Thursday, February 2, 2012

Replace A Plastic Ceiling Electrical Box

The plastic ceiling electrical box needs replacing should you notice any damage to the box when you remove a light fixture from it. Should you observe your current light fixture begin to pull away from the ceiling, the box has become loose and damaged. A damaged ceiling box can effect the wiring causing an electrical short. A light fixture could fall from the ceiling and possibly injure someone or cause damage to your home if left attached to a damaged ceiling box. No previous electrical knowledge is required to replace a plastic ceiling electrical box.








Instructions


1. Turn off the circuit breaker insider your main service panel that supplies electricity to the ceiling electrical box. Test the circuit at the ceiling box to confirm the electricity is off. Touch one wire from a two-wire circuit tester to the black wire inside the ceiling box and touch the other wire to a metal screw on the box. The tester should not light if you have turned off the correct breaker.


2. Push the wires inside the plastic ceiling electrical box to avoid damaging the electrical wires. If the original ceiling box is nailed to a ceiling joist, insert a 1-inch diameter wooden dowel into the ceiling box. Strike the end of the dowel with a hammer to loosen the box from the joist. Carefully pull the box through the hole in the ceiling to remove it.


3. Take out the screw from the top of the plastic ceiling electrical box to remove the box from the brace attached to the ceiling joists. Carefully pull the electrical box from the ceiling. Use aviation snips or a reciprocating saw to cut through the ceiling brace and pull it from the ceiling.


4. Thread the electrical wires you removed from the original ceiling box through a knock-out in the back of the replacement remodel plastic ceiling electrical box. The knock is a small opening in the box covered by a thin plastic tab. The tab holds the wires in place once inserted into the box.


5. Push the remodel box into the pre-existing hole in the ceiling until the lip of the box rests against the ceiling. Turn the screw on the lip of the replacement box clockwise until the box secures to the ceiling.

Tags: ceiling electrical, from ceiling, plastic ceiling, plastic ceiling electrical, light fixture, Carefully pull, ceiling electrical