fixtures, fans, appliances, new circuits with wiring and outlets etc. My grandpa was an electrician and I would spend summers working with him, so I did all the work myself- it STILL cost a fortune! Prices are insane now even for the "DIY'er." I even spent months before buying the house, getting light fixtures on clearance and bargain shopping.
What is holding up the new fixture as you are connecting the first wire to it? That looks like a two hand job.
Are you an electrician or an advanced diyer?
That ground wire is not even gona work properly because there is paint covering it. So, no that ground would not properly falt out that circuit wether or not it was connected. This can be remedied by using a little bit of emry cloth.
Those fixtures look like they are motion activated light fixtures.
The motion sensors are only to put them in high mode or brighter when they sense motion. Then they go back to low. But they are always on at night.
cool features. I predict they will be discontinued within a year.
Who wants the out door light all night do they have a sensor for on and off .
✌️
thought you were adding the outlets
I did add outlets.
Please scrape or sand the paint off the end of the ground wire where it clamps in the Wago connector.
It is just some overspray. While that would be better there is still plenty of copper exposed for it to be conductive.
When the ground wire was wrapped around the ground screw of the new base I did not see the wire being stripped at the ground screw attachment point before being attached. This is a very important step. From inspecting this video a shock hazard still exists due to the insulation of wire still is in place between the ground screw of the new base and ground wire. One needs to strip the wire off of single ground wire where it has been hooked around the screw of the new base. An option is to have a third new wire come off of the ground wire nut and connect it to the ground screw of the new base which might be a bit safer.
What are you talking about? It is a bare copper wire, there is no insulation to strip. You want to add another wire when it is not needed at all? Nothing you said should be done or makes any sense for that matter.
If the ground wire was completely bare it would be copper colored its whole length. It is just copper colored at its end. The green ground wire has some white coating or insulation on most its length. This needs to be removed. Please look at the video . Most green ground wires have a green colored insulation which have to stripped. In this video the a white wire was used for the ground wire.
Sometimes a DMM should be used to verify various ground connections. I highly recommend using the DMM to verify grounds in demonstration like yours.
C’mon man. You can’t say that you’re using wago connectors because it’s low amperage and have those same connectors power an outlet.
To be clear, I’m on the team of wagos are okay most anywhere, but that’s beside the point. I’m just bringing up that you can never consider an outlet to be low amperage.
It’s 15 amps bud. That will fall well below what the Wagos are rated for.
I shut off the light switch and got shocked by a neutral.
Something probably isn’t wired up right in your home then. It’s why I still recommended turning the circuit breaker off.
Vid could have been done in 6 min . too much nity gritty detail for me. got bored, plus........the drama working all the way through to get to the outlet!!!! Geez,
For sure, details with electricity are not important at all right? 😂 my goodness. Go make your only channel then if you think it’s so easy.
Install lights that point down at the ground. Not out at your neighbors. Install lights with a soft glow, not harsh bright blue ones..
Yeah, but it's ugly.
A timer switch ensures that all lights turn on/off at the same time. If each light has its own photocell sensor, each will turn on/off independently and it may make your house look odd with "burned out lights" for a period of time. These lights are missing a method to communicate with each other to ensure the work as a team.
I’ve not seen that with mine at all. When it’s dark they both turn on at the same exact time. When it’s light they both turn off at the same exact time. Even if it was a couple minutes between them I could not care less personally. Would rather have that than the battery going out in my timer switch and not turning on and off at all until I have to reprogram it over and over again. But to each their own 🙂
Yes, never know when someone will turn on an outdoor light during the day. Maybe a Democrat?
No, don’t think so. Democrats, being more intellectually superior, care about our planet and are more attuned to saving energy. Although, the amount of hot air coming out of Trumps mouth when he spews his 30,000+ lies, could power generators supplying enough energy to light a million homes. Sorry, Republicrite. Losing party, of losers.
Leave it up to some knuckle dragging inbred MAGA supporter to say such irrelevant bullshit on a video that has nothing to do with politics 😂
Or maybe a REPUGNICANT from the GOP Gang of Putin.