How to Replace Fluorescent Lights in Your Kitchen

Kitchen lighting is an important part of any dining and kitchen area, and there’s no need to keep old fluorescent kitchen fixtures. However, you might be concerned about whether there’s any electrical work involved and the amount of work that may need to be done. In this article, we’ll help you replace fluorescent lights in your kitchen without worrying about damaged wiring or any problems after switching to your new lights. 

Removing a Fluorescent Light Fixture

While it might take more than trial and error to remove an old fixture compared to installing a new kitchen light, especially if you don’t have any instructions to work with. This is because a particular fluorescent light may function differently from another; before you start figuring things out, be sure to turn on the lights, and then cut the power at your breaker. Once the light turns off, you’ll be able to tell whether you have the correct breaker.  

• Position your ladder under the light fixture; it should be high enough to help you safely and comfortably access your lights. 
• Before anything else, always remember to wear protective eyewear to keep dust away from your eyes, then inspect both ends of your light fixture to look for tabs or clips that can help you pop them off. 
• Remove your light cover and set it aside before twisting your fluorescent bulbs off of the clips and set them aside or hand them over to someone who can help you with the process. 
• Next, remove a metal panel that covers the circuit wires and light fixture.
• Now look at the wire connectors that join the circuit wires with your fixture’s wires in your ceiling. Make sure to make notes on how they are all connected, or you can take a photo for reference. 
• Test your wires using a voltage tester to ensure that no wire has power. If it detects voltage, go back to your breaker box, switch off the right breaker, and retest. 
• Disconnect your fixture’s wires from your ceiling wires — you can do this by twisting the wire nuts off and then separating them. 
• Take the mountain screws that hold your fixture to the ceiling with a Philips screwdriver; be careful when you remove the last screw to stop it from falling on you. 

Options for Light Replacement 

When you want to replace your ceiling lights, there are a few options to consider which include a hanging light, flush-mount, or a semi flush-mount. Replace a light that generally serves as a source of overhead light — using a more powerful light can help to illuminate your whole room. While some lights will be better for task lighting, others are better suited to provide a light source in the hallway or living room. 

Connecting a New Light Fixture

Before you attach a new light source to your ceiling, assemble the parts that may need attaching in advance. This might not need much effort but you will need to slide your ceiling light canopy over your light’s wiring because you won’t be able to put it on once the wires are connected. You should also test the fit of your fixtures against your ceiling if it’s a flush mount; doing this will ensure that the hardware and mounting brackets can be easily attached to your junction box. 

While your breaker is still off, start testing the wires inside the ceiling box using a noncontact voltage tester to ensure there’s no power. Next, connect your fixture’s plate or mounting strap to your junction box using a screwdriver — make sure these wires come out from the sides or the plate’s center so they can be connected. You can then connect the wire ends with some wire connectors by following the wiring diagram provided by the manufacturer. 

Conclusion

Now that you know how to replace the fluorescent lights in your kitchen, you may not be ready to replace them completely but you can retrofit them with LED tube lights. A ​Ballast-compatible​ LED tube is made to fit inside common fluorescent fixtures and can be replaced easily. These great LED tubes will use around 30% less energy compared to other options and will also last 2 to 3 times longer.

Sources 

• hunker.com
• simply2moms.com
• mydesignrules.com