Lighting Fixture Wire Hot Vs. Neutral

Purpose of a Hot Wire

• A hot wire is used to carry electric current from the electrical service box to the light fixture. A ceiling-mounted junction box will contain at least one hot wire, and may contain two hot wires if one of the wires is intended for use in a switched circuit.

Purpose of a Neutral Wire

• A neutral wire is used to complete a household electric circuit. This wire carries electric current away from the light fixture and completes the circuit by routing this current to the grounded neutral tie block.

Switched vs. Always-on Hot Wire

• An always-on hot wire is used to provide continuous power to an electric device that is installed to a junction box. One common use for an always-on hot wire is to provide power to a ceiling fan or other device that is controlled by something other than a standard wall switch.

  A switched hot wire is controlled by a wall switch. The wire cannot provide power unless the switch is turned on. This type of hot wire is often used to provide power to an overhead lamp that can be controlled with a wall switch.

Identifying Each Wire

• Each electric wire in a junction box is color-coded so that the light fixture chassis is not improperly energized during operation. Black insulation on a wire indicates an always-on hot wire, while a wire with white insulation is used to denote the neutral wire. A switched hot wire may have red or blue insulation, while grounding wires may be bare or may have a green insulation jacket.