/diy/ - Do It Yourself

>>1517669
There is none. It's a switch.
There's a hot, and a switched hot.

>>1517671
The dimmer I'm putting in wants a common. What do I put there?

>>1517669
One is hot, the other becomes hot when the swith is on.

>>1517675
Assuming the switch was wired correctly in the first place, the black wire that went in the bottom (the direction the switch points when "off") is the hot wire. That's the one you want.

>>1517680
No no it's not. New led dimmers need their own neutral because they run electronics inside the dimmer. OP needs to run a new wire, or get an old school summer. Or keep the switch and use smart lights

>>1517682
This is in an apartment that I'm not technically supposed to be working on, running a new wire is out of the question. So the other conductors coming off the romex in the box don't do anything then? Also where can I get a dimmer that doesn't have this problem?

>>1517687
Get a plug-in dimmer.

>>1517687
Rotary dimmer can be swapped for regular light switch. Only work with incandescent bulbs tho.

>>1517688
I'm trying to control a bathroom light fixture that's way too bright. I have an eye condition and it's bad for my health. I already have plug-ins on the lamps elsewhere.

>>1517695
hahaha how can light being too bright even be a problem, nigga? like just get lower watt bulbs, nigga. put in a nightlight.

>>1517698
I did. It's still too bright. At my old place I had a dimmer and turned it almost all the way down on a single 40 watt bulb.

>>1517695
Have you looked for a lower wattage light for the bathroom?

Just take the dimmer back to the store and read the boxes, they clearly say if they need a neutral or not.

you could use a potentiometer but you'll get vampire drain like crazy.

>>1517698
>how can light being too bright
le vampire

>>1517705
what type of light anon? led? florescent? cfl?

Old wiring code didnt require a neutral/common until like 2011 or so... they still make dimmers that will work for you but you need to provide more info.

>>1517705
Buy a light socket to plug adapter and plug in christmas lights. That's about the same as a 40w bulb on a dimmer.

Get a simple 2 prong tester with a light, like pic related. Disconnect both wires from the outlet. Turn on the power, hold one lead in your hand and use the other lead to check the 2 wires one at a time, it will light up when you're touching the hot and remain out when you're on the neutral. I work in buildings with some old ass cloth insulated wiring and it's not always easy to determine what's hot or neutral but this will ensure you get it right 100% of the time

>>1517675
Single gang switch boxes usually either have 1 Romex or 2. By Romex I mean the whole sheathed wire that itself contains a black, a white, and a bare copper ground. The situation with 1 Romex (and only one black, one white and no wire nuts) usually means that the power enters at the light fixture and the hot runs down and back (switched). You'd be fucked if this was the case, but it isn't that way.

Since you pic has 2 black wires, you more than likely also have 2 white wires stuffed in the back of the single gang that are connected by wire nut, that's gonna be your neutral. To tap that neutral you'll need a pigtail, a 6 inch piece of 12 guage white wire. Strip both ends of it about 3/4", take the wire nut off the existing, add this third pigtail wire into the twist of the other two whites. Important - it has to be solid, twisted up like a candy cane, physically deformed and pass the jiggle test. Screw the wire nut back. Wire your New Dimmer white to the new pig tail.

>>1517695
just wear sunglasses yo