How To Replace A Fluorescent Light Fixture [Step By Step Guide]

When replacing a fluorescent light fixture, you do not need an electrician to carry that out for you. 

You can do this by yourself as long as you have the right tools for the job. 

To replace the fluorescent light fixture, there are some steps that you need to follow, and as stated earlier, the right tools are required for the job. 

Tools Needed For The Job

Below are the kinds of tools you will need when replacing a fluorescent light fixture. Let us take a look at the instruments.

1. Medium flathead screwdriver
2. Large flathead screwdriver
3. Drill and bit
4. Toggle bolts, you can use wood screws, and you prefer those
5. Safety eyeglasses
6. A tape measure
7. Wire nuts
8. Needle nose pliers for bending and shaping the wires
9. Circuit tester

So these are all the tools you will need when you change a fluorescent light fixture. 

They will make the job much easier for you to handle.no need to call the electrician on something that you can fix.

Steps On Changing A Fluorescent Light Fixture

After you have been able to get all your tools assembled and ready to go, you will need to know the steps to make you efficient at changing the fluorescent light bulb. 

So now that you have your tools ready, let us look at how you can get the job done. Please follow the steps below carefully.

1. The first step will be the removal of the existing fluorescent light fixture.
2. To remove the fluorescent light fixture, first, make sure to turn off the power supply. You can do this at the breaker box.
3. Now remove the lens or the diffuser panel from the fluorescent light fixture and remove the lamps or the bulbs.
4. After you are done with that, the next thing to do is remove the ballast cover. Make sure that you observe how the wires have been connected to use them for reference in the future.
5. Uncap the white and the black wires. Performa test to make sure that the electrical power is off before you proceed
6. Now, separate the wires from the existing fluorescent light fixture and remove the light fixture base from the ceiling.
7. After this, it is now time to install the new fluorescent. Remove the ballast cover of the new fluorescent light fixture base.
8. Remove the center knockout as well to pass the wires through the base.
9. Now, you should position the base for the new fluorescent light fixture at the part of the ceiling where you would want to install it. 
10. You then use the tape measure to measure and ensure that the fluorescent light fixture is parallel to the wall. After that, mark the position where the holes will be mounted.
11. It is now time to put on your safety glasses to protect your eyes. Now take the light fixture back down and drill holes in the marks you have made. The holes will allow you to fasten the light fixture to the ceiling. If you happen to encounter any form of resistance while drilling the holes past the drywall of the ceiling, a joist is probably present, and you will need wood screws. If you do not have any beam, you can use toggle bolts. When you use toggle bolts, you should use a screwdriver to widen the mounting hole to make them big enough for the toggle bolts to pass through them. 
12. Now, place the toggle bolts in the mounting holes and attach the toggles to the backside.
13. After this, you will have to make the electrical connections. You do this by connecting the supply wire, which is the black one, to the black light fixture wire. After that, you then connect the white supply wire to the white light fixture wire. Now cap the connections up with the wire nuts.
14. Now attach the ground wire to the fixture base and attach the ballast cover.
15. You can now install the lamps or the bulbs and then install the fixture’s cover.
16. Now, turn the power back on at the circuit breaker box to see if the fixture is working. If it is working, you are done.

So you just finished changing the fluorescent light fixture successfully. Clap for yourself. You have done quite well. 

Replacing A Light Fixture

We will look at how you can replace a light fixture. Please note that there is a difference between changing a fluorescent light fixture and changing a light fixture alone. 

Let us now look at the steps needed to change the light fixture. However, before we do that, let us look at the tools you will need first. Here are the tools required below.

1. Lighting fixture
2. Wire nuts
3. Electrical tester
4. Electrical wire tracer
5. Screwdriver
6. Pliers

Steps To Changing The Light Fixture

Now that you have your tools let us work and change the light fixture. Below are the steps you can use to change the light fixture. 

Please follow it carefully, although it is much easier than the steps you will need to take to change the fluorescent light fixture.

1. First, open the electrical box in your home and then turn off the power to the house. Make sure that there is no electrical power circulating through the home. Now test to make sure that there is no power before proceeding.
2. After you have made sure that there is no power circulating, you can now change the light fixture. Remove the old fixture. Now disconnect the wires. You should make sure to mark the wires for later.
3. Now wire the new light fixture the same way as the old one and then screw the bracket onto the ceiling.
4. After you are done, go and turn the power back on. If the light fixture does not work, you should try checking the bulbs and check to make sure that they have been screwed on tight. If it still does not work, you should turn the electrical power back off again before you proceed to check the wiring. You can also look at the manufacturer’s instructions in the manual that came along with the product if you still cannot make the light work. You can try contacting them for more help.

Disguising A Light fixture enclosure

You can also disguise the light fixture with an enclosure if you want to add some twist to the whole thing. 

This can give an updated look to the light fixture and make them look more appealing when they hang in your living room or your dining room. 

As usual, let us look at the tools you will need first before proceeding to the steps you will take to get the job done.

Tools you will need:

• Nail gun
• Screwdriver
• Wire cutters
• Four screws, you can take more depending on the kind of enclosure you are fixing there.
• Scrap lumber
• Copper wire
• Fabric
• Glue gun
• Staple gun
• Ceiling hooks

These are the tools that you will need for the job at hand. Now let’s go to the steps on how you will disguise your light fixture to make it look more beautiful and more appealing. 

Here are the steps For Disguising A Light fixture Enclosure Below

1. Cut about four pieces of wood and then nail them together in a rectangular box. This will not have any top or bottom.
2. Now use the glue gun and the staple gun to secure the fabric over the rectangular frame. Make sure that everything has been secured firmly.
3. Now cut four long lengths of copper wire. This will extend from the enclosure to the way ceiling. Now wrap one end side of each copper wire around the screw. The next step is to secure the screws into the upper inside corners of the rectangular box. Tighten the cables into their positions while you are at them.
4. Now, install the hooks into the ceiling and hold the enclosure in place. It would be best to keep it in place over where the lights are. Directly you can attach the wires to the ceiling hooks. You can now adjust it to make it level with the lights. 
5. You are now done. you have just created an enclosure for your light fixture to make it more beautiful and change the look of it

Conclusion

So you now know to change a fluorescent light fixture and a light fixture itself. You also learn to add an enclosure to make the light fixture more beautiful. It was great sharing these with you all.