This made me nervous and i wanted to double check which wire was hot. These conductors are designated as follows.

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Why is white wire hot. The white wire goes to the white metal screws on an electrical outlet. The copper wire is called the ground wire because it is connected to the earth either directly or through another grounded conductor. If not then use a different tester that is a contact tester with a light that shows that the voltage is not inductive false to the white wire. When i pulled the existing switch the white wires i assume they were neutral wires were connected to switch. This one just demonstrates where the power is in a circuit and where you can have a hot neutral. Under those conditions a black wire should be always hot and always on.
It provides a 120 vac current source. The third conductor is bare copper. So i tested the wires hot to neutral 125v hot to ground 35v neutral to ground 30v. The white wire is called the neutral wire. This video is part of the heating and cooling series of training videos made to accompany my. It provides the return path for the current provided by the hot wire.
Two of the conductors in nmb cable are covered with plastic insulation one white the other black. The additional wire is hot but switched off at the switch. Hot 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. This voltage will be false. It provides the return path for the current provided by the hot wire. Typically this is indicated with a band of black or red electrical tape but other colors may be used wrapped around the wires insulation.
The white wire is the neutral wire. The black wire is the hot wire. White wires with black or red tape. When you connect the blacks a magnetic field is produced and the white may show hot from the induction voltage to the white wire using a non contact tester. In a 110 volt setup an additional wire usually red or blue normally indicates a hot wire controlled by a light switch. The black wire is the hot wire which provides a 120 vac current source.