apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Rucy,
Thanks! I am not at home right now, but to clarify, will I be looking for the grounding screw on the new fixture itself?
You wouldn't believe how un-good Google has been for this!

Rachel- Cole Hardware's "Home Repair Referral Service" might be a good place to ask.

We would like to replace our dining fixture in our circa 1978 condo (concrete ceilings and all). We took the old one down, thinking this was going to be all sorts of easy.

BUT then we discovered that the old fixture was attached by only 2 wires--i.e., no grounding wire. The box in the ceiling consists of a metal tube with the 2 wires sticking out of it. The fixture also only had 2 wires.

Our new fixture has a third wire--a grounding wire--which I think is pretty normal (maybe even code) today.

Any ideas whether it would be safe to just attach the 2 wires and leave the grounding wire hanging? Or thoughts on what to do with that third wire?

We really can't afford to have our place rewired (and don't know if it's even possible given condo rules and ceilings), so if we can't do this, we're just going to have to live with the old fixture.

I believe that you just need to attach the grounding wire to the metal box that is in the ceiling (or the metal bar going across the hole). But check the links above or google it for a second, more expert opinion.

I just replaced one of those ugly light fixtures like above this past weekend - made a HUGE difference in our living room!

do i have to do anything different to switch out a long fluorescent light strip for a regular one? i hate this buzzing thing in my kitchen.

First, power off, doublecheck. No re-wiring necessary, simply attach the copper ground to the ground screw (usually colored green), it's found on the mounting bar for the light fixture. Just loosen the screw, form the ground into a small hook at the end, wrap that hook around the screw clockwise, tighten down the screw, then give the ground a little tug to make sure it's secure under the screw. Finally, if in doubt, go back to the shop where you bought the light fixture for a demo (it's good to help boost your self confidence but also to make sure you're doing this safely).

Changing one fixture for another is relatively easy, when it comes to wiring, but where it can get tricky is if you need to change an outlet box or remove/install a transformer (plus patching and painting the ceiling). To protect yourself, both physically & financially, you're always better off if you can have the landlord's chosen electrician do the installation for you (preferably when they're already onsite doing other work).

And a word of warning, do buy a tester and learn how to use it, because in my last rental the wires in the building were reversed for half my unit and the slumlord's poor husband got shocked right off the ladder trying to install a ceiling fan. I literally watched him fly off that ladder, which his wife thought was quite funny, and it's not a sight I've ever forgotten!

Does anyone know how much it would cost to have an electrician install a chandelier and how hard it is to remove it when I move out?

A much safer (and much more temporary way) to combat the terrible and ubiquitous plate-glass $5.99 fixture is to take the glass part off, take the bulbs out, and find either a pendant shade that will obscure the fixture (like a paper lantern) or a somewhat ostentatious one that will distract. Set up the cord (hemma from ikea, maybe) like you would if there were no light fixture in the room and use the existing one to wrap/hang the shade from. I've done both styles and although it seems like the cord would fall off, it never has. It doesn't look as good as hard-wired but it looks much better than frosted glass.

I have a situation with one of these that I solved without any wiring!

My overhead is an old-school pull-chain, and the options for pull chain lights are not attractive. What I did is this:

Got a lamp shade for a table lamp where the bracket where the harp attaches is "dropped".
Then I attached the lamp shade to the fixture; the hole for them matches perfectly, and the pull-chain drops right through the hole.

As my shade was purchased at Salvation Army for $1, I covered it in a tweed fabric, and I plan on getting a small piece of round plexiglass to help diffuse the light coming down.

This piece always gets comments when people see it, and it was a cheap fix to an ugly problem.

Pre war wiring. The reality of pre-war wiring is that even though you may find a metal junction box in the wall that is no guarantee that the box is actually gounded. If the house and it's electrical system are not properly grounded the green wire will do nothing. If it makes you feel better attach it to the box but without a verified ground (the electrical systems in most pre war houses weren't grounded anyway) you won't be any worse off. If you own it's time to have the wiring upgraded, if you rent, attach fixtures with no exposed metal parts and in any case don't hold onto the chandelier while cleaning the fish tank or doing the dishes.

Sometimes a landlord will change out the light for you.

especially if you buy the light!

Watch out for old buildings that used to have gas fixtures. We have live gas lines in our 1908 building which made replacing the hallway light fixture pretty complicated. A plumber had to come out and cap the gas line and made a 2 foot hole in our plaster ceiling in the process.