Before we get started, John (and I) want you to know the only thing more dangerous than electricity is electricity you’re trying to harness in a light fixture. That being said, this tutorial is not meant to guarantee you a perfectly safe light fixture. My handyman knows quite a bit about electricity, so we feel confident that what we did works for us (and good news – it has been hanging for over a month and has yet to burn down the house), but you should always bring in an experienced electrician if you’re not as knowledgeable in electrical work.
Disclaimer over – on with the (light) show.
1) First, you need to buy some Mason Jars.
2) As for the tools you will need: a drill/driver with ¼” drill bit and Philips bit, a wire stripper, three wire nuts and a flat head screw driver (and apparently a red Sharpie…I’m having a hard time remembering right now what that was for).
3) The supplies you’ll need are: Three keyless sockets, a canopy and lamp wire (ideally the lamp wire has two individual wires and a ground wire in the casing). We bought the last two items in a larger package because the store was out of them individually.
4) Now that you’ve got your tools and supplies, drill a ¼” hole in the center of each lid – this will be where the wire passes through. Drill three more ¼” holes in each lid for ventilation. Cut the wire into three pieces of equal length.
5) Next, strip one end of each wire about ½”. Make sure to twist the wire casing as you pull it off in order to bind each smaller strand together.
6) Pull through the hole in the lid and carefully separate the wires from each other – use the knife to start it.
7) Pull the wires through the hole in the top of the keyless socket so they are roughly aligned with the screw terminals.
8) Using the flat head screwdriver, tighten the terminal screws over the wire. It’s important to make sure there’s as much wire under the screw head as possible.
9) Pull the lid down the wire so it is tight to the socket.
10) Insert a clear round light bulb of your choice. I would not recommend exceeding 40 watts but I do not work in the Underwriters Laboratories nor am I an electrical engineer so feel free to take your own risk at overheating the fixture and causing everything to come crashing down in a fiery blaze.
11) Complete the first assembly by screwing the lid onto the jar.
12) Repeat three times (or as many times as you want but 3 was sufficient for our space).
13) Hold each jar by the wire in order to gauge the proper length. Here is where you use the sharpie (I knew it would come to me eventually). Mark each wire where you want it to meet the canopy, and ultimately, the ceiling.
14) Cut the wires about 8” longer than the mark (you can vaguely make it out in the picture).
15) Slide the canopy over the bundle of wires, past the mark.
16) Tie a knot on each wire so the end of the knot is at the mark. Strip the wires using the same method described in step #5.
17) There should be a faint mark on three of the six individual wires you have passing through the canopy. Twist the three together that have the marking on the wire and the other three together. If your wire has a ground wire in the bundle, you should connect these together as well.
18) This is the mounting bracket. It is mounted with two screws that should have come with the box in the ceiling. If not, good luck at matching the screws! (A hint – usually they are 10/32 or 12/32 machine screws). Take the round “nuts” off and put in your back pocket.
19) This picture shows the installed mounting bracket with the screws that are used to secure the canopy protruding. The wire in the ceiling should be stripped back ½”. If your ceiling box looks uglier than this, you may want to consider hiring an electrician to complete the install. When there is more than one wire in the box, it can be very confusing and ultimately dangerous when you are choosing which wire goes to which.
20) Hold the fixture with your non-dominant hand and connect one of the twisted wire bundles to the black wire, and the other one to the white wire. The black wire is the “hot” and the white is the “neutral”.
21) Twist the wire nuts onto the each group of wires. Make SURE you position the wires in your hand so the ends are all the same length.
22) Gently pull on the wires to make sure they are screwed into the wire nut and are all touching each other.
23) Fold the wires so the whole mess can fit into the box and under the canopy.
24) Slide the canopy over the protruding screws.
25) Take the “nuts” in Step 18 out of your back pocket and install them onto what is left of the screws.
26) Tighten, and tighten some more.
And with that, you should have a new, functioning light fixture.
And hopefully yours is secured tightly to the ceiling and illuminating the room with the flip of a switch.
Again, no guarantees for you…but ours has been working like a charm ever since.
I’m a huge fan. Especially since the total cost of the project came in right around $40-50. Nice job, John.
via cheneyhome
