Like black wires they can also be used in some types of switch legs. Red and black coding are.
Tips For Identifying Wires In Your Switch Wall Box C By Ge
Red and black wire together. If you see a red wire spliced together with a black one in a 120 volt outlet its probably because the outlet is powered by a wall switch. When there is a separate red and black wire in the ceiling fan box this usually means that one of the wires is controlled by a wall switch. The cable has a black wire which connects directly to the circuit and a red wire which connects to the switch. Typically a ceiling fan is wired so the fan motor has power all the time by the black wire and the light of the ceiling fan is controlled by the wall switch through the red wire. Red electrical wire indicates the secondary live wires in a 220 volt circuit used in some types of switch legs and in the interconnection between smoke detectors that are hard wired into the power system. Red is usually the hot wire and black the ground but follow them to be sure as it may have been rewired and insulation not relevant to function.
Typically this is indicated with a band of black or red electrical tape but other colors may be used wrapped around the wires insulation. You can connect a red wire to another red wire or to a black wire. Its possible to link two red wires together or a red wire to a black wire. In 220 volt circuits red wires are the secondary live wires. The ground wire also connects to the switch but the white wire gets spliced to the circuit neutral wire and bypasses the switch. In addition red wires are used to connect hardwired smoke detectors to the homes power system.
If you have two switches to control the fan then black and red are the two wires from the two switches. In most cases no. Moreover sometimes this wire can come directly from the main circuit breaker in order to always be on. When a white wire is augmented with a red or black color marking this often indicates that it is being used as a hot wire rather than a neutral wire. One is for the fan and the other is for the light. The red or striped wire is the hot wire for the lighting fixture of the ceiling fan so if your ceiling fan does not have a lighting fixture it will only have the three other wires mentioned in the following sections.
Certain switch loop configurations require a three conductor wire the extra wire is needed to complete the circuit at the switch. Depending on how they are connected at the switches depends on which one you connect the fan or the light at the ceiling.
Gallery of Red And Black Wire Together
