Installing a 4 wire smart light switch with only 3 wires.

in the American electrical system, the neutral wire is connected to the ground in the breaker box, which means that you can install 4-wire smart switches that require a dedicated neutral even if you only have 3 wires (hot, load, and ground) in the junction box, as is typical in older American houses. this is achieved by connecting the load and ground wires on the switch to the ground wire in the junction box. for more information on the American electrical system, I recommend the video by Technology Connections that goes in depth into the subject.

[torqtorqtorq]

This may be the only clear explanation of this on the internet. You just save me $70. Thanks dude!

[scomi]

Thanks, I was fairly sure that was how to do it. I just needed someone to show me it works before I burnt up a $17 switch. The perfect length video. Pure info no fluff. YOU DA MAN!

[rahil]

This is one of the most clear, useful and awesome how-to videos on YouTube. You showed me a trick that even the smart switch box said could not be done. The box said that a neutral wire is required but thanks to your tip, it is not. I installed a smart switch with dimmer and motion sensor which I purchased at Home Depot for $20 and it works like a charm once I hooked up the neutral to the ground. THANK YOU!!!

[archershillnursery]

You may not see this comment but I've been struggling with installing an ELEGRP DTR10 this whole afternoon and couldn't find relevant help ANYWHERE on the Internet. Until I found this video.
THANK YOU SO MUCH. You Saved me!! May this video help many more desperate smart switch installers!

[gpechmann]

Exactly the problem I was having and the exact video I needed to solve it. Thank you!

[adnanmasudmalik]

You are life saver. I’ve been challenged with the neutral wires for a few months now. Not even a single article or video provided the explanation which you did. Everyone talks about how important it is to have neutral wire and the ONLY alternative are the Lutron switches.
This is the only video I came across which shared such a valuable information and it works. Thank you bunch!!!!

[juancable]

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you ! I am certain there is a reason why no one else explained this like you, but I don’t care.
The Smart lights are working just fine; installed and are in operational working order.
No neutral wiring in my house.
Following your instructions, and using a voltage detector & voltage meter to ensure I found the load wire and everything worked just fine .

May the rewards from the universe shower upon you, my friend.

[allabouthim]

I've looked all over YouTube and none of the electricians addressed this issue. Thank you, thank you, thank you 👍🏾👍🏾!!

[ouningzhang]

this is super helpful! I bought a smart switch 2 years ago and finally I was able to install it. The only thing different that I did was to connect black with black, and the white wire from the wall to the red wire from the smart switch. Probably because the black wire on my smart switch is the “in” wire.

[nathanvelasquez]

Yours is the only video I could find that clearly explained the issue and solution. Thank you!!!!

[wytchwoodllc]

Just what i was looking for, couldn't understand why a dimmer switch had this configuration for single pole. All the other videos showed it in an unreal scenario, this is what we all have in the wall for single pole. Thank you!

[KarazyKidAtHeart]

I have the EXACT smart dimmed I got on clearance as opened box and got it for $3! I thiugbt oh heck ya! Only to get home to install it and find it had a red wire and wouldn't work even tho I tired to wire it anywyas not using the red and we'll needless to say it had been in the drawer for 2 plus years UNTIL JUST NOW! thank you thank you thank you for this video! This is the ONLY video I've found on this issue! Why aren't more people making a video on this! I may make my own but yours is totally awesome and clear instructions only difference is I'm working on a manufactured home and I've got 2 sets of wires km dealing with so it'll be a little different than this video but again thanks so much! I just hope I am writing this up right with the 2 sets of wires!

[JuanDaking]

This video saved me… after hours of trying .. thanks

[Peaceparadiso]

Did same like on video, everything started to work . God bless you man. You saved me 100 $

[fathompin]

I think wire you wrote in the description is backwards and needs a simple change. You wrote: "this is achieved by connecting the load and ground wires on the switch to the ground wire in the junction box."
It should read: "this is achieved by connecting the NEUTRAL and ground wires on the smart switch to the ground wire in the switch's junction box."
The video is very correct in its solution; only your written description mistakenly uses the word load instead of neutral).

Allow me to elaborate on your solution, much of it repeating what you have said in the video. The dimmer switch needs power for it's electronics, and theoretically there is no neutral wire in the switch box. But, since in older houses the neutral and ground are connected at the circuit breaker box, the video's solution takes advantage of this fact in order to provide the small amount of power needed for the smart switch's electronics to operate; i.e. wifi or bluetooth. This small amount of power draw using the ground wire might trigger a shut off state if sensitive ground fault electronics, GFCI, are installed on that circuit, but otherwise is not a problem to do this since there are likely other ground fault wiring in the older house, but you should label this box to help someone down the road potentially trying to locate any ground-fault circuit problems that are in the house. The wire size used to connect the neutral and ground to the smart dimmer switch should be large enough to handle the circuit breaker current load (10-15 amps, 12 or 14 gauge wire) not simply the very small load the smart dimmer switch is expected to draw. This is so that the wire will not heat up and potentially cause a fire if somehow the smart dimmer fails and full capacity circuit breaker load current is shunted to the ground and/or neutral wires you used on the dimmer switch. The larger current carrying duties needed for the light fixture (i.e. 15-20 amps max depending on wire size) are handled by the two white Hot wire and black load wire found in the light switch box. The smart dimmer switch's load rating can handle the light's load that is carried by these two wires. Note, the white wire should have been colored black on a section of it by the initial installer to indicate that it is hot wire not neutral, but usually they didn't do this). These two wires are connected to and controlled by the smart switch, as shown in the video. Note that the Neutral wire of the light-fixture circuit is located only at the light fixture box itself, and it carries the neutral power load of the light circuit (not the dimmer's neutral electronic load, which is carried by the ground wire in the switch's box, and is essentially a ground fault, but is low current) and as said, this was a common practice to economically feed inexpensive, two-conductor wire (with ground wire) to a light switch box to turn the light on and off.
I can imagine if an electrician is called in to "fix" this issue, that he would feel obligated to charge the customer the expense to run a neutral wire to the light switch's junction box....just my guess. Which is why this is such a very useful video to those untrained in electronics.

[vallevsky]

Thanks. This is the BEST explanation. Short and useful.
Owner is real PRO.

[michaelcrank]

Thank you so much I appreciate you uploading this video. Thank god for YouTube and people like you.

[dapoog]

I have never watched an electricity video but I appreciate this gift from the random internet machine

[BLINPorsche]

This helped me. I didn't have a ground wire in my switch box. The house was built in visible ground wires so my wall switch timer(Woods 59020) had three wires, 1 black, 1red, 1green(ground). I wired the green(ground) to the white(neutral) and it seems to be working. I'll wait 24 hours and let it cycle through once. Let you know. I couldn't even get the timer to power up, but I've got power and I programed the unit.

[eduincastro]

thank you very much this is what i was looking for for an hour and no one explained it thanks