How to Rewire an Antique Chandelier

Shut off the electric power to the chandelier from the breaker box.

Remove the protective cover on the chandelier from the ceiling, by loosening the screws at the top of the fixture near the ceiling to expose the wiring contained within.

Use a voltage power tester to double-check that the electrical current is not running through the chandelier.

Remove the fixture from the ceiling by untwisting the wire nuts holding the wires in place and removing the screw holding the chandelier to the box in the ceiling.

Remove all electrical wiring from the chandelier including the sockets. This may require some disassembly of the body of the fixture. Clear paths for the new wires to be fed though the chandelier including removing cobwebs, or other debris that may have collected inside the fixture.

Feed new 14-gauge electrical wire through the chandelier, exactly where the previous wires were located. Leave about 4 inches sticking out over every socket location and leave 8 inches of wire to work with at the base for each wire to run through the fixture.

Strip the ends of the wires and connect to sockets. Follow the instructions included with the sockets for proper installation.

Strip the ends of all the wires at the base of the chandelier to expose about an inch of wire on each.

Cut a 6-inch-long piece of wire and strip both ends. This is your new connection to the wires from the box in the ceiling.

Incorporate the new 6-inch wires into the groups of wires at the base of the fixture. Organize each color of wire into groups, aligning the exposed ends together. With all the white wires together, either add a wire nut to the end of all the wires so that the exposed metal is inserted into the wire nut, or solder the connection using the soldering iron and solder. Either way, use insulated electrical tape to wrap around the cluster of wires, securing the bundle in place. Do the same for all the black wires as well. If you are using grounded wires, twist them all together and add a 6-inch-section to this as well.

Return the chandelier to the ceiling by reversing the removal steps. Use the 6-inch-long wires to reconnect to the ceiling wires, matching the white with the white and the black with the black. The ground attaches to the ground wire in the ceiling.

Remount the chandelier fixture by screwing it to the box with the old hardware. Test the electric current to make sure the fixture works properly before securing the housing to the ceiling.