When you purchase a new light fixture, it should come with written installation instructions. But, basically, it's as you said - attach the wires correctly and screw it into place.

An electrician friend told us recently that he never shuts off power to the whole house when he is installing a new light fixture. He just makes sure that the light switch to the fixture being replaced is turned off.

My electrician "works hot". Do NOT do that.

ilove - no help here. I don't do electrical in my 1955 house and neither does DH. My fix for your light would be call "Matt" (my fav electrician at a local electrical shop) and say Help! Such a nice guy, and I don't find his invoices more/higher than fair either.

I should have said DH rarely does electrical here. He brought home a new GFCI outlet for the guest bath a couple of weeks ago, stood there with a flashlight and screwdriver for a minute - and I called Matt. He came the next morning and replaced the outlet, took care of a couple of other minor things for me. Here about an hour (although did have a cup of coffee) - my invoice arriving mail 3 days later $74.

Ask a friend or neighbor , people are always willing to help with problems especially if your husband has problems with his health.Its good to reach out to people sometimes we can help them back in some small way.

If you are removing an existing light fixture, and replacing it with a new one it really is not much more than what you described. A house built in 2002 is new enough that the wiring should be the same as the modern standard.

Take note when you deinstall the old light what wires are connected, maybe even take a picture. If there are just three wires coming into the junction box (a black wire, a white and a bare copper wire) it should be easy. (and simply making sure the light switch is off will make sure there is no power in the box) Essentially you will connect the black wire(s) on the new fixture to the black in the junction box, connect the white wire(s) on the new fixture to the white wire in the junction box, and then connect the bare or green wire on the fixture to the bare wire in the junction box.

If there are more than 3 wires in the junction box (which might happen if the power comes into that box and another goes out from there to the switch) it may be somewhat harder, and then you should turn off the correct break to ensure there is no live wires.

The hardest part for me, is standing on a ladder, holding the light fixture with one hand while using the other two hands to twist the wires together and put on the wire nut.

I’ve handled many things in my life, but won’t touch electricity. Hire a pro, not a “handy” neighbor or “handyman”. DH hired a handyman who worked for a condo assn. he managed to change a simple ceiling light. Found out later that he had DISCONNECTED the blower to the furnace!! Luckily, it happened in spring and discovered before cooler weather. Electricity can be dangerous if not respected.

You might want to check a Youtube video for some help.

I so agree with hiring a licensed pro for the job. Check Angie's List or HomeAdvisor for good recommendations in your area. While you'd think something like this would be elementary, the fact that you aren't handy (no shame in that -- neither am I!) is all the reason you need for calling in someone who knows what they're doing. Sometimes things that should be easy turn out not to be. It really shouldn't be that pricey to have this done, and I think it's money well spent. We've called in electrical contractors a few times to do various small jobs in our home. We might be able to view videos online and give it a whirl ourselves, but just prefer the peace of mind that knowing it's going to be done right brings.

I've switched out light fixtures on several occasions. Turn the breaker off, loosen the old fixture and see if the wires match up to the new fixture. If so, no problem.

What phoggie said.

My husband just replaced 5 exterior light fixtures on our house -- front porch, 2 garage coach lights, outside the garage pedestrian door, and back porch. It's not that difficult.

no, it isn't hard to do (if just a regular fixture). I've wired a lamp before. I don't do ceiling fixtures because I'm too short - and as one poster said standing on a ladder, balancing the fixture, the old fixture, wires... just too much for me. I have a tremor too now and my right hand won't let me do things like that anymore. I do find it frustrating.

but, do check some online videos on how to do it and see what you think.

Don't mess with electricity, hire a pro.

I've changed most of the fixtures in my house myself - the exception was low voltage track lighting that requires a transformer, which had to go into the attic, and I wanted to be able to turn it on and off from two different locations. I'm not experienced with three-way lighting, and so we hired an electrician for that. If it only has one switch, it is pretty straightforward. The fixture should come with installation instructions. I design chandeliers (as well as wall sconces) and also write installation instructions for them, and the instructions generally start with "must be installed by a qualified electrician" but that is mainly as a safeguard for our company. The rest of the instructions that I write are meant for the electrician to use. If you feel that the fixture that you bought has sufficient instructions, then you could do it yourself, but be sure to follow the instructions carefully. I tend to write rather lengthy instructions, and not everyone reads them thoroughly.

assuming you're replacing a fixture in a place that's already wired. I replaced a kitchen light with a ceiling fan with a light. I went to one of the big box home stores and was assured "you just...". well, in many cases you DON'T "just". minor things made the project take a lot longer than expected.

if you've NEVER done anything electrical before, I would NOT say DIY. Hire somebody and WATCH!

The existing light in the kitchen is a ceiling fan that I'm replacing. The light in the bedroom is a boob light. Seriously, I have trouble hanging pictures so I was a little concerned about doing this myself. The weight of the light is a consideration, and the light going in the kitchen is 16 pounds. I think a novice would need an extra pair of hands for this. I worried that the bar might not be strong enough for the kitchen light. Anyway, my husband has asked someone from church to help us with this. Yay! Thanks for all of your suggestions and advice--I am going to watch the guy replace the lights and maybe his skill will rub off on me. The pictures below are the new lights. The smaller one is for the bedroom and the larger is for the kitchen.

Even for professionals, chandeliers often require two people for installation, and I write this in my installation instructions. It is good that you are getting someone to help. You don't always need a professional for this, but you often need an extra person. I usually have my brother help me, and he studied electrical engineering for four years before he changed his major to art, and so he came very close to becoming an engineer. I had always encouraged him to major in art, however, as that is his passion.